At the end of 2007, to save money, I chose to not re-enroll in my employers insurance (UHC) but to use my last year on my parents insurance, before turning 26 next year and getting booted off, to save some money by not double insuring myself. Then I decided I wanted to get banded and found out that my parents insurance, Altius, does not cover banding but my employers insurance, UHC, does.

So I spoke with my HR department today and they said that if my coverage was terminated with my parents plan I could enroll with them and not have to wait for the end of the year annual enrollment.

So here is the question - they work on the honor system. If I tell them that the coverage has been terminated they take my word for it, I enroll with UHC and get banded sometime this summer. Otherwise I have to wait for January and hope my company keeps UHC next year. Any thoughts and opinions would be appreciated, I am on the fence on this one. Thanks guys, love this forum!!!

Have your parents terminate you from their policy. There will then be a letter or some sort of confirmation of termination from the insurance co.

010308 - You are exactly the person I needed to hear from. Thank you for the information you have given me, it is priceless. And you have convinced me to not play with fire, you are right it is not worth it. One question. I now plan on having my parents drop me from their plan and the next day enroll with UHC through my employer. Because I will have been covered by insurance in the 90 days prior to signing up with UHC they state they waive the waiting period to cover treatment, do you believe this would include a waiting period on getting the surgery? Does this make sense?

I do believe that would include the waiting period on getting the surgery, from what I can gather. This does make sense. Good Luck with your journey!!!:biggrin2:

010308 - You are exactly the person I needed to hear from. Thank you for the information you have given me, it is priceless. And you have convinced me to not play with fire, you are right it is not worth it. One question. I now plan on having my parents drop me from their plan and the next day enroll with UHC through my employer. Because I will have been covered by insurance in the 90 days prior to signing up with UHC they state they waive the waiting period to cover treatment, do you believe this would include a waiting period on getting the surgery? Does this make sense?

010308 - Because I will have been covered by insurance in the 90 days prior to signing up with UHC they state they waive the waiting period to cover treatment, do you believe this would include a waiting period on getting the surgery? Does this make sense?

I think it's unlikely that you will have a waiting period specifically requiring you to wait for WLS, but the reason that I mentioned it in the post yesterday is because my plan, through my employer which is a large group that makes its own benefits, does have a waiting period that is specifically for WLS and they won't waive it for prior coverage. To be on the safe side you should call Customer Service at UHC and verify that there are no waiting periods that are specific to any one kind of treatment. Or your employer should be able to provide you with a benefit booklet (which is different then a benefit summary sheet and provides all contract information). Get it and look in the table of contents for surgery, weight loss (bariatric or obesity) surgery and waiting periods and read what they have to say.

Just make sure you cover all your bases. Just so you know, the reason I always suggest people check with their own insurance carrier is because there are so many different benefits from so many different insurance carriers in so many different states that vary all the way from WLS being covered at 100% to not being covered at all and it doesn't matter if you're dying from your co-morbidities.

Good luck... I hope to hear from you that you've been successful in getting your surgery!!!

call your parents up and have them cancel your coverage. They will just have to go to the web page of the insurance company since your 25.

then call up your employeer and tell them that your plan has been canceled...and enroll in your employeers plan.....

there is no lie there or deception what so ever.... all that will be true.

your plan was canceled...... thats true....

and even if you had to answer how your plan was canceled you could say

my parents canceled my plan..... and that would be true as well....

The correct and moral thing to do here is to become self supporting.

At age 25 the only thing you should be taking from your parents is a small birthday present and a reasonable christmas present and thats it.

In fact you should be giving them birthday and christmas presents.

So do a self review and if dad is paying for your cell phone or car insurance or car payment or student loans or health insurance go and have all that stoped. Decide to be an adult then walk in to your jobs hr department and sign up for your very own health insurance and if any one says anything to you then say

"I am 25 and I need to stand on my own two feet"

Not only will you be doing the right thing but people will respect you for it. Mom and Dad will respect you as well.

I definitly would not carry two insurances. Why can't you just cancel your parents insurance (you will then get a termination of coverage letter) and enroll with your employer. They will find out if you have two coverages and then you will be responsible for the remainder, I was in a similar situation - by accident.

I am not sure if it is only a NY law, but I do know that if you don't have a lapse in coverage for 3 months total the "Pre-Existing Clause" will be void. You have to be careful of that also.

im going to jump in too and say just have your parents cancel their insurance for you.

The correct and moral thing to do here is to become self supporting.

At age 25 the only thing you should be taking from your parents is a small birthday present and a reasonable christmas present and thats it.

In fact you should be giving them birthday and christmas presents.

So do a self review and if dad is paying for your cell phone or car insurance or car payment or student loans or health insurance go and have all that stoped. Decide to be an adult then walk in to your jobs hr department and sign up for your very own health insurance and if any one says anything to you then say

"I am 25 and I need to stand on my own two feet"

Not only will you be doing the right thing but people will respect you for it. Mom and Dad will respect you as well.

Wow. Ok, more than a little offended at this. I am on my parents insurance, and have been since I was 16, because my step mother works for the state and insures everyone in the family who is under 26 years old and not married because SHE ONLY PAYS $50 A MONTH, REGARDLESS OF THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE ON THE PLAN and it pays 100% of all the medical bills. It is just good common sense.

For your information - I am a 24 year old single mother of a little girl, I live on my own - I pay my own rent, car payment, bills, grocery bill, daughters insurance, ect and am also putting me self through college full time while working 45 hours a week. I have my daughter in the best private school in my area and she is a thriving happy, little girl. I am more than self sufficient and do not use my daddy's money as you suggest.

I am offended you would make such assumptions as this. I thought it silly to pay to be double insured and thought that for this last year I would put the $130 monthly insurance premium I had been paying aside to begin a college fund for my daughter. So you tell me, what exactly about this scenario in not "correct" or "moral"?!

I thought this forum was about people who had something in common coming together to offer advice, past experiences and support. Not to judge – if I wanted judgment I would go shop at Vanity and ask for my size 26 and see what the skinny little girl behind the counter would do.

Well that was an unfortunate comment. Hopefully your Insurance situation will work itself out, in order for you to get the lapband....Getting healthy for a long life w/your little girl will be well worth the investment. Don't run from this site, there are some amazing people who have a lot to offer here!

This comes more under the heading of insurance fraud rather than white lie. I don't think it is worth the risk, apart from the dishonesty angle. If necessary, wait until next year when you can sign up for insurance again.

Yeah, that post is really random.

If the insurance rate is better, it would be silly not to be on your parents insurance if you can. I was on my parents as long as I could, the cost was no difference for them. Now I'm not on their insurance and they're paying the exact same rate.. duh?

I am going to have my parents drop me from their insurance the last day of April. I will call my HR department May 1st and enroll back into the companies insurance. Then on May 5th I will go to my doctor and start the process. I am glad I consulted everyone on here first, you all have talked some sense into me :smile2:

I will keep my kids on not only on my health ins. but also my auto ins. for as long as I can, as I can get a better rate than they can. I would do anything to help my self sufficient children succeed in whatever they choose. It is very fortunate that you have had this support from your parents, and very sad that someone had to jump in and voice an opinion on something that wasn't even remotely close to the information you were asking about. Good luck and give that little girl a big hug. You are doing an amazing thing getting healthy for her.

I would recommend being honest. It's a tough economy right now. You don't want to lose your job because of being caught in a lie.

Sue