NJ health insurance (low income, unemployment, transfer) - City-Data Forum

familymom · 09-14-2008, 11:03 AM

Anyone hear about the health insurance offered to NJ residence? I think it goes by your income. Use to be only for children but I have heard it is now for a whole family.

EEEPNJ · 09-14-2008, 02:05 PM

NJ Family Care. Used to be NJ Kid Care.
Right now it's only "family" care if you are very low income. Do you need information on it?

If so you can go to this website:

Welcome to NJ FamilyCare

It'll give you all the info you need.

lwnj · 09-19-2008, 01:10 AM

NJ FamilyCare will cover you and your kid if you have no insurance for 3 months.
NJ FamilyCare also does NOT cover pregnant woman. They will transfer your case to Medicaid.

If you are pregnant, apply directly with your county Medicaid, which has stricter income limit (e.g. receiving the max. unemployment benefit is enough to disqualify you.)
If you are not qualified for Medicaid, but already pregnant, NJ FamilyCare will still NOT cover you.
I am 6 month pregnant and just went through the whole thing myself, after 2 months of application, having my case being transferred around NJ FamilyCare and Medicaid, just to get "No" from both of them.

So my advice is, apply with them, or get something else before getting pregnant. I had insurance before but my husband lost his job when I was 3 month pregnant. NJ FamilyCare denied me because I am pregnant, and they denied my toddler because he has COBRA, which we can no longer afford next month.

While federal law bars pregnancy to be considered as pre-existing condition, it only applies to group plan, NOT individual plan. You are really screwed in the state of New Jersey if you are pregnant and have no insurance.

Good luck!!

familymom · 09-19-2008, 05:45 AM

Thanks for the info. I called them and the whole thing about my kids having to have no insurance for 3 months is not worth it. We pay 50% of our insurance thru my husbands job so we were just trying to lower our payments. God forbid I chose to go this way and one of us got hurt while waiting for our application to apply. Just another backward policy offered by New Jersey.

EEEPNJ · 09-19-2008, 10:11 AM

I see that everyday familymom. Our company has CRAPPY EXPENSIVE insurance. (Trust me I'm in HR and fight for better, but cheap and greedy owners are all over...)
but people ask me about it all the time, and yes, that's the danger... you have to go 3 months without. It's a big gamble.