“Yes! We’re going to Minnesota and we’re going to have health care and it’s going to be great!” Hannah said excitedly. A spirited 25-year-old with a wide grin, moving to Minnesota marked a series of new beginnings for Hannah, not the least of which was preparing for her first child. Formerly on her parents’ insurance, Hannah and her husband decided Hannah’s pregnancy was the perfect time to transition to their own plan. But finding quality healthcare for their new family wasn’t an easy task.
“I think we had applied almost three different times,” Hannah explained. Living in Texas at the time, Hannah applied for coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) both online and over the phone. Each time Hannah was met with hours of wait time, an endless series of call center agents, and few answers.
Once Hannah finally confirmed that she, her husband, and their new baby would be covered, they were left with a $347 monthly premium and a $6,000 deductible. With Hannah’s prenatal care coming in well below the $6,000 mark, the couple ended up paying all their medical costs out-of-pocket despite their coverage. “It felt like our insurance wasn’t helping us at all,” Hannah said.
As the two geared up to move closer to Hannah’s family in Minnesota, they anticipated that transferring to insurance through MNsure would mean another healthcare headache. Instead, they found Mary Jo, Planned Parenthood’s Lead Navigator. From broad questions like where to begin to detailed ones like how to fill out question 2a, Mary Jo supported Hannah every step of the way.
Now, with a new plan and a meager $34 deductible, the young couple can focus on more important things than how to pay their medical bills. “That’s not even something we think about now,” Hannah says. “We know that things are going to be covered and our baby’s going to be healthy.”