An article in USA Today states that UnitedHealthCare, Humana, Kaiser Permanente, and WellPoint will let adult children stay on their parents’ health plans until age 26. The law takes effect on September 23 but some insurers are making rule changes now in order to prevent young adults from failing into a coverage gap.
UnitedHealthcare and Humana will now allow young adults to stay on their parent’s health plans until age 26. WellPoint, which operates 14 Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans across the U.S., will make the change effective June 1. Kaiser in working out the details but intends to extend coverage before September to avoid potential gaps in coverage.
The moves by these insurers is being praised by many, especially HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, as she believes that there will be substantial benefits to allowing young adults to stay on their parents’ insurance plans. On the practical side, this will save money by avoiding the administrative costs of disenrolling and then re-enrolling young adults.