Health Insurance Do I have to tell my health insurance company that my wife is pregnant? Written by Penny Gusner Penny Gusner Penny is an expert on insurance procedures, rates, policies and claims. She has extensive knowledge of all major insurance lines -- auto, homeowners, life and health insurance. She has been answering consumers’ questions as an analyst for more than 15 years and has been featured in numerous major media outlets, including the Washington Post and Kiplinger’s. Updated on: August 8, 2021 Why you can trust Insure.com Quality Verified At Insure.com, we are committed to providing the timely, accurate and expert information consumers need to make smart insurance decisions. All our content is written and reviewed by industry professionals and insurance experts. Our team carefully vets our rate data to ensure we only provide reliable and up-to-date insurance pricing. We follow the highest editorial standards. Our content is based solely on objective research and data gathering. We maintain strict editorial independence to ensure unbiased coverage of the insurance industry. No, you don’t need to contact your health insurance plan to let them know your wife is pregnant if she’s already covered by the plan. She is automatically covered for maternity benefits. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires health insurance marketplace and employer-sponsored health insurance plans cover 10 essential health benefits. Those benefits include pregnancy, maternity, childbirth and prenatal care health benefits for pregnant women and their newborns. The ACA doesn’t allow health insurance companies to consider pregnancy a pre-existing condition. Instead, health plans must provide pregnancy-related health coverage. Even if your wife’s pregnancy began before she was insured under your health insurance policy, her maternity care must be covered. Also, having a child qualifies you for a special enrollment period. So, if your spouse isn’t on the health plan, you can add her to the coverage if she’s pregnant. Once your baby is born, you need to call your health insurance company to add the newborn to your policy within a given time frame, normally 30 days. If you miss this window, you’ll have to wait until the next open enrollment period to add your baby. If you miss the deadline, your baby will be uninsured. However, there’s one exception. If you face a qualifying life event during the year, such as losing coverage, moving to another state or getting divorced, you could be eligible for a special enrollment period. A special enrollment period allows you to make changes to your health plan outside of the open enrollment window. Here are 3 insurance moves to make if you’re pregnant. Penny GusnerContributor . .Penny is an expert on insurance procedures, rates, policies and claims. She has extensive knowledge of all major insurance lines -- auto, homeowners, life and health insurance. She has been answering consumers’ questions as an analyst for more than 15 years and has been featured in numerous major media outlets, including the Washington Post and Kiplinger’s. Related Articles Can I drop my spouse from my health insurance at any time? By Nupur Gambhir Can you get health insurance if you retire at 62? By Shivani Gite How COBRA works if you move out of state By Barry Eitel Can my parents kick me off their health insurance By Shivani Gite How to add a spouse to your health insurance plan By Huma Naeem Does my deductible start over if I change jobs? By Shivani Gite ZIP Code Please enter valid ZIP See rates