Health insurance for pregnant newcomer to Israel

Bubbles77

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 4:37 pm

I am iyH moving to Israel from NY with my husband this summer and will be in my third trimester of pregnancy at the time (expecting my first iyH). We will be on student visas so we are not eligible for bituach leumi until after the 6 month waiting period, and obviously need to find some alternative. We are not considering aliyah at this time. Our plan is to have the baby in Israel, and I wasn't really thinking about coming back to the states for that - it could be an option if it absolutely needs to be, but is not ideal for us.

I have been looking into other options for healthcare coverage and it seems almost impossible to get. I understand that the kupot cholim view it as a preexisting condition and will not accept me. I called many private insurance companies, all of which said they do not have a plan for maternity care without a waiting period. I heard that meuchedet might possibly accept someone already pregnant, but not to bank on it. If anyone has experience with that specifically, that would be helpful. If they might accept me, could I confirm that before I come? Even if I get that, it would not cover the labor & delivery so I still need additional coverage. I tried asking my US insurance if they have any way to pay for overseas coverage, but they don't. A new US or even international insurance won't help because they all have waiting periods for maternity care benefits.

At this point, I really don't know if there is a viable option for me, but I figured there is a great network here and maybe someone knows. I am also in touch with Chaim V'chessed and I have tried everything they suggested to me, although nothing seems too positive at the moment.

Any help appreciated!

Bubbles77

Thu, Jun 09 2022, 2:09 pm

amother [ Bronze ] wrote:

Hey
I was in the same situation and there is no ins that will cover you.we checked everything
Sorry

Just to confirm, you mean you couldn't find anything that covered you even for the maternity care but not hospitalization?

I'm currently trying to get through to Maccabi as I heard that they might take me, in which case I could have maternity care and bituach leumi would reimburse me for hospitalization retroactively once I qualify. As of now that's my only lead.

Bubbles77

Thu, Jun 09 2022, 2:12 pm

amother [ DarkKhaki ] wrote:

Did you look into an American insurance policy that covers out of country? I assume it would be pretty pricy, but it may be an option.

Appreciate the suggestion. I looked into it though and it seems all policies have a waiting period for maternity benefits (with the possible exclusion of government subsidized insurance, but those don't have international policies) so it doesn't help Sad

amother

Wine

Thu, Jun 09 2022, 4:01 pm

It is going to be impossible to get insurance because it doesn't make economic sense for a private insurer to provide insurance knowing that the cost is going to be far higher than the premiums paid. While most births go well without complications and the baby is born safely and healthy the insurance company would not only be on the hook for a complicated delivery but also potentially the incredibly expensive care for a baby that needs intensive care of some kind.

It is the essence of insurance that one has to sign up before you need it - you can't get car insurance after an accident and you can't get home insurance after a fire.

Some governments will provide insurance for a pregnant woman because it is deemed such an important thing that babies should be given prenatal care and that births be provided in as safe an environment as possible. That is why in most states in the US you can get some form of Medicaid just because you are pregnant because for Medicaid purposes it is a qualifying event. By providing prenatal care and birth, they are also attempting to insure that healthy productive citizens are born since the cost of caring for someone who has suffered disabilities due to birth which would have been avoidable is not only tragic on a human level but also much more expensive in the long run than providing basic prenatal care.

I am not familiar with the Israeli health system but why would they want to encourage non-citizens to come to Israel and have the government pick up costly medical care.

amother

Crystal

Mon, Jul 04 2022, 11:05 am

Don't know if you're still looking, but... There is a man named [name removed] who somehow manages to get legal documents "underground". He is pricey but definitely worth it in your situation! He has managed to get bituach leumi for women in exactly your situation, who arrived in EY during a pregnancy and didn't have time to get on health insurance. He has managed to get visas for people who had complicated issues and were told not to even set foot in the Misrad Hapnim or they will be kicked out of the country! I have personal experience - he is fast and efficient. Let me know if you want his number Smile

Hatzlacha!

amother

Vanilla

Mon, Jul 04 2022, 11:08 am

amother [ Crystal ] wrote:

Hatzlacha!

please don't post illegal advice online. Dumb. You (and OP) can get into serious trouble this way

amother

Wine

Mon, Jul 04 2022, 11:25 am

amother [ Crystal ] wrote:

Hatzlacha!

How would people react if they knew about someone advising immigrants to the US on how to get false documents in order to get lots of government benefits. 🤷‍♀️ It is appalling that someone is offering advice on cheating the system at the expense of Israeli residents.

amother

Crystal

Tue, Jul 05 2022, 10:29 am

OMG please think before you judge. It is 100% legal, and the documents are NOT false, but completely legit. We looked into this from every angle, and there is nothing "illegal" about it whatsoever. The only difference is that he obtains the documents himself, as opposed to going through a million miles of red tape and government bureaucracy.
If you still feel the need to call me "dumb", "appalling", "cheating" or "fraud-committing" - I'm sorry that you misunderstood me. I guess I won't be offering to help anyone again if this is how I'm judged for doing something completely legal and upright.

amother

Vanilla

Tue, Jul 05 2022, 11:12 am

amother [ Crystal ] wrote:

I'm not sure who misled you to believe this. If he's trying to get you health insurance when legally you are ineligible, whatever his methods are, what he's doing is illegal and fraud.

amother

Clematis

Tue, Jul 05 2022, 11:29 am

amother [ Crystal ] wrote:

I want his information. How can I message you

amother

Forsythia

Tue, Jul 05 2022, 11:46 am

Hi op I was in the same situation. You can get Meuchedet insurance officially up to 25 weeks I waited longer by mistake.
Email this email address or call these numbers. Ask for Shimon he will help you. TouristJer@meuhedet.co.il
026503219
026503392

It will not cover the birth but IyH once you get betuach leumi it will be reimbursed. You can ask the hospital not to cash your check at the time of birth and tell them you plan on getting betuach leumi.

Bubbles77

Tue, Jul 05 2022, 3:36 pm

amother [ Crystal ] wrote:

Don't know if you're still looking, but... There is a man named [name removed] who somehow manages to get legal documents "underground". He is pricey but definitely worth it in your situation!

Thanks for the idea. Someone did send me his number in a pm but as others mentioned I'm concerned about the sketchiness. Feel free to pm me with more info if you have, but as of now I'm hoping going a more conventional route will work Smile

Quote:

Thank you forsythia! I've been planning on updating the thread once everything happens smoothly iyH but this is basically the plan I've worked out and am planning on going with. I spoke to someone at Maccabi who said they would give me coverage even at a late stage (was really hard to get through to them but eventually bH!). It's nice to know that there might actually be another option of Meuchedet, alhough I'll be past 25 weeks. At what point did you go that they still gave you?

As for the birth what you said is exactly what I hope to do. IyH we should be able to get our visas quickly and I spoke to someone who did this business with giving the hospital a post-dated check and telling them not to cash it since we will get on bituach leumi. I'm not entirely relaxed about that process but if others have done it it makes me feel better. I'm told the hospitals are familiar with people doing this and will work with me.
Thank you to everyone who made helpful suggestions! BH I am past being stressed about this as we have a workable plan and iyH I can update after it all happens so it can help others as well.

amother

Crystal

Wed, Jul 06 2022, 8:34 am

amother [ Clematis ] wrote:

I want his information. How can I message you

Great question Smile

I don't want to publicly reveal my username after the kind of responses I got above, because I don't want to get kicked off this board for trying to help someone... Also I don't want people associating this with my username... And yeah I know this makes me sound even more sketchy...
If you are comfortable revealing your username, I will be happy to pm you! Otherwise can you create a fake email address or something, and I'll message you there...?