Can you get health insurance for your parent?

Answer 1

You have a few possible options for obtaining health insurance for your parent:

1. This is rare, but there are a few employer-sponsored health plans that will allow you to add an adult (such as a parent or in-law) to your health coverage. You generally have to pay the entire cost of the coverage for your parent or in-law, which could be several hundred dollars per month. You also have to document that your parent or in-law doesn't have other coverage and is dependent on you.
2. Some health insurers sell individual insurance policies. You could check with your local Blue Cross insurer, for example. In the three states I've lived in, the local Blue Cross association was the so-called "insurer of last resort," meaning that Blue Cross had to provide coverage to anyone who applied for it. The Blue Cross plan could limit enrollment to just once a year, so you might have to wait until their next enrollment period. Other insurers may also offer individual policies, but if they're not the insurer of last resort in your state, they may be able to deny coverage if you don't meet their health eligibility criteria.
3. If your parent is enrolled in Medicare, you can look into the options to obtain additional coverage - a Medigap policy, Medicare Part D prescription coverage, a Medicare Advantage plan. If you go to the medicare.gov website, you can find information about the plans that are available to your parent.