Children who are covered under both parents' group health insurance plans have one plan considered primary insurance, while the other insurance is considered secondary. The primary insurance pays the cost of claims first. The secondary plan pays the rest of the costs not covered by the primary plan, if the treatment is a covered benefit. When a child or teen is covered by the group policies of both parents, the primary insurance usually is the one belonging to the parent whose birthday comes earlier in the calendar year. There are exceptions to this and families should check the details of each policy.

When 2 policies are providing coverage, record-keeping becomes much more involved. But depending on how much coverage you get, it may be worthwhile to keep both if you can. If the second coverage is better, fills in gaps to pay for treatments that the primary insurance doesn't cover, or if the primary has a low annual maximum limit, it may be worth keeping the second one. There are many factors to think about, and each situation is different.

Back to Children Diagnosed with Cancer: Financial and Insurance Issues

Last Medical Review: 04/01/2009
Last Revised: 04/01/2009