California residents that are currently pregnant and that are insured through Covered California may want to think twice about reporting their pregnancy. This is because a recent policy change in Medi-Cal eligibility has resulted in a glitch that has caused more than 1,900 women to be transferred from their Covered California health plans to Medi-Cal, which is the state’s health program for low-income residents.

A Glitch in the Covered California System

This transfer has occurred without the knowledge or the consent of those whose Covered California health plans were dropped once they were transferred to Medi-Cal. This is a serious issue, since a pregnant woman could end up missing out on prenatal care because they no longer have proper health insurance coverage. According to Covered California, all of this was caused by a computer glitch, which although identified, won’t be fixed until September.

Because of this glitch, those who are currently insured through Covered California and are pregnant should not report their pregnancies to Covered California. First of all, it’s not even a requirement to report pregnancies, so there’s no reason to do it in the first place. Secondly, by reporting their pregnancy, they could risk having their coverage dropped due to the glitch.

Similar Issues With HealthCare.gov

A similar issue has been reported with HealthCare.gov, the federal health insurance exchange. The glitch has caused computer systems to immediately transition women to Medicaid after reporting their pregnancies.

The Source of the Issue

Consumers are typically placed in either Medi-Cal or Covered California, depending on their income level. They don’t have a choice between the two — but the rules are different for pregnant women whose household income falls between roughly $22,100 to $34,100 for a family of two. Pregnant women that fall in this income bracket are automatically placed in Medi-Cal, but they technically get to choose, even though they aren’t informed about this option.

Women with health insurance through Covered California should avoid reporting their pregnancies at this time. To stay up to date with important health insurance related news, be sure to visit us at The Benefits Store today.