Can I keep it? (My health insurance, that is.)

The thing about insurance companies is that they don't like to pay out money. They have to be careful about claims because companies don't make money by spending money. Will an insurance company care much about the cost of routine health care or birth control? No, not really. Will an insurance company care much about paying $300,000 for your care after you crash your car in the middle of the winter and require emergency surgery? Yep, and you can be sure that if there is any reason that they are not liable for the cost, they will find out and refuse to pay. If they're of the not-so-nice sort, they might even retroactively cancel your policy and force you to reimburse them for all health care costs they've paid for since you started your job. If your parents' policy does not allow you to be covered if you have a job that provides coverage, then you should not lie to your insurance company. Full stop. Insurance fraud is a bad thing, especially if it's just to get cheaper birth control pills. If you cannot afford your birth control, I suggest talking to Planned Parenthood; they tend to have free or sliding scale plans for people just like you.

Everything that saeculorum said. Also, it's not that UHC is better than Oxford, per se (Oxford is actually owned by UHC, fwiw). Bigger employers (like your parent's) tend to pay their own claims. They use the insurance carrier (UHC, Oxford, Aetna, Cigna, etc.) as an administrator, but it's the employer's bank account that is paying the bills. So they've got a lot more flexibility in what they're able/willing to offer. Smaller companies (especially really small I know this doesn't answer your question so much about which plan to stay with and if you are allowed to based on your current employment status, but I thought it might be helpful background, so that you're not viewing it so much as 'this carrier sucks vs. that carrier is awesome'. You could have multiple companies offering the same carrier, with vastly different plans. For the most accurate answer to your actual question, have your parent read through their Summary Plan Description (which they should be able to access online through their carrier) in the section regarding eligibility requirements, and if they can't find the answer there, they can always call HR with a hypothetical scenario (my kid is job hunting, if they get a job, can I still cover them until 26?).5>

You will be asked if you are insured under multiple plans. One of the plans will be considered primary. If allowed the other plan will be considered secondary. You must submit first to the primary plan and only after the primary plan has paid can you submit to the secondary plan for any difference in coverage. At that point the secondary plan can reimburse the difference between the two plans. If you do this ask both plans about the arrangement. Do not try to hide anything. Do not find yourself without insurance for any period (gap in coverage) - that can be an expensive mistake.

From the OP:"I called UHC earlier this morning and the rep was able to confirm that I am able to stay on the plan even if I am offered insurance through my employer. I could also opt to use both insurances. I was worried about calling because I didn't want to be flagged in the system but it worked out. Also, birth control is not the only medication I take (my BC is used to treat a medical condition) I also take medication for asthma and as well as 2 meds prescribed by my psychiatrist, so it is important to me to retain the plan that I have. However, BC is the only medication that my coworker takes, so I had to use that for the price comparison.

You evaluate the plan based on, first, does it cover your chronic medical needs (BC is in this category), second, are you satisfied with emergency coverage, third, balance your needs for low co-pays and other out-of-pocket, vs. your ability, in cause of an emergency, to copver the entire deductible. If your parents can float you a loan in times of emergency, go for medium to high deductible, I'd say. (Figure $2000-5000.) If you're on your savings alone, skew towards low deductible if possible-- you don't need a medical event to wipe you out. The Affordable Care Act hasn't proven yet to be affordable for many. Don't cheat on the insurance; I don't know the law, but if it is as you say, and you knowingly stick with UHC despite the law, UHC might drop you at any minute. I'm not sure if this constitutes a life-altering event enough to enroll in Oxford outside of an open enrollment.

Did you check with United Healthcare to see if the plan is a grandfathered one or not? Plans that provide coverage for dependents are required to extend the coverage of dependents (adult children) to age 26, regardless of their eligibility for other insurance coverage, effective Sept. 23, 2010. Plans must provide coverage to all eligible dependents, including those who are not enrolled in school, not dependents on their parents' tax returns, and those who are married. Grandfathered plans (group health plans and group health insurance coverage only) are not required to cover adult children to the age of 26 if the adult child is eligible to enroll in another employer-sponsored health plan. This is in effect until the first plan renewal date on or after Jan. 1, 2014. If they are grandfathered you are probably out of luck, although my NYS healthplan does allow fulltime working adult children to be covered. So make sure you have checked with the plan.

I can't answer from a legal point of view, but I work for a company (in NYS) that offers insurance but has a LOT of under-26ers there, and most of them are still on their parents' insurance plan, just because it's cheaper for them, if nothing else. So there are a lot of people doing this, although they may all be putting themselves at risk by doing so.

Also, keep in mind that at some point soon you will be required to prove you have health insurance when you file your income tax return. I don't have any knowledge that this will somehow allow your parents' insurance company to verify that you have access to your own insurance, but putting together a W-4 showing your employer's name along with some kind of insurance verification leaves even smaller wiggle room. It's not too big of a step for your parents' insurance company to demand a copy of their income tax return to prove that you are still a dependent. Our bankers require a copy of our return every year due to our business loans, so it's within the realm of possibility, I think. My advice is to follow the law.

Depending on when open enrollment is at your company your coworker's plan may not have had the provision of the Affordable Health Care act that requires women's preventative care (including birth control) to be fully covered (that means FREE!) kick in yet. Most plans are not grandfathered and you should be covered by them when you enroll for the first time. Here's a guide for figuring out whether those provisions will apply to your new plan or not: http://www.nwlc.org/resource/how-find-out-if-and-when-your-health-plan-will-begin-covering-women%E2%80%99s-preventive-services-n I have pretty crappy health insurance but honestly as a reasonably healthy woman in my 20s the birth control copay was my major medical outlay, and even with our crappy coverage I get my NuvaRing for free.