hildren’s Medical Center Dallas should be an approved healthcare provider on the health insurance plan that covers your child. However, this may not always be the case. And that means parents should check their insurance plan regularly. Taking a proactive approach with your child’s healthcare is the best way to prepare for an unexpected child health emergency.

Even if you think Children’s is an approved provider in your plan, there are certain situations that could affect this:

• You change your job or your job status, and your coverage changes.
• Your employer changes health insurance carriers, or the level of coverage.
• Your health plan removes an approved provider, with or without notification.

In addition, many employers, including the federal government, offer open enrollment periods. These annual limited time periods (usually a few weeks) give employees a great opportunity to change insurance plans or levels of coverage. During an open enrollment period, you should assess the anticipated healthcare needs of your family in the coming year, and seek out health insurance plans that include a children’s hospital.

If you discover that your health insurance plan does not include Children’s as an approved healthcare provider, you can take these steps:

• Contact your health plan and ask why the children’s hospital is not included.
• Let your employer’s benefits manager know that the current plan does not include your children’s hospital.