<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

I would like to thank everyone who sent e-mail posts in response to my
question about insurance companies. I will summarise them:

***by HIPA law I should be able to stay under my husbands old insurance -
and we would be the one to pay the premium.

***to go easy and if the problems do not resolve to check to see if there
is a State Commerence Commissioner who will help with regulating health
insurers and not allowing open enrollment.

***if there is not a state insurance commisioner there could be a state
ombudsman to help follow us through this.

***I was reminded that it was against the US federal law for an insurance
company to deny any individual coverage under a group medical plan because
of a medical condition. And, a pre-existing condition exclusion period of
no more than 12 months can be imposed.

***refer to celiacs as malabsorption syndrome or gluten-sensitivity
enteropathy.If need be go to the supervisor, or the company's benefit
officer, and send a
long letter asking for all of your records and make them re-evaluate.

***see if the company has open enrollment. For in smaller companies they may
have insurance that have a clause that will insure all new employees but will
not cover "pre-existing conditions" for the first 6-12 months. Or there may be
a clause to refuse to issue insurance based on medical history.

***look on the web at the Revised Code of Washington, for in the state of
Washington where they have this law an insurance company has to insure people
with pre-existing conditions.

Thanks again to all - we are looking into various things.

Bonnie H