Frequently asked questions about Juno Child Insurance.

At Juno, we envision a world where every parent has the support and resources they need for their children to reach their full potential.

We’ve put together our most frequently asked questions to help you understand how Juno can make a difference for you and your team.
Frequently asked questions from employers
How can I contact Juno with questions?

You can contact us by phone at 1 (833) 833-0609 or email at support@junokids.com. Billing related inquiries can be directed to billing@junokids.com.

How do you determine our premium and what is the typical cost per employee?

Your rate is primarily determined by the number and age of your employees and their covered children. We charge per covered child.

Is there any cost to the employee?

No. There is no cost to the employee for coverage.

Is Juno simple to implement? Does it follow the same open enrollment as traditional insurance?

We make Juno easy to implement with a one-page, simple application—we even use the same census information you use for your employer-sponsored major medical insurance. It typically takes us a few days to process an application, and then we’ll provide you with a quote for your monthly premium. Once you sign and pay the first month’s premium, coverage will begin on your chosen effective date.

While many employers choose to match their child insurance start date with their other benefits, we can start at any time you choose. Your employees do not have to enroll to be covered.

Finally, we’ll provide a number of internal communication and marketing resources to you to help educate your employees on this exciting new benefit!

If an employee leaves the company, do we continue to pay?

In general, when an employee leaves you do not need to continue to pay the premium for their children, regardless of whether the employee is currently receiving benefits. However, in certain rare situations, such as if an employee with children dies, you will continue to pay the premium for those children for one full year from the date of your employee’s death.

Where is Juno available?

Juno is currently available to qualifying employers in nearly all states – exceptions include those with a principal place of business only in New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, or Massachusetts. Juno is available to employees in every U.S. state, D.C., Puerto Rico, and Canada.

How is our rate determined?

The rate depends on a number of factors, including your children-per-employee ratio and company demographics.

What is the minimum number of employees required to participate in the benefit?

There is no minimum number of employees; however right now we require that you cover at least 100 children through your major medical coverage. In practice, most employers will have at least 150-250 employees to be eligible for coverage. If your company is smaller than this, please get in touch or sign up for our email list. We expect to allow even smaller companies to join Juno in the future.

How is Juno so low-cost?

Because Juno insures for very rare events, we are able to keep our prices low and our benefits rich. Unlike car insurance or health insurance that have a much higher rate of incidence, much higher premium, and much lower average benefit, child insurance protects against the long tail of rare diseases and disabilities that are individually very uncommon, but collectively affect more than 1% of all American families.

Is Juno offered on a voluntary basis? Or only on a group basis?

No. Juno currently is only offered on a group, non-contributory basis, meaning that all members of each eligible class and their children are covered, and the employer pays the full cost of the coverage.

Are there different tiers of support we can choose? Different benefit levels etc.?

No, at this time there is only one type of coverage. Please let us know if there’s another benefit you’d like to provide!

Do children need to be on an employee's health insurance to be covered?

No. As long as an employee is eligible for the benefit, their kids ages 0-25 are automatically covered regardless of whether their kids have your employer-sponsored health insurance.

Do you charge for employees, or only employees with children? Or just children?

Just children. There is no charge for employees without children. To make it easier to compare costs across your other benefits, however, we often show the average cost per employee (regardless of whether they have children or not). This per-employee cost is typically between $10 to $25 per month.

What is a public benefit corporation (PBC)?

Juno is a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC), which means that we have a core mission to help children and their families with severe disability or disease—regardless of whether they are insured by us. In addition to the benefit provided by our product, we donate a significant portion of our revenue—2% of every premium, plus half of the additional revenue Juno receives if claims are lower than expected—to supporting pediatric rare disease research, as well as to other charities for children and families with special needs. You can read more about our mission here.

Is Juno an insurance agency? How does it work?

Yes. Juno developed child insurance with a team of experts in pediatric disability, rare diseases, insurance, and health technology. We’ve partnered with a number of insurance and reinsurance companies who are responsible for paying claims, even if Juno were to go out of business.

How does Juno help organizations?

Today’s competitive market for top talent makes world-class family benefits more important than ever. Juno helps attract and retain talent because it provides parents with peace of mind and demonstrates that you support and invest in working parents. Because the care of children with serious illness or disability often falls more heavily on women, it also shows that you are serious about gender equity.

Frequently asked questions from families
How can I contact Juno with questions?

Many questions can be answered by your HR department, who can provide information about your coverage. Contacting them is often a good first step. You can also contact us by phone at 1 (833) 833-0609 or email at support@junokids.com.

How much does Juno cost me?

$0. You read that right. Your employer pays the full premium.

Does Juno cover pre-existing conditions?

Juno covers short-term hospitalizations and other lump-sum benefits for every covered child, regardless of pre-existing conditions. For long-term benefits, pre-existing conditions are not covered. However, your child’s pre-existing condition will not affect coverage for future unrelated conditions.

What can my cash benefits be used for?

Cash benefits can be used to support you and your family while you take time off work, hire a caregiver or other help in the home, pay for medical bills not covered by insurance, or anything else that helps you and your family.

Can I get Juno child insurance on my own?

No. Juno is only available through your employer. If you'd like Juno, recommend us to your employer here.

Does Juno cover autism?

Because autism is a spectrum disorder, it depends. Children may be eligible to receive benefits if they have severe limitations in mobility, activities of daily living, and/or social or cognitive function as compared to other children of the same age. Many children with autism will receive benefits, but many less severely affected children will not. We use a comprehensive assessment put together by a team of disability experts to determine whether or not a child with autism is qualified to receive benefits.

If I leave my company (whether it’s my choice or not) do my child’s benefits continue?

If your child qualifies for and receives long-term benefits while you are employed, you will continue to receive long-term benefits even after you leave your company—as long as your child remains qualified.

What’s not covered?

Juno covers critical illnesses (e.g. cancer) and longer hospitalizations (7+ days), as well as long-term severe illness and disability. Our definition of long-term serious illness and disability is based on a comprehensive assessment put together by a team of disability experts. The assessment is designed to pay benefits to the most ill or disabled children measured primarily by a child’s ability to function in daily life and by the medical complexity of their condition. 

Juno does not cover less severe conditions, even if they are long-term or cause some disability. This includes conditions such as mild cerebral palsy, mild autism, and poor vision. Likewise, we do not cover broken bones, surgical procedures (with less than a seven day hospital stay), or many other relatively minor events that happen to children.

Are my cash benefits taxable?

In general, cash benefits for long-term (permanent) disabilities  are tax-free, but payments for cancer, hospitalizations, and other non-permanent conditions are taxable as 1099 income to your income. We will provide guidance to you and the required forms as applicable before your taxes are due.

Does Juno cover mental health diagnoses?

Juno covers serious intellectual disability and many conditions that come with various types of mental disability. However, we do not have specific coverage for mental health conditions (such as anxiety and depression). That said, these conditions may contribute to poor functional ability or medical complexity, and if serious enough, may therefore be eligible for benefits.

Do I need an official diagnosis? What if I don't know what condition my child has?

You do not need an official diagnosis to receive a benefit. While there are more than 150 listed conditions that are pre-approved for benefits, we understand that far too often finding the correct diagnosis for a rare condition can take time or may never happen. Part of our process to determine benefits is to assess how your child compares to a typical child of the same age. We assess your child’s functional ability, medical complexity, and caregiver demands when we make a benefit decision.

Will I continue to receive Juno benefits if I’m also receiving other benefits?

Absolutely. Juno will not reduce your benefits because you receive outside support (unless your child is placed in an institution for children with disabilities paid by the state or other organization). In fact, our family support services team will try to connect you with many other resources for which you may qualify!

How are child-insurance-benefits paid?

Benefits are paid directly to you. Long-term benefits are paid monthly, while one-time benefits are paid as a lump sum.

Do I have to enroll my children? What if I just adopted or had a baby?

Your children are automatically enrolled when your employer signs up for Juno, and newborns are automatically enrolled from birth. You don’t have to worry about paperwork or missing an enrollment period. If you get married to someone with children or adopt a child, those children are also covered automatically from the date of your wedding or adoption.

Will my employer know if I am receiving Juno benefits?

We verify your employment status with your employer when you make a claim. Aside from this, we will not share any details about your child or your claim with your employer, except in the form of anonymous aggregate summary statistics.

Does Juno impact my other benefits? Is there a deductible?

Receiving a benefit from Juno does not impact your other benefits, and is in many cases tax free. There is no deductible, and you will receive the full benefits for which your child qualifies.

Are only long-term disabilities covered? What about one-time surgical procedures?

Short-term injuries or procedures that result in a qualifying short-term hospitalization will receive a $5,000 lump-sum benefit. However, one-time surgical procedures that don’t require hospitalization of at least 7 days, such as a broken bone, a sprain, the flu, or other common injury or illness, do not qualify. That said, if complications arise from a minor procedure that results in a qualifying short-term hospitalization, benefits will be paid.

Do my kids need to be on my health insurance to be covered?

Nope! As long as you are eligible for the benefit, your kids ages 0-25 are automatically covered. Remember, however, that Juno is not a replacement for health insurance.

Beyond financial support, what other services does Juno provide?

In addition to financial support, we provide families with help navigating through a child’s long-term disability or illness. Our family advocates can help parents learn about their child’s condition and the latest medical research, get a second opinion, connect with peer groups, and discover and qualify for local, state, and federal programs. We also can connect you to financial advisors, help you navigate Medicaid waivers and set up a special needs trust, find appropriate caregivers and education resources (including setting up an individualized education plan (IEP)), and more.

Is Juno HIPAA compliant?

HIPAA applies to health care providers, health insurers, and their service providers. Because Juno is not health insurance, HIPAA does not apply to us. With that said, we meet or exceed many of its requirements. We also follow stringent cyber security practices to ensure your information is always secure. You can find our privacy policy here.