Signed up for insurance earlier this month but coverage doesn’t start until aug 1st. Had a really bad accident yesterday and ended up in the ER, is there anything I can do?

(This is referring to my spouse)

He was let go from his job at the end of last year and lost his heath coverage. He was hired recently and was offered insurance through the company, but it was cost prohibitive and another month or so went by before going on the health exchange marketplace and signing up for a plan that was a lot cheaper (still too expensive but we had to have something..). However, the start date/coverage day isn’t until Aug 1st.

He was in a bad bike(cycling bike) accident yesterday, and ended up in the ER. We don’t have the bill yet, but he had imaging test and all that so it’s going to be thousands. In addition to that, he likely needs surgery, but it was not life-saving surgery so it wasn’t preformed at the hospital.

So I have some questions..

If he needs surgery to recover pain-free, would his insurance cover it if we waited until Aug. 1st? Or will this be considered some kind of “pre-existing condition” now and if so does that still matter, even though he signed up for the insurance earlier this month.

Hes making $15.00/hr. We aren’t married, so he is considered “single”, so I don’t think he qualifies for medicare/cade. I have read that those can sometimes backdate for things like this. If we were married, I think he would qualify – should we go to the courthouse and get married?

If we got married, what would happen to my insurance? I also have a Marketplace plan. I have an auto-immune disease so my insurance is important and right now I’m choosing to pay for a plan rather then get medicare (I would qualify). But if we are married will they force me to consider his income and all of that.

I think sometimes employer coverage can be backdated as well? If we signed up for that, is that possible?

Am I missing anything.

Location: Arkansas, 71901, Age 32 male making 15/hr. Hes signed up for Blue cross blue shield but it’s not active.