Trying to figure out our options with having a second child

Currently my husband (26M), my daughter (2F), and myself (27F) are on my husband’s insurance through his job. We pay close to $500/month for the 3 of us with essentially nothing covered until we hit a $6,500 individual/per person deductible.

Before taxes, my husband makes $54k. The cut off for state insurance for a family of 3 is $57k and for a family of 4 it’s $69k

I am unemployed

I know my husband has to take the insurance through work because they offer it (which I’m honestly so tired of health insurance being tied to your job—even if it’s bad insurance/coverage).

Do my daughter and I have to also take his insurance—or are we allowed to be on state insurance?

We have been talking about having a second child and I can’t believe and hate that the cost of health insurance for a 4th person is part of the deciding factor.

To be clear—it’s not that the cost would be so much that we would be financially unstable. It’s more of a question of is it worth it, how much more expensive will it be, and are there any other options or ways to minimize the impact.

We’re already guaranteed to pay for basically the entire pregnancy and birth. We’re also trying to save for a house, but the market is terrible for it right now, so that brought up the possibility of having a second child now and continue to save money until the market is better.

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