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One thing nobody's mentioned - CA Assembly Bill 500 was supposed to give school employees paid leave for pregnancy/childbirth, but I think implementation has been slow. Worth checking if your district has adopted it yet.
Unfortunately AB 500 was vetoed in 2019, though similar legislation has been considered since. Some districts have negotiated pregnancy leave into their contracts, but it varies widely across California. Definitely worth asking the union rep about district-specific policies.
WAIT I just remembered somthing important!!! If you apply for Medi-Cal while pregnant they have to backdate it to cover your delivery!! My friend did this last year when she lost her job at 8 months pregnant!
Update: After trying for 2 days with ID.me support with no luck, I used the Claimyr service that someone suggested. Got connected to an EDD rep in about 20 minutes. The rep verified my identity another way and helped me file my pregnancy disability claim over the phone! So relieved. Now I can focus on my health instead of this technical nightmare. Thanks everyone for your help!
Glad you got it resolved! For anyone else facing this issue in the future - this is common with ID.me and EDD. The most important thing is NEVER create duplicate accounts as it triggers fraud alerts. Either go through ID.me recovery directly (slower but free) or get help from an EDD representative who can verify you through alternate means (faster but harder to reach). Also worth noting: pregnancy disability (PDL) is different from Paid Family Leave (PFL). You'll file PDL first for the time before birth and recovery, then transition to PFL for baby bonding after. Make sure to understand the transition process so you don't have a gap in benefits.
Thanks for the clarification! Yes, my doctor explained I'll be on pregnancy disability until 6 weeks after birth (8 weeks for c-section), then I'll need to file for baby bonding PFL. I'm definitely going to keep all my account info safe now so I don't have to go through this again when transitioning to PFL!
wait isnt there a waiting period before you get paid? i thought you dont get paid for the first week of leave or something
That's a common misconception. The 7-day waiting period applies to Disability Insurance (DI) claims, including Pregnancy Disability. However, there is NO waiting period for Paid Family Leave (PFL) claims, which includes baby bonding. PFL benefits are payable from the first day of eligible leave.
UPDATE: Just wanted to let everyone know my husband's claim was approved today! So it took exactly 9 days from application to approval. We haven't received the payment yet but the online portal shows it as processed. Thanks everyone for your help and advice!
yayyy!! so happy for you guys! the payment should hit your account in 1-2 business days. congrats on your baby girl! 💕👶
Quick update - I checked with a colleague who processes PFL claims, and he mentioned there's currently a processing backlog for baby bonding claims submitted in the last 6 weeks due to a system update. If your claim falls in this window, that might explain the delay. However, he stressed that you should still contact EDD directly as they may need additional information that isn't showing up on your online portal.
So did you ever get this resolved? I'm curious what ended up being the issue since so many people seem to be experiencing similar delays.
Yes! Finally got it sorted out yesterday. I managed to get through to EDD using that Claimyr service someone mentioned above, and found out there was an issue with my employment verification. My employer had sent incomplete information. Once that was corrected, my claim was processed within 24 hours and payment should arrive next week. What a relief! For anyone else experiencing delays - definitely check if your employer responded properly to EDD's verification request!
Isabella Costa
Wait I'm confused...isn't BASIC for disability claims not PFL? When I had my baby I got SDI first during recovery then switched to PFL for bonding. Did your husband do disability first? Maybe that's why BASIC is involved?
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GamerGirl99
•BASIC can administer both SDI and PFL claims depending on the employer's arrangement. Some companies use them for all leave types, others just for certain programs. It varies by employer but is completely normal either way.
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Olivia Clark
Update: We got everything sorted out! Logged into the BASIC portal and completed all the verification steps yesterday. This morning we got an email saying payment has been initiated and should arrive in 3-5 business days. Thanks everyone for the help and explaining how this works!
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Natasha Petrov
•Great news! Glad it worked out quickly for you guys!
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