Kaiser doctor confused about EDD SDI maternity paperwork + question about timing dad's baby bonding PFL

For your first question - yes, I went through this with Kaiser last year. What's happening is that EDD needs the DE2501 form fully completed by your doctor. Sometimes Kaiser doctors submit their own internal forms to EDD which aren't exactly what EDD wants. The supplemental certification they're asking for is probably because something was missing from what your doctor submitted. You need to be very specific with Kaiser - tell them EDD is requesting a "supplemental certification for the DE2501 Disability form" and that it needs to be completed fully including your diagnosis code, expected delivery date, and when you became disabled from working. Print out the notification from EDD and bring it to your next appointment. For your husband - good news! He doesn't have to take PFL baby bonding immediately after birth. The law allows him to take it anytime within the first 12 months after your baby is born. He just can't split it up into more than two separate periods. So he could wait several months if that works better for his job situation.

Kaiser is THE WORST with EDD paperwork!!!! I had this EXACT problem in 2024 and it delayed my benefits for almost 3 weeks!!!! My doctor kept saying she submitted everything but EDD kept saying they needed more info. It's like they don't talk to each other AT ALL. The trick is to talk to the DISABILITY COORDINATOR at your Kaiser facility, NOT just your OB. Every Kaiser has a disability department that handles all this paperwork. Your doctor probably DID submit something, but not the specific form EDD wants. UGH I get so mad thinking about this. I was 8 months pregnant calling everyone trying to get my money!!!!

Regarding your husband's baby bonding leave question: Your husband can definitely choose when to take his 8 weeks of Paid Family Leave for baby bonding. The law states that he can take it anytime within the first 12 months after the birth of your child. He is not required to take it immediately when the baby is born. However, there are a few important things to note: 1. He can split his 8 weeks into a maximum of two separate periods 2. He must provide his employer with 30 days notice (when possible) 3. He needs to file his PFL claim with EDD within 41 days of when he wants benefits to begin 4. He'll need a copy of the birth certificate when filing Many fathers do exactly what you're describing - wait until their work situation allows them to take time off, or time it when you're back at work so the baby has parental care for longer. Hope this helps!

I just had my baby 3 months ago and had Kaiser too. The problem is Kaiser has their own internal system and they don't understand what EDD needs lol. I ended up just grabbing all my paperwork from all my prenatal appontments and handed it to my doctor with the EDD form and told her exactly what to fill out. Otherwise they get confused because they think their standard note is enough but it's not. My husband took his bonding leave 2 months after baby was born because I had my mom staying with me at first. It worked out perfect!

Have you tried calling EDD to ask what exactly they need from your doctor? I was trying to call them for WEEKS about my maternity leave paperwork issues and could never get through - it was beyond frustrating. I finally used this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual EDD representative in about 20 minutes. They have this demo video that explains how it works: https://youtu.be/DOLxZQb92wM?si=6N1iCQ3a8Cdb2Ay5 The EDD rep was able to tell me exactly what documentation was missing and I could then tell my doctor precisely what to submit. Saved me so much confusion and back-and-forth. Might be worth it if you're stuck in this paperwork limbo!

about your husbands leave - my bf took his 8 weeks when our baby was 4 months old! he wanted to save it for when i went back to work so baby didn't have to go to daycare right away. worked out great! just make sure he tells his work 30 days before he wants to start

Regarding the Kaiser paperwork issue - I recommend calling the Kaiser Release of Medical Information department directly. Their job is specifically to handle all paperwork going to outside entities like EDD. Each facility has their own department, but you can usually reach them through the main Kaiser line. Tell them you need a "completed DE2501 supplemental certification for EDD disability benefits" and they should handle it correctly. The problem is usually that the doctors think they've submitted enough information through their regular medical notes, but EDD specifically wants their own forms with specific fields completed in a specific way.

Since everyone's answered your main questions already - I just wanted to add my congratulations on your baby! This paperwork stuff is so stressful when you're pregnant or have a newborn. It gets better though! One thing I wish I'd known with my first baby was to keep copies of EVERYTHING. EDD somehow lost my paperwork twice during my maternity leave claim. Now I take pictures of every form before I submit it and keep a folder with dates of when everything was sent. Made dealing with my second maternity leave so much easier!

Just wanted to add one more tip about Kaiser and EDD paperwork - if you're still having trouble getting the right forms submitted, try asking for the "Disability Services Coordinator" at your specific Kaiser facility. They're different from the regular Release of Information office and specialize in employment-related medical documentation. I had to escalate to this person when my regular OB and even the ROI office couldn't get my paperwork right. The Disability Services Coordinator knew exactly what EDD needed and got it submitted correctly within 24 hours. Some Kaiser locations call them "Work Status Coordinators" instead, but they're the same role. Also, make sure when you talk to anyone at Kaiser that you mention this is for "California State Disability Insurance" specifically - sometimes they confuse it with other types of disability paperwork and send the wrong forms. Good luck with everything!