This might vary state by state, so please indicate which state you are writing from when posing responses.
If you have a pre-existing health condition, and are currently in a good (okay, not necessarily "good"; safe--not fun) job with benefits, how terrifying would it be to quit your job and seek a new one? I have heard awful stories about women who are in the middle of a pregnancy and lose their insurance when switching jobs.
Please share your experience and knowledge below!
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8 comments:
A couple of things:
(1) The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) is a federal law that requires employers to allow covered employees who leave the company to remain as such for a specified time period. There are legal specifics worth researching, but basically, as long as you aren't fired for gross misconduct, you were covered at the time of your termination (voluntary or otherwise), and the plan still exists for active employees, you should be eligible to continue receiving coverage. The bummer is that you will typically have to pay the entire monthly premium (which can be pretty expensive), but you will at least remain insured and the cost is typically cheaper than if you went out and got your own plan.
(2) If you aren't sure that you want to pay the premium, often you can just wait out the "specified time period" for which you are covered, and if something happens for which you need health insurance during the gap, you can pay retroactively.
(3) If your company is going through layoffs and you want to seek another job, you should see if you can volunteer to be laid off and finagle a severance package. Often, a severance package will include a specified period of paid health care courtesy of your employer.
(4) If you are quitting a job to look for another one...my advice is to try and find the other one while you are still employed. In addition to being more marketable, you can ensure a minimal lapse in coverage.
(5) Always check with your HR department about COBRA specifics, and if you do quit, make sure you get all the info you need at your exit interview.
-Brooke, Boston, MA
Thanks, Brooke! This is invaluable.
In Massachusetts, buying your own individual health insurance is often cheaper than COBRA. I was laid off last October and my COBRA would have been around $600/ month (more than I paid in rent).
Instead, I went directly to the Blue Cross Blue Shield website and bought my own policy for $350/ month. Still expensive, but it wouldn't run out in a set period of time, and it was significantly cheaper. (I got a mid-level plan; many of the basic plans were actually less).
It's important to know exactly what you need for coverage (prescription, mental health, basic care, etc.), and get the cheapest plan that will give you everything you need. Watch out for high deductibles for low premiums and plans that want you to pay a % of inpatient care. (The cheapest plan I found wanted me to pay 35% if I were to ever end up in a hospital. It wasn't worth the extra money every month to have to worry about it. The plan I went with would have required me to pay $500 for an inpatient hospital stay)
-Jen K., Boston, MA
To add to Brooke's comment, a warning:
My friend attempted the "wait and see" approach to COBRA. He could have had COBRA for 6 months, but he only had 60 days in which to elect if he wanted the coverage or not. He got to the 60 days and nothing had happened so he decided not to take it. On the 63rd day he was rushed in to the hospital for an emergency appendectemy (sp?). There was nothing they could do to get that insurance back since the 60 day window had expired.
Kris
In New York when you are pregnant you are entitled to government sponsored insurance almost like medicaid and you are also covered until 6 weeks after. Kids are covered with child health plus if necessary in NY
This is funny, because a pregnant friend and I were just discussing this. There have been a lot of layoffs recently at our company, including in our department, and we were talking about what would've happened if she had been laid off. Her husband works for the same company (note: we actually work at an insurance company!), and we all have good health insurance. Pre-existing conditions don't matter for our policy through our employer, so being pregnant isn't an issue. My pregnant friend and I were discussing how lucky we are that her husband also works for the same place, because that means if she were to get laid off she could still get coverage through the company. Otherwise she'd have to get COBRA, which is really expensive. I believe that BCBS in NC actually requires that you don't get pregnant for a certain amount of time AFTER your get maternity coverage. And maternity coverage almost doubles your premium.
Rhiannon (in NC, where we will miss you guys at Eno this weekend... we'll think of you as we roast at that easy bake oven of a festival)
although not readily available in MA, another option for low cost self coverage is an HSA, health savings account, plan. They are accompanied by high deductibles. But make a lot of sense for those who are self-employed. Or unemployed. I found my plan through an online site that compares regular plans and hsa plans ... ehealthinsurance.com
every state law varies but a few things to keep in mind:
* if you can get individual health insurance like Jen K., bless you! pretty impossible here in nyc.
* in nyc we have the freelancers union which helps people who are "contractors" instead of "employees" band together to get group health insurance rates. don't know if it exists in other places though.
* a friend of mine gets his health insurance through ascap
* pregnancy is usually not included in a pre-existing conditions list. it's pretty much the one thing that's a little sacred
* pre-existing conditions clauses can be very very important to pay attention to. they exist for things like "oops i got a broken leg now i should go on insurance so they'll pay for the physical therapy" to which the insurance company says "no way".
i recommend never, ever going w/o insurance b/c i've seen too many friends suffer from freak accidents at the wrong times, etc etc.
two important examples of pre-existing conditions that mean you absolutely cannot go uncovered for even a moment are: diabetic. depression. if you are uncovered for even a month, when you get back on insurance you will be stuck paying for both insurance AND your own related medical expenses to that condition for the next twelve months. i have paid up the whazoo for COBRA because i did the math on "doing without" and it was even more costly than the COBRA.
i'm sorry, i wish there were a better way. but in my experiences here in ny and az as well... what i've recommended is the best thing i could do :(
good luck.
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