Health Insurance for the Unemployed

Health Insurance Options for the Unemployed

The best type of health insurance for those who are out of jobs, or between jobs, is temporary or short term health insurance, as it helps them tide over a tough period.  In fact, one of the biggest problems confronting those who have been suddenly handed the dreaded pink slip is how to take care of their health without the coverage of employer-sponsored health insurance.

Once a person loses his job, he has to often make significant changes to his lifestyle and economize to be able to pay for his basic needs without having to go bankrupt. At such a time, insurance benefits may not be given much importance and even considered as an unnecessary expense.  On the contrary, when finances are low due to unemployment, finding an affordable insurance plan is crucial for taking care of your health and ensuring that you don’t go into debt due to unexpected medical expenses.

Short term health insurance option

Short term health insurance is the best option for those who have recently graduated from college and are looking for employment, people who have lost their jobs or are part-timers, or those who have retired and are now waiting for Medicare. For many people who have lost their jobs, the first type of health insurance that comes to mind is often COBRA insurance. But though COBRA insurance can help you extend your earlier long term health insurance without a break in coverage, it is expensive, and sometimes even exceeds the cost of short term insurance.

Applying for temporary health insurance is a quick and simple procedure, with some plans becoming valid right from the next day. Just as in the case of traditional long term insurance, when it comes to short term health insurance too you can pick from a wide range of plans. Depending on the plan you choose, the maximum benefit amount will differ. Not just that, the applicable co-pays and deductibles can be customized for different plans as well. For instance, a plan drawn up for an early retiree will be different from a plan for a young part-timer.

Under a short term insurance policy, you will have coverage only for illnesses or injuries that you did not have earlier, as per the specified look-back period. No pre-existing medical conditions will be covered. However, you will get coverage for inpatient as well as outpatient care including diagnostic examinations, prescriptions, surgery, ambulance services, and in some cases also scheduled doctor visits.

Short term insurance plans exclude coverage for pregnancy and maternity, and almost all types of dental and optical treatment. Unless it is performed as part of reconstruction therapy, cosmetic surgery too is not covered.

Short term health insurance typically offers coverage for a limited period. And though you might want to persist with it for a longer time, ideally you shouldn’t try to stretch your short term coverage beyond one year. In case of uncertainty regarding your insurance situation, it would be better to renew the plan month by month, up till the maximum period permissible in the plan.