If you lose your job, you should be eligible for COBRA coverage for at least 18 months until you find another position that offers group medical insurance.

COBRA would cost me over 600 a month. No job, no 600 dollars. In other countries it's a non-issue. So sad.

$600....wow. I am currently on COBRA coverage and it is not anywhere near that amount. Would you not be eligible for unemployment benefits if you lost your job? That would help with some income.....

Could be based on my age. I found out how much it cost when I lost my husband and was given Cobra coverage. Lucky for me I'm still working. Cobra coverage price was dropped lower for a short time for unemployed people. It has since been raised to normal levels. Few unemployed can pay 600 a month as unemployment pays about 1200 and you've got to have someplace to live. Canadians pay a fraction of the cost of what Americans pay. Our high healthcare cost is what's keeping so many uninsured.

I AM one of those uninsured. I get it in my mind to start shopping, but I get SO frustrated, and put it off, once again. If I can talk to an actual person, the rates are outrageous and I hate the hard sales pitch!! Otherwise I'm left to shop online, where the rates are a little better, but that only leads to spam e-mails and even more sales call, and those folks can get really rude. The only thing I can find at AARP is supplemental insurance.
So if anyone has any suggestions, PLEASE let me know.
Thanks much, Cathy

An individuals COBRA coverage cost depends on the cost of your employers Medical policy. If it was $600 for coverage through your husband's employer, doesn't mean that it will be $600 through your employer....but yes, I agree, it can be a source of fear for some people....I am thankful that I am fortunate to have an affordable cost for my coverage. I pray you are able to relieve some of your fears concerning this.

Take care -

Cathy -

Have your tried this website?

http://www.ehealthinsurance.com/

You don't have to tell me how bad things are when it comes to health insurance. Jim retired and the company made him and I pay over a 1000 a month for insurance. Then the company filed bankrupcy and a health insurance with a 15,000 donut hole was the only thing we could get as both of us are diabetics. So when he got sick he went to the VA and on his 60th birthday which was spent in the VA Hospital I went and got our military ID's for Tri-care. Thank God Jim was in the military all those years. I now have Tri-care and I am grateful.

Catherine - THANKS much.
I have tried that one! They gave my phone # to several "agents" and over the phone the rates were about 2x what they quoted in their e-mail responses. Again, frustration! I have to REALLY be in the mood when I tackled that chore.
Thanks again, Cathy

Burke did have insurance but not that which covered an independent private event. She had a $5 million dollar policy for any sponsored sanctioned event.

Her Canadian insurance will pay towards the US bill. But, it will only pay the amount that the services would cost in Canada. And in the US expenses are much higher.

Canada encourages anyone leaving the country to get a rider for health insuranced that will covr the difference. For some reason, she did not have that and her agent did not arrange for a policy to cover this event....although it is hard to get insurance for the dangerous sports as hers.

I do like the helath care systems in ohter countries where no one goes wihtout or bancrupt because of illness or unexpected health issues. The inlaws are al German and they ahve total insurance coverage. I have never heard them complain about it.

Cobra can be a lot more than $600. A couple of yrs ago my son stopped going to school and therefore was no longer eligible as a dependent on our insurance. (law has since changed) Anyway, I assumed I could just pay extra and keep him on ours. When the insurance co learned he had previously had a DVT and took coumadin they wouldn't take him. I shopped around - no one would take him under any circumstances due to his previous DVT.

Turns out, he joined a clinic at a local hospital because he had no insurance. As a member of the clinic - he got his MD appointments free and paid very little for his prescriptions. I ended up costing less for his medical care without insurance than it did with insurance. If anyone finds themselves without insurance - look into local hospitals and see what options there are.

My husband had type 2 diabetes and, as others have said, almost impossible to insure. When we started our own business he was able to get Blue Cross Blue Shield, but it cost $1000 a month just to insure him. Our 2 children and I had separate insurance. We currently have Golden Rule, which has been pretty good. It costs $345 a month (kids do not add much to the cost of insurance). It was a lifesaver last year when my daughter had surgery for scoliosis. Her hospital bill alone was $300,000. Medical costs in this country are crazy and it is scary not to have insurance.

We had BCBS, through My Husbands, previous Employer. We were only charged, $30.00 a Month, for full coverage. When he Died, I was put on Cobra. They will continue, to cover, Me till I reach, Medicare Age. The first Year, after, his Death, they still only charged, Me the $30.00. As of this Month and from now on, I have to Pay, 100% of the Premiums. $743.00 a Month. OUCH!

In the US, if you can keep some kind of coverage in place, even crappy coverage, for a time, you are better off when you try to find new coverage. The insurance companies want to see that you have been continuously covered and that they are not picking you up out of the blue because then they suppose you are going to hit them for every expense that you have not been having for whatever time you've been without coverage.

After I left my last job, I kept COBRA on me and my kids. It ran me over $850 a month. It was ridiculous. When I left the States, I had to replace the coverage for one of my sons (the other qualified for Medicare/Medicaid), so we got a very basic hospitalization kind of policy through BCBS for about $150 a month. I was so glad once we were able to be reunited here in the UK and they qualified for National Health here. The care here is different - some of it is better, some of it is worse - but there's no additional outlay other than a small fee for prescriptions. And I never have to wait 3 months to see my doctor either - I usually can see her within 24-48 hours, or the duty doctor that day if it's urgent. My mammogram and Pap were free and they arranged the appointment and sent me a letter telling me when to show up!

I'm not a big fan of Michael Moore, but I saw him in interview after he made his film about the healthcare industry in the US, and I always remember one comment he made. He said that in countries where they have a national healthcare system that you never hear someone say 'I hate my job but I can't quit because I need the benefits.' That hit home for me - I had stayed on at jobs I detested just to make sure my family was covered. It's a totally different mindset when your health isn't dependent on the whims of your employer or your spouse's employer. Moore also said in that interview that the #1 cause of bankruptcy in the US was medical debts.

It's ridiculous, isn't it?

I am a diabetic and have been under my husband's health insurance for years. I can continue with his insurance for three years at a cost of $536 a month then I will still have several years before medicare so I will have to get different insurance. I live in MN where there is an insurance offered for those un-insurable and it costs a little more than what I pay now but I will have coverage. I have to go through my doctor and provide information to the state that I have been denied insurance because of a chronic illness/disease. I mention all of this because you should check with your county health department and state HD as well. Many states offer some form of health insurance for those without any.