[Wino]

I always thought COBRA was your same insurance you had while employed, but you pay the total cost of the policy.

[Beer Chang]

Wino, on 09 February 2010 - 04:19 AM, said:

I always thought COBRA was your same insurance you had while employed, but you pay the total cost of the policy.

That's correct. But COBRA is meant to be a convenient short term gap between jobs. Insurance that only lasts for 18 months needs to replaced because insurance that expires has limited value.

[Bob]

Wino, on 09 February 2010 - 04:19 AM, said:

I always thought COBRA was your same insurance you had while employed, but you pay the total cost of the policy.

Yea, it's the same coverage but you pay for that coverage as if you were a single-payor (one person) policy - which is why the "Cobra" rate is so much more than what the employer paid.

[Beer Chang]

What I was paying for Cobra was reasonable but not being guranteed renewable diminshes its value.

[Wino]

In certain circumstances, I think Cobra is extendable beyond the 18 months.

[Bob]

Wino, on 10 February 2010 - 02:55 AM, said:

In certain circumstances, I think Cobra is extendable beyond the 18 months.

If that's possible (other than the case where the insurance company providing the coverage chooses to allow continued coverage), I'm not aware of it.

One of the big issues in the current health care debate is that currently an insurance company can deny you coverage if you have any underlying condition that they don't want to insure. If somebody already has a heart issue or some cancer condition, they simply won't currently insure you (or they will take your money and exclude from coverage certain pre-existing conditions). A single insurance company shouldn't be forced to accept pre-existing conditions while other insurance companies won't do that - and, to cover anybody and to economically spread the risk, that's why the current legislation requires every insurance company to accept every applicant regardless of pre-existing conditions. Unfortunately, it currently looks like there will be no significant change in how the health insurance system works (badly in many cases) in the US.

[Wino]

A friend of a friend had the bad fortune to become unemployed and diagnosed with lung cancer. My friend was helping him fill out the paperwork to extend his 18 month Cobra policy. The way she explained it to me, it is not guaranteed but it can be done.

[Beer Chang]

COBRA is good a s a stop gap measure between jobs, but if you're not planning on reentering the workforce, one needs to get permanent coverage ASAP.

[Wino]

ASAP and for sure before your coverage runs out. You know those pre-existing conditions can be a problem.