Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#1

Post by bestnoodles » Mon, Aug 25, 2014, 10:41 PM UTC

As the title states, I'm thinking of leaving my job to pursue my personal projects for 3 months, but my biggest uncertainty and apprehension is health insurance.

I'm pretty lost in this: there's a lot of literature but no clear answer, and I'm not sure what the new regulations are under obamacare...

What's a simple, affordable way to make sure I'm covered?

Thanks!

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#2

Post by noahc » Mon, Aug 25, 2014, 11:43 PM UTC

You first might want to start investigating COBRA. A good place to start is http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/faqs/faq-consumer-cobra.html.

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#3

Post by drewvolpe » Mon, Aug 25, 2014, 11:54 PM UTC

The simplest option is to pay for the plan you currently are on through COBRA. This guarantees you 18 months of coverage at whatever rate your employer currently pays for you. This what my founders and I did for our last startup. It does require you have enough saved up to cover the cost yourself, but it's very simple and easy, and you keep everything the same.

You could also see if you qualify for a cheaper plan. Go to HealthCare.gov and enter your information and you'll get a list of plans and what they cost.

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#4

Post by ja27 » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 12:22 AM UTC

If you can afford it, COBRA. That saves you quite a bit of time and energy finding a new plan and minimizes or eliminates surprises like changes in coverage or needing to change doctors. For only a 3 month window, as long as you're relatively healthy (and are certain you will not get pregnant) I'd take the gamble and go without insurance, but I'm a gambler. From my experiences, the stress of not having coverage is pretty comparable to the stress of enrolling in a new ACA plan.

Depending on your work, you can also inquire about taking a leave of absence. I've worked with a couple of people that have done that. Most never returned but some did.

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#5

Post by dredmorbius » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 2:03 AM UTC

Where are you located?

COBRA is the standard answer. The ACA provides for coverage, though the general enrollment period has closed for this year. I'm not sure if a job transition counts as a qualifying event for a new enrollment, but there are counsellors (free of charge) in some states who can answer your questions on that.

My experience is that there tend to be a few tiers of coverage, and that you'll want to balance your anticipated healthcare needs with the dues. From what I've seen, middle-tier coverage tends to be the best bet.

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#6

Post by brogrammer90 » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 2:39 AM UTC

If you're young and fit just forgo it. It's very unlikely a basement dwelling neck beard would get hurt writing javascript and refreshing the browser a million times.

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#7

Post by ApolloRising » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 3:26 AM UTC

Kaiser offers some reasonable plans for simple coverage. Depending on your age and health you could get it for less than 250 a month.

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#8

Post by bestnoodles » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 3:33 AM UTC

thanks for the Comment guys. I'm concerned because I'm reasonably active and do get minor injuries sometimes at BJJ, which is my main outlet for exercise.

I'm 24, male, living in the bay area. Any rough estimates on how much COBRA would cost?

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#9

Post by bestnoodles » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 3:34 AM UTC

dredmorbius wrote: post #5

Where are you located? COBRA is the standard answer. The ACA provides for coverage, though the general enrollment period has closed for this year. I'm not sure if a job transition counts as a qualifying event for a new enrollment, but there are counsellors (free of charge) in some states who can answer your questions on that. My experience is that there tend to be a few tiers of coverage, and that you'll want to bala…

I'm 24, male, living in the bay area. Any rough estimates on how much COBRA would cost?

Re: Ask HN: What do I do about Health Insurance after quitting my job?

#10

Post by dredmorbius » Tue, Aug 26, 2014, 4:04 AM UTC

bestnoodles wrote: post #9

dredmorbius wrote: post #5

Where are you located? COBRA is the standard answer. The ACA provides for coverage, though the general enrollment period has closed for this year. I'm not sure if a job transition counts as a qualifying event for a new enrollment, but there are counsellors (free of charge) in some states who can answer your questions on that. My experience is that there tend to be a few tiers of coverage, and that you'll want to bala…

I'm 24, male, living in the bay area. Any rough estimates on how much COBRA would cost?

That will be specified in the COBRA paperwork you receive, talk to your benefits coordinator / HR person.

You'll want to compare costs with what you might be able to purchase outside of COBRA. I'd suggest taking a look at the Covered California website or getting a quote from Kaiser:

open https://individual-family.kaiserpermanente.org/healthinsuran...

I've tried doing that with the information you've provided but find the websites aren't cooperating with me (that's been an ongoing failing of the health plan(s) in general).

I suspect you'll be paying under $300/mo for a silver plan.