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Topic: Emergency health insurance?
| Author | Message |
| maggirl | Posted – 8/21/2007 10:27:58 AM | show profile I'm leaving my job at the end of this month, and my health insurance ends with it. Insurance at the new job won't kick in until Jan. 1. I looked into Cobra and it's over $500/month! Since I'm basically healthy and have seen all my doctors, I'm considering just going without for the next few months. But does anyone know if there is such a thing as emergency insurance, that would cover me in case I got hit by a car or something like that? Any suggestions for more affordable options are welcome... |
| Upward Bound | Posted – 8/21/2007 11:16:21 AM | show profile Look for something called "temporary insurance". It's different in each state, but I had it once and it's a very low-cost option (like $100-ish/month) that usually is only good for a non-renewable 6-month term. That'll get you throug to Jan. And, if for some reason that othe insurance falls through, you can usually switch to a different temporary insurance plan for another 6-months. |
| Righter | Posted – 8/21/2007 11:18:27 AM | show profile I'm pretty sure blue cross/blue shield has an insurance plan that covers you in emergencies, like accidents, er visits, etc. I looked into in a few months ago and it was about $50 a month. Might want to check it out on their website... |
| wecare | Posted – 8/21/2007 12:30:57 PM | show profile Depending on where you live, maggirl, you may be able to get short-term insurance through the insurance plans offered to AvantGuild members. There are various residency/employment-status issues, so I can't promise anything for certain, but it's certainly worth looking into. If you're in New York, I especially recommend calling Jason Silverman at (212) 879-0122. He's very helpful and will gladly walk you through your options Hope this was helpful. Greg Membership Director |
| catlondon | Posted – 8/21/2007 1:10:58 PM | show profile If you are a college alum, check your alumni organization. Both my undergrad and grad schools offer temporary group insurance to it's alumni. |
| Katie | Posted – 8/21/2007 2:06:05 PM | show profile Insurance You might also check out N.A.S.E. for the self employed. |
| maggirl | Posted – 8/21/2007 2:07:31 PM | show profile I'm in New York. I looked up some temporary insurance companies but they don't seem to offer coverage here. Anyone know of any that do? I don't think I'm eligible for the Avantguild insurance since I've only done one freelance assignment this year. |
| aj | Posted – 8/21/2007 3:36:38 PM | show profile It's also called Catastrophe Insurance on some plans. |
| Jen480 | Posted – 8/21/2007 6:39:27 PM | show profile Try Unicare. I used that about a year ago in between jobs & it was only about $100/month. The copay for drugs wasn't too bad either if I remember correctly. |
| BurbGrrl | Posted – 8/21/2007 8:49:57 PM | show profile Hi Maggirl. That is a lousy situation to be in, I'm so sorry for you. I second what others are saying about "catastrophic coverage" insurance. I toyed with it by looking through Quotesmith awhile back. It looks like they have a new moniker, so I don't know if they're the same; but they were pretty good about outlining the details of policies and relevant laws and conditions. You might also try whomever you go to for car or home/renters/co-op insurance -- if the company offers temporary or catastrophic policies, you could get a bit of a break on the price. One thing to remember with these policies is they aren't a panacea. Sure, you know going in that they won't cover routine doctor's visits and maintenance medications. Sometimes, though they sort of half-cover "catastrophes" -- say, hospital bills (bed, meds, tests, etc.) but not the charges for doctors who see you in the hospital, which can get pretty pricey. Make sure you read the fine print closely. Good luck tracking down something useful and affordable. And kudos to you for even thinking about insurance . . . I always get nervous when I hear of people going without, even for a short time. Sans insurance you can almost always get the care you really need, but it can end up bankrupting you. |
| EQL | Posted – 8/22/2007 10:06:18 AM | show profile emergency health insurance NYS offers two excellent programs. One is a low cost program for low income individuals: "healthy New York" The other one is for individuals that have even lower income: Regards, Liz |
| chucho | Posted – 8/22/2007 11:05:28 AM | show profile It's late August. Your insurance kicks in in January. You want health insurance for four months? Consider me "living on the edge" but I've gone years without health insurance in the past. I'd probably take my chances, though obviously people can easily say "but what if I'm hit by a car next month?" Point taken. I'd still take my chances. This health insurance system blows and I really hate to say it but Americans kinda deserve the system they got. I'd cringe to pay $2000 to some multi-billion-dollar corporation on the off chance of falling into bad and health over the next four months. That's sick. |
| newbie | Posted – 8/22/2007 1:23:41 PM | show profile Speaking of Healthy New York... Does anyone have experience with this plan? I looked into it yesterday and it said sole proprietors (such as fulltime freelancers) could apply if they could show documentation that they earned less than $2100/month AFTER work expense were deducted. Given office rent, UPS, wireless, etc. I think I qualify, but I'm wondering how to document it. Has anyone done this? |
| Upward Bound | Posted – 8/22/2007 1:39:12 PM | show profile I have Healthy NY, but didn't document work expenses since I hae none aside from a few cell-pone minutes. I would just call. They were pretty helpful when I had questions. I will say, though, Healthy NY is not a low cost option. It might be "lower cost" but that's still a joke. You pay $204/month which is 10% of your income assuming you make near the max allowed. |
| nancy_drew | Posted – 8/22/2007 1:48:23 PM | show profile I applied for the healthy ny coverage earlier this year. documenting income and expenses was kind of a hassle. the plan I applied for (blue cross/blue shield, i think) kept requesting additional information and documentation and I spent quite a bit of time on the phone trying to figure out what to send them. eventually, I got a job that offered health insurance, and I opted to go without insurance until the employer-sponsored coverage kicked in, since dealing with it was kind of a pain in the neck. I do know other people who've done healthy ny, and they seemed at least semi-satisfied. My advice would be to send them everything that's possibly relevant, even if they don't specifically ask for it. |
| WinonaWriter | Posted – 8/22/2007 3:53:53 PM | show profile I don't think there's any minimum of freelance assignements in order to qualify for the AvantGuild insurance...you just have to be a member of AvantGuild, right? We looked into it, and ended up going with a different program. But worth looking into if you're healthy and just need something in between. |
| WinonaWriter | Posted – 8/22/2007 4:06:28 PM | show profile If you want my advice... DO NOT go without health insurance, even for a few months. Some serious health issues can come on without warning, and then you'd be screwed. I personally have a chronic condition, and the time period from when I first became concerned to when I got diagnosed was only a couple of months. Also, keeping some kind of insurance during the gap gives you financial protection once you go on the new insurance...keeps you from being subject to "pre-existing condition" stuff. Talk to your HR/benefits person at your current job before you leave. They should be able to explain some of the pros and cons to you. |
| foodlit | Posted – 8/22/2007 8:13:22 PM | show profile You've gotten some great advice here, I would only caution you to steer clear of NASE. They push one kind of insurance...am blanking on the name, but it's one of those 'too good to be true' policies....where the fine print basically covers you for nothing. My brother has catastrophic for his family 'cuz he's self-employed and it would cost him a fortune otherwise. Definitely worth looking into. |
| maggirl | Posted – 8/23/2007 11:49:15 AM | show profile Thanks for everyone's suggestions--I'll definitely look into the catastrophic insurance. Does anyone know of a good plan of that kind that is offered in New York state? |
| Bleak Spouse | Posted – 8/23/2007 1:04:03 PM | show profile you could also get a part-time job at starbucks. part-timers there get full coverage. |
| WinonaWriter | Posted – 8/23/2007 4:50:36 PM | show profile I believe REI also has health coverage for part-timers...not sure if they have a store in NYC or where it may be if they do. Check http://www.ehealthinsurance.com/ for short-term health plans in NY. The AvantGuild health insurance route just takes you to one of the same providers that you will find there...at least, for us it did. It put us in touch with Assurant. |
| wecare | Posted – 8/23/2007 5:38:06 PM | show profile A few clarifications: First of all, some of the health plans available through AvantGuild do require that a certain percentage of your income be via 1099s rather than W-2s. However, I would once again emphasize that you have absolutely nothing to lose by calling Jason Silverman at (212) 879-0122. Jason is an insurance broker who has no financial incentive to steer you toward any one plan over another, so he's a good resource to help figure out all your potential options. He will give you a free consultation regardless of your AvantGuild status, and only if you decide to purchase an insurance plan will you incur any charges. Second, the Assurant plans are available to those outside of New York. Those in New York can apply for plans through Oxford and Atlantis. Finally, I want to point out that mediabistro.com similarly has no stake in the plan you choose. In fact, other than the hope that our insurance options make your AvantGuild membership more valuable, we really don't care whether you get your insurance through us or anyone else. We would like to see you get your insurance needs taken care of in whatever manner works best for you and be free to focus your energies on taking advantage of the site's other resources. Best, Greg Membership Director |
| Metro Writer | Posted – 8/23/2007 8:22:01 PM | show profile Welcome to the U.S.A., the superpower with the worst health care in the industrialized world. Call your Congressman. His office will be able to tell you what to do. While you're at it, complain about what passes for health care in the good old U.S. of A. |
| EQL | Posted – 8/23/2007 10:18:19 PM | show profile Also, see if Office Depot offers benefits for part timers. |
| WordyBird | Posted – 9/4/2007 12:51:33 AM | show profile Bump. I left my job on Friday--am moving to LI on Thursday--and I have DirectMed. It's more an indemnity plan, not really insurance. If I get run over by a truck on the LIE, they pay a flat amount of dollars for each day in a hospital and the rest is up to me. That said, scrips are covered, and I just had a wicked brutal health scare two weeks ago, so I'm glad I at least have something. Would you believe my former employer--a non-profit HEALTH organization--wanted $600 a month for COBRA? "Of course we can. This is the U.S." Right. I have a few interviews lined up for when I arrive in NY, so I hope I won't have to worry about this for very long. But again, at least I have something. |
