Shopping for Affordable Individual Health Insurance

If you need to shop for affordable individual health insurance we have some tips for you.  There are many reasons that you might be shopping for individual health insurance, for example, you may be retiring before you are 65 years old and not yet Medicare eligible and will not have employer sponsored health insurance during retirement or you may be starting your own small business and need health insurance. 
Key things to keep in mind when shopping for individual health insurance:

• Do not let your current coverage lapse before you have a new health insurance policy in place. If you have health insurance it is easier for you to get new health insurance and may decrease the chance of the new insurance labeling your needs as a "pre-existing condition" that may not be covered. 

• Start shopping for new health insurance at least
  3 - 6 months before your current health insurance ends.  That way, if you run into a snag - you have time to work through it.

• For additional tips, download our free Shopping for an Individual Health Insurance Policy in our free GOODCARE.com Tool Kit.
  
  
  

 Have You Heard of COBRA?

You may have heard of "COBRA" which stands for the Federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986 that provides for access to temporary health insurance coverage for certain former employees, retirees, spouses, former spouses, and dependent children at group rates when coverage is lost due to certain specific events, such as leaving a job. If you have had employer sponsored group health insurance, "COBRA Continuation Coverage" may be a good short term option while you shop for other health insurance.
 
Tips about COBRA:

Q: My health insurance coverage will end when I retire at 65 years of age and am eligible for Medicare. My spouse, who is under 65 years of age, and our dependent child will still need health insurance.
What do I do now?

A: Start shopping for individual health insurance coverage for your spouse and dependent child 3 - 6 months before you retire. If you will be retiring sooner than that or have difficulty finding health insurance, your spouse and dependent child will be eligible for COBRA continuation coverage through your previous employer for up to 36 months after you retire, as long as they sign-up for that coverage within 60 days after you retire. You can continue to shop for individual health insurance for them while they are on COBRA as it might be less costly in the long run than COBRA.  But remember to keep the COBRA until any new health insurance policy is in place.