ACA question: Is COBRA still the rule of the land for workers changing jobs?

[otherone]

Under the ACA is there any relief for workers that receive their health insurance through their jobs?
What if a worker leaves her job for another. There is usually a 90 day waiting period for bennies to kick in at the new job.
In the past, the worker would need to get "COBRA" coverage for 90 days at an expense that would prohibit being insured.

Is there any relief for the worker that gets a new job?

[Lucky Luciano]

1. Good question. nt

[etherealtruth]

2. I have no idea ...

... but, would like to know

(my comments posted to give the thread a kick)

[otherone]

12. Thanks for kicking the thread

peace and low stress. .

[rdking647]

3. as far as i know

if you switch jobs to one that doesnt provide insurance you can go to the health exchanges even though your outside the usual open enrollment period.

if you have insurance effective in 90 days you can get a short term policy from an insurance company for teh 90 days (they are usually pretty cheap since they know they wont have to pay any long term expenses)

[antiquie]

4. Depends

There is COBRA premium assistance for some.

http://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Programs-and-Initiatives/Other-Insurance-Protections/cobra_fact_sheet.html

[etherealtruth]

5. this is what I found

http://voxxi.com/2013/12/23/obamacare-what-you-need-to-know/

What happens if I lose my job and my employer-based health coverage?

If you lose your job and your health benefits, you can purchase insurance through the state marketplace even if it is not a current enrollment period. You may also opt to keep the coverage you had through your employer for a period of 18 months via the federal COBRA continuation coverage program, though significant out-of-pocket fees may apply.

[dembotoz]

6. change in jobs vs lose of job

found cobra to be way too expensive when my families financials changed

[etherealtruth]

7. Interesting article

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/09/17/223341729/laid-off-and-looking-for-health-insurance-beware-of-cobra

Signing up for COBRA instead of an exchange plan could have serious financial repercussions. An analysis of premiums for plans on 12 state marketplaces by Avalere Health found that a mid-level individual plan would cost $336, on average. About 80 percent of exchange enrollees that will reduce their costs.

Meanwhile, the average monthly cost for single coverage in an employer-sponsored plan is $490, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation's 2013 . (KHN is an editorially independent program of the foundation.) But the employee pays 17 percent, or just $83, of that amount, because the employer covers 83 percent of the total, on average. Once people sign up for COBRA, however, they're typically responsible for the whole premium.

[Lucky Luciano]

8. My COBRA premiums are $3,200 and we are a very healthy

family of three! It was definitely a Cadillac plan though. Still, a totally unreasonable number.

[gtar100]

9. COBRA is useless for anyone who lives paycheck to paycheck.

I found out when I divorced my ex that her coverage under COBRA would be the *full* cost (employee + employer). I just felt sickened. It was like a big FU to us. We could never afford that on our income. COBRA for us was just a scam. If you could afford it, it was a way to collect a lot of people's extra income or savings; but if you couldn't, it just looks like they covered their asses by giving them an excuse to say at least they tried. I felt deceived by its promises and I hope the program dies away.

[jeff47]

10. Sorta.

If you lose your health insurance from work for any reason, you can sign up for a plan under the state exchanges. You don't have to wait for the next enrolment period. So you could completely skip COBRA.

However, one key thing to remember about COBRA is it allows retroactive coverage. You can wait to buy it until after you get sick, as long as you buy it within 45 days.

So if I was in such a 90-day window, I'd wait about 30 of them, and then buy a plan on an exchange for the remaining 2 months.

[NYC_SKP]

11. NO. There is no longer a need for COBRA, and it's a blessing that it will be gone.

I was on COBRA after leaving one of two jobs I held at the same time.

The remaining job I have does not offer health, so I took COBRA at $1,429/month.

I had no choice-- take it or keep applying endlessly and being rejected, but I couldn't take advantage of HIPPA because that only works if you have no other options, so COBRA was really a trap.

COBRA is good for 18 months, renewable for an additional 18.

I was being screwed to the tune of over $10,000/year in premiums, now I can have an affordable plan, it starts in January, I'll save over $800/month.