Cobra

[adventure_woman]

DH is getting another job . He has to wait 3 months for the new insurance to kick in. His current insurance will last for about another month, so we would have to buy 2 months of Cobra. It will be about $800-900/month.

SO, I know we can actually wait up to 90 days after his current insurance has ended to sign up for it. Hypothetically if we don't need to use the insurance during that time, we really don't 'have' to have it. HOWEVER, that makes me super nervous because I know if there is a gap in insurance, they can put riders on a new insurance based upon your past health history/previous medical conditions (unless has that changed at any point?). So, I'm just thinking we should bite the bullet and just pay for it so we don't have any gaps.

Thoughts? (We are going to be going from employer plan to another employer plan if that makes a difference). We don't have to decide right now, but I DO need to plan for a $1800!

 

[Arielle22]

I would gather the facts before making a decision. When exactly does your current insurance stop and when does the new one begin?

The timeline is you have 60 days from loss of coverage to elect coverage. Payment should be given then but you have a 45 day grace period before paying. If you don't pay until the end of the 45 days, you will have to owe whatever premiums are due so you are brought current.

Personally I would pay for Cobra as my family always seems to be at the doctors.

 

[rhiansmom]

Are you going onto a group plan or an individual plan? If a group plan, you won't be without for long enough for the pre-existing (this is the part of HIPAA that people forget... the P is for portability)

 

[adventure_woman]

Going to a group plan.

 

[PrincessDadx2]

DH is getting another job . He has to wait 3 months for the new insurance to kick in. His current insurance will last for about another month, so we would have to buy 2 months of Cobra. It will be about $800-900/month.

SO, I know we can actually wait up to 90 days after his current insurance has ended to sign up for it. Hypothetically if we don't need to use the insurance during that time, we really don't 'have' to have it. HOWEVER, that makes me super nervous because I know if there is a gap in insurance, they can put riders on a new insurance based upon your past health history/previous medical conditions (unless has that changed at any point?). So, I'm just thinking we should bite the bullet and just pay for it so we don't have any gaps.

Thoughts? (We are going to be going from employer plan to another employer plan if that makes a difference). We don't have to decide right now, but I DO need to plan for a $1800!

When you leave the last job you will get Cobra paperwork telling you when the last day you have to decide to accept the coverage. It will be retroactive to your last day of coverage.

Keep track of your medical expenses, if your out of pocket is less than the $1,800 plus copays then don't take it.

It should not count as a gap in coverage under your new policy that would cause an issue with pre existing conditions, but you can check with the new HR people if you are concerned.

I have done it several times with no issues.

 

[merekc]

Last time we had a job switch, I purchased short term insurance directly through one of the big insurance companies. Seemed like it was about $200/mo for 4 of us (I could be wrong). We went with a high deductible so that it was basically there if something major happened. We could cover the small doctor's visits if necessary. You might want to check that out.

 

[Loralei]

I have worked as a COBRA administrator for the past few years & where COBRA does have very strict deadlines, you can make them work in your favor if you watch the dates closely.

Now, the disclaimer I always tell people when they call with questions about COBRA plans that I don't deal with personally, always talk to your insurance providers to make sure they aren't following different guidelines, but I believe most of these are federal guidelines that should be standard with any company.

First, As Arielle22 said, you have 60 days from the loss of coverage to elect COBRA (deadline date should be noted on your election paperwork) and then 45 days to get current on payments once you elect. So if you wait until near the end of the 60 days to elect, you should have well over the 2 months you would need to determine if you actually need the coverage. COBRA is retroactive. So, it's going to cost the same no matter when you elect it & it will go back & pay the claims if something were to happen before you elected. Deadlines are usually considered met on the date of the postmark on the envelope. So, if you are nearing the end of the deadline, go to the post-office & have them postmark it right then so you know it has that date rather than a day or two later when they sort it from whatever box it is pulled out of.

As for pre-existing condition riders added due to a gap in coverage. Typically you can have up to a 63 day gap in coverage from the coverage termination date to the HIRE date at the new company (not the effective date of the new coverage). Once again, check with your new company to make sure, but typically you aren't penalized for not having coverage during a waiting period.

Congrats on the new job & good luck figuring out the COBRA situation!

 

[drinkme]

We are experience a recent job loss right now, too. We're waiting for our COBRA papers to figure this all out, so thanks for posting this!!

On another note, my dd has a heart defect. I thought that if you get in a group plan they can't disclude her because of a preexisting condition. I didn't know about the 63 day gap. Is this standard for all insurances? If so, I guess dh will have to get a move on with his job hunting!

 

[bumbershoot]

On another note, my dd has a heart defect. I thought that if you get in a group plan they can't disclude her because of a preexisting condition. I didn't know about the 63 day gap. Is this standard for all insurances? If so, I guess dh will have to get a move on with his job hunting!

I could be totally off base with this, but I *think* this is a question best answered knowing what state you live in.

Here in WA, there are many insurance companies that stopped serving us, b/c the state disallows insurance companies from the pre-existing condition thing. For instance, STate Farm has individual medical insurance policies, but not for WA state residents because they don't want to go along with that (they want to exclude pre-existing conditions when they can).