Maybe you have decided COBRA is not for you. Time will tell if you made a good choice! If you are healthy, you can get your own private plan and drop you cost by perhaps 50% or more.
Shop rates through the green box at the top.
An expensive route might be to become a group of one. In Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Vermont, you can be a group all by yourself for insurance purposes. What this means is that you become just like any other company, and insurers can't deny you insurance or surcharge you individually because of a pre-existing condition. You have to open a business to start a group of one.
In states where you can't become a group of one, you can become a group of two. You can hire another family member to become a subcontractor for your company. An insurance company may be allowed to exclude coverage for your specific condition for a short period of time, usually about six months.
30 states have high-risk pools are specifically for people with pre-existing conditions who can't find affordable insurance on their own.
Find out if your professional organization offers group insurance. Some professional groups, like real estate agents and freelance writers, offer health insurance. Check your profession associations.
Move to Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York or Vermont. In those states, insurance companies have to sell you a policy in those states, and there are limits on how much they can charge you.
For more help in finding insurance when you have a pre-existing condition, you can contact the Cover Me Foundation at 877-678-7631 or Coverage For All at 800-234-1317.
Craig Casey is an Writer, Coach, Blogger, Husband, and Former Health Insurance Agent helping people on the web since 1999 with their health insurance problems.
