Lost job? 3 main insurance options still apply

It’s an unprecedented situation.
One in four U.S. workers have filed for unemployment compensation since the COVID-19 pandemic began, according to federal Labor Department figures released May 28. Many of those workers who were laid off have lost their employer-provided health insurance and frantically are looking for options.
But despite the demand, insurance premiums generally haven’t risen, and insurance providers say it’s because fewer people are seeking care — either because doctors’ offices and clinics are closed or have severely-restricted access, or because would-be patients are wary of contracting the potentially deadly coronavirus.
Benefits generally cease immediately when a worker is laid off, as opposed to a furlough, which basically is an unpaid leave of absence.
“What we’ve mostly been doing is furloughs” at the University of Colorado Boulder, said Ken McConnellogue, CU’s vice president for communications, “so with furloughs, people are allowed to continue their health insurance. I’m not saying that we won’t have layoffs, but right now, mostly for our employees, they’re able to maintain their health insurance.”
So what are the options for those who have lost their jobs? The same ones that existed before, said Mark Creek, a Longmont-based independent health-insurance broker:
• COBRA, which allows people to stay on their employer’s benefit programs for at least 18 months.
• Individual health insurance through Connect for Health Colorado, the state health-care exchange set up under the Affordable Care Act.
• Medicaid, administered statewide by Colorado PEAK.
“A lot of people will go to Medicaid if they can,” Creek said. “A lot of times, if you lose your job outright, the state will put you directly on Medicaid, so they’ll try that first. Sometimes if they’ve had some income in the past — and it depends on your age, or how many are in your family — they may not qualify for it. But if they don’t qualify for Medicaid, there’s a good chance they’ll get a tax credit, and that brings the cost of the insurance they can get on the exchange down a bit.”
Open enrollment for plans under Connect for Health Colorado occurs at the end of the year, but the state reopened it during April to aid laid-off or furloughed workers. Even though that window closed April 30, Creek said, “If you lose your job and your coverage, that’s considered a life-changing event and you can enroll.”
Receiving coverage under Medicaid is generally quicker than going through the exchange, Creek said, “but it takes them awhile to get through on the phone and get the coverage. The faster way is to do it online.”
Coverage under COBRA, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, “is generally a lot more expensive,” Creek said, but its out-of-pocket payments for health-care services generally are lower.
“If you’re single and make less than $49,000 a year, there’s a good chance you can get a tax credit to help pay for a plan on the exchange,” said Creek, who helps clients navigate the various options. However, he added, those monthly credits vary widely.
“I had somebody yesterday, it was $13, and a week ago I had one that was $1,245,” he said. “So it’s a big difference. A lot of that depends on your age and what your income is. If you’re close to the line where you get Medicaid but you’re over it, you’ll probably get a bigger tax credit.”
Some employers are able to aid their laid-off workers by reimbursing some COBRA premiums or continuing their benefit programs even if they can’t contribute to them.
The pandemic has brought several bits of assistance for laid-off workers seeking health coverage: the federal stimulus checks, which often amounted to $1,200, and the federal guidelines that waived the one-week waiting period for state unemployment benefits. The maximum jobless benefit has been extended from 26 to 39 weeks, in accordance with federal guidelines.
A big factor in which insurance option to choose is whether a person expects to be working again soon, Creek said.
An advantage for laid-off or furloughed workers, he said, is that they can cancel the temporary coverage at any time if they return to their previous job or get a new one with health-care benefits.