A Bad Economy Leads to Loss of Health and Medical Insurance

I found an article citing a report from FamiliesUSA very interesting because I just blogged about the topic of jobloss, health insurance, and COBRA (Social Security Disability Catch-22 ).

Major Points:

1. Just one out of 5 workers who are unemployed have health insurance.

Result: People delay getting needed care and their conditions worsen, making the cost of treatment at a later point more expensive.

2. If you worked for an employer who had 20-plus employees you may be eligible to take COBRA...

Reality Check: COBRA is expensive. In the post I referenced above, my friend had to make a choice between taking COBRA or keeping his house. I'm sure a lot of people are in that same position.

3. This next part blows me away, but I've spoken to people who are in just as bad a situation. In Michigan COBRA will cost a family, on average nearly $1100 per month, while the average monthly benefit for unemployment is just shy of $1300.

With the economic forecasts we now have, it is guaranteed this type of scenario will be visited on many U.S. households.

What's the answer? I don't have a clue. The only sure thing is that the situation will only get worse year by year because, on top of our current economic woes, we have an aging population.






Return to the Social Security Disability SSI Benefits Blog




Other Posts

Oversight and Reform of the Health Insurance Industry
Over 40 Million Americans without Health Insurance at some point last year
Can I win disability if I don't have health insurance and don't go to the doctor ?
Social Security Disability and Cobra