Your health insurance usually ends on your last day of employment or when you leave your job at the end of the month. In some cases, you may be eligible for COBRA, temporary coverage to continue your insurance plan.
However, under COBRA, you will be responsible for paying the full premiums. Before proceeding with your waiver, it is advisable to know all of your options to avoid becoming uninsured, especially if you are experiencing health problems.
Expiration of health insurance after leaving your job
Despite the non-existence of established requirements, almost all health insurance your employer offers expires the same day you stop rendering your services in the company or business.
Your employer will determine the guidelines for when your health coverage ends once you resign or are fired from your job. Each company has different policies. To find out how they will proceed in your case, you should contact the human resources department and ask for information.
You should also evaluate your insurance documents; almost always, in the contract, the conditions of use of the medical insurance are established and until when you will be able to enjoy it when you leave the company.
Is there a grace period for health insurance when you leave your job?
It all depends on your employer, who is responsible for specifying the duration of insurance after you leave your job. The process is influenced by how you leave the company.
When it is due to layoffs, in almost all cases, it will eliminate all the benefits you had from the company once you leave the job. If you have decided to quit or go for any other reason, the employer may keep your health insurance for another month or two.
Health insurance options after Quitting
If you are thinking of quitting your job or have seen that your layoff is near for different reasons, you should think about your health insurance and start looking for a new job. Some alternatives are:
COBRA
When you leave a job, you are eligible for COBRA health insurance coverage; you are entitled to continue your previous employer’s group plan for 18 months. Depending on the circumstances, you may be able to keep it longer.
From the time you leave your job and apply for COBRA health insurance, the benefits administrator will contact the insurer so that you will receive an explanation packet for enrolling in COBRA coverage.
It is your choice whether to be part of this insurance, but you have 60 days from the time you leave your job to decide if you want to enroll in their health plan. You will enjoy the same coverage you had with your previous employer.
You will be responsible for paying the full premium because the employer is no longer responsible for contributing a portion of the costs. If you had a family plan, usually the employer-sponsored program, COBRA averages $22,000 per year.
Short-term health insurance
If the COBRA plan is too expensive, you can choose short-term health insurance or term or temporary health insurance. It is a service that you will enjoy for a short period, no longer than 12 months.
It is a useful option for low premiums and coverage while finding a new job. Another of its benefits is that you can purchase it at any time; it is not necessary to wait for an enrollment period like other insurances.
It is advisable to compare different options; although they are short-term insurances, you may pay higher premiums than desired.
Health insurance marketplace
Accessing the Affordable Care Act marketplace is an alternative; it has individual and family health plans similar to the ones you enjoyed with your employer. However, the prices can still be higher than a group health plan.
One of the benefits of the health insurance marketplace over COBRA is applying for subsidies to help offset payments based on your household income with the market.
When you apply for insurance on the ACA marketplace, the website will send you some estimates of premiums based on the plan with the subsidies used.