Changing Jobs – What About COBRA Health Insurance Benefits?
If you’re lucky enough to work for a firm that offers generous health insurance benefits, especially if your employer is not required to provide COBRA health insurance, you’re forgiven if you’ve delayed looking for a more interesting job or ruled out working for yourself. Fear of parting with employer-sponsored health insurance is legitimate, given the steady decline in the number of companies that offer it and the high cost of paying for coverage yourself. According to a 2007 report by the Committee for Economic Development, the U.S. employer-sponsored health insurance system is failing. Exorbitant premiums have led to waiting periods imposed on new hires and minimum work-hour rules to qualify employees for coverage. Research published by the Economic Policy Institute in late 2007 shows that only 59.7 percent of Americans still get their health insurance through their employers, with the number of firms offering coverage down 4.5 percent since 2000. So, what’s a nation of highly mobil
