Keep Your Health Insurance if you're Unemployed.

The Chicago Tribune has published an article emphasizing the importance of maintaining health insurance while you're unemployed. If you can't afford health insurance for yourself, it may be best to buy health insurance coverage for the rest of the family and stay on COBRA for yourself.

Save for hefty health-insurance costs in the event of unemployment

Many overlook paying for health care while unemployed

Carolyn Bigda Getting started

December 14, 2008

With the unemployment rate rising fast, you may be worried about the future of your paycheck. Another thing to consider: How you'll pay for health insurance.

Most people under 65 obtain health insurance through an employer, according to the latest survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research Educational Trust, which study health-care policies.

When you lose your job, you may be entitled to keep your coverage for up to 18 months, depending on the size of your firm. But like your paycheck, any subsidy you received for the premium, and employers frequently cover 50 percent or more of the annual cost, goes away.

The full cost of an employer-provided plan can be pricey: On average, the annual premium for an individual policy in 2008 was $4,704, according to the Kaiser/HRET survey. A family plan was $12,680.

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