Affordable Health Insurance is Available for the Self-Employed |
The choice to be self employed brings with it many concerns. Can I do this? Do I have the right stuff to make it on my own? The worries about cash flow can be so paramount in your mind that you might overlook something that can damage the cash flow more efficiently than anything else and that is health insurance. For others, the fear of losing their company’s group health insurance prevents them from heading out on their own.
Sometimes, the choice of staying with the company and benefiting from the group health plan is not a choice. In this day and age, downsizing is all too common.
Whether you take the plunge because you are a daring soul or you take the plunge filled with fear about having no health insurance, you need to be realistic about the need for an affordable health insurance plan.
It is far too dangerous to run your own business without health insurance coverage. You have to make health insurance a priority in your necessary expenses.
Granting that health insurance is a necessity, the next question becomes, where do you find the best deal? Here are some places you should check out.
Check with your spouse’s company. Sometimes affordable health insurance that covers family members is available a spouse’s employer. While the cost of the premium might be higher so that you can be covered in your spouse’s group plan, doubtless this is a lot cheaper than any alternative. Also group plans usually provide better coverage than an individual plan.
If you are looking at being self employed after just leaving a job, you should check out COBRA. COBRA stands for Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act which was passed in 1986. It deals with health benefits and requires employers to offer temporary health coverage upon termination of employment.
As soon as you leave your job, whether it is your choice or your employers, the employer is required to offer you the option of maintaining your membership in the company’s health insurance plan.
Of course, you have to pay the full premium, this is often a lot cheaper than an individual plan. The problem with this option is that it is temporary but at least it keeps you covered while you find another plan.
A third option worth considering is to join a self-employed workers’ group policies. You can find out more about these policies through the National Association for the Self Employed (www.nase.org) or the American Association of Home-Based Businesses (www.aahbb.org).
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