Few options remain when job insurance disappears

AP/Yahoo News, November 4, 2008

People who lose their jobs and have to search for health insurance is a problem more Americans will face as the economic downturn continues. Poor families may find coverage through state programs like Medicaid, while others might convert the group policy from their employer to an individual plan or buy a separate policy on the open market. Insurers also offer scores of individual plans for a wide range of prices, but these polices may not work if the applicant has a pre-existing condition. That can lead to insurance that costs too much or excludes expensive, chronic conditions.