If you’ve never lost your job, you may not have ever heard of COBRA. COBRA is a health insurance plan that allows an employee who leaves a company for any reason to continue to be covered under the company’s health plan for a certain period of time. The name results from the fact that the program was created under the Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation, and the system exists so that employees in between jobs can keep their coverage until they can hop into something new. This sounds just ducky, and it is definitely a nice option to have, people will find themselves paying full-price on all premiums for their coverage. They may still have the health insurance they’ve grown so accustomed to, but they’ll be paying out the wazoo for it.

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The new stimulus package includes subsidies to help pay for COBRA insurance coverage to those who have lost their jobs in our current economic hard times. This could be a welcome safety blanket for those who need a little extra monetary help while looking for a new job.

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It is no secret that I am a huge proponent of a universal health care system being instituted in the United States. If you have followed my blogs on medhealthinsurance.com at all, I somehow often manage to slip in a little blip about universal health care and all its glory, even if I’m talking about something as seemingly mundane as doctor’s visits. It is also no secret that this country is slipping deeper and deeper into a financial maelstrom. Experts may still be calling it a recession, but we are just a hop, skip and a jump away from a full-blown depression.

If we want to avoid an economic situation similar to that in the 1930’s, the government needs to do something, and fast. Obviously, the economic stimulus packages didn’t do what they were supposed to do, though I did enjoy having the extra money to fly home and see family in California. Borrowing more money and throwing it at the American consumers in hopes of “shoring up the economy” is a plan that just doesn’t seem to be working, and another path needs to be taken. And as you will see in the rest of this post, a universal health care plan might just be that path we need to sprint down.

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Yesterday, we looked at the types of health reform that Obama plans on instituting. Today, we’ll look at how these plans may be carried out.

If you were hoping Obama was going to charge in on his gallant steed and change the way health insurance operates in this country, you are probably mistaken. “The Obama plan is actually quite traditional,” says John Sheils, Senior Vice President of the Lewin Group, a health care policy research company. “It is very similar to the proposals made by other democratic candidates during the primaries.” This isn’t something to get down about, but realistic expectations should be held near and dear. Although there are some changes and extensions that Obama is hoping to make to the way things operate currently, what he drafts and what actually makes it through Congress are another story.

Bill Clinton and George Bush didn’t get bills passed simply due to lack in trying. Congressional support from the Democratic members, as well as their input, is going to be a crucial component of how the health care and insurance turns out for all of us, so that is what you will want to keep your eye on.

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Even though he hasn’t taken up residence in the White House just yet, we have a new President. Barack Obama will be sworn in come January 2009, and in his suitcase of changes he wants to see made in this country is a revamping of the health insurance system.

Some of you may have voted for Obama based on what he is promising to do for health care, and other of you may have been McCain supporters, or simply do not know what Obama stands for in the realm of health care. No matter where you stand or what you know, the following account will serve to educate you on what Obama aims to do with healthcare and insurance here in the United States, and how it may effect you and your life.

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photo credit: Photocapy

We all like to think that we as a nation are moving more and more every day toward a state of complete equality. Unfortunately, we still have a long way to go. Parts of this country still battle racism, class, and culture wars when it comes to health insurance coverage.

New studies are showing a strong correlation between your race, health insurance, and the likelihood of surviving a serious injury. This may seem like something that shouldn’t correlate at all – what does one’s race have to do with their ability to survive something like a gunshot wound? Aren’t all bodies and people created equally? Read on for the interesting and upsetting facts.

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Many are calling this the most important election you have ever voted in. If you fall into an older demographic you may have taken part in some other historically significant elections, but few will argue against the fact that this is a crucial and unstable time in the United States. With health insurance being such a selling point in both Barack Obama and John McCain’s campaign, it is imperative that you understand what each candidate believes is sufficient health insurance for America’s citizens. Whether you lean to the left or to the right, knowing where your preferred candidate stands on health insurance could not be more important. Your health and well-being literally depends on it.

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