Dear No Longer A Child

Losing your dependent status can be a tricky time and it is hard to know what type of plan to sign up for. The good thing is that you are one step ahead of the pack since you are already thinking about your health insurance and know how important it is to keep some sort of plan in place. Based on what you shared, here are some potential options for you ranging from least expensive to most expensive.

• Catastrophic or High Deductible Insurance: This is going to be the least expensive option when it comes to health insurance but will also provide the least amount of coverage. A catastrophic plan and high deductible plan are similar and basically will only cover emergency medical needs. For any other medical need you will need to pay out of pocket for the treatment. However it does ensure you are safe in case of anything serious and can be very affordable, starting at around $40 monthly.
• Private Individual Insurance Plan: The next option if you want more comprehensive coverage will be a private individual policy. These plans more closely resemble regular employer sponsored plans and can be very affordable for someone who is young and healthy. In fact they start at around $100 monthly and can include pretty comprehensive coverage.
• COBRA Insurance: Finally the last option, but definitely most expensive, is COBRA. With COBRA you would be able to continue to use the same health insurance plan you have with your parents for up to 36 months. The catch is that you must pay the entire premium plus 2% to keep the plan. On average this runs about $400 or more monthly. To find out exactly how much COBRA would cost for you, it is necessary to contact the plan administrator and tell them you are interested in signing up for COBRA and need to know the costs. Likely this will trigger them to send you an enrollment letter which will state the exact cost of the plan.