Darian said:
Same situation here—our family’s Covered California plan is $1,500 a month, which leaves almost nothing after unemployment benefits. There needs to be some flexibility when people lose their jobs.
Agreed. Health insurance being tied to employment is a nightmare. Luckily, I just got a new job, but this whole experience made me realize how broken the system is.
I got Medi-Cal last year by applying through the food assistance website. It asked for my current monthly income, and I got approved. Maybe try applying that way instead of through Covered California?
Subsidies are based on annual income, so people who made a lot earlier in the year won’t qualify even if they lose their job later. It’s not perfect, but it prevents situations where someone could make a huge salary in January and then get free healthcare the rest of the year.
@Kai
That’s technically true, but if you go down to zero income, you might qualify for Medicaid in some states.