wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

Those who lost their jobs prior to the September 1, 2008 eligibility cut-off date never received any assistance with their COBRA premiums. Many if not most of those same people are not even eligible for COBRA now because their 18 months of coverage has expired. Even those who were lucky enough to receive the subsidy in the first place are starting to loose their coverage and are joining the estimated 50 million uninsured.

According to a Harvard study, uninsured adults are 80% more likely to die from a traumatic injury than those who have insurance. Currently their are two bills working their way through congress that may offer some relief. For more information on these bills and other options to COBRA, please see our website at http://cobrareform.weebly.com/.

To Nancy from Manhattan --

Thanks. Have asked my state senator to doublecheck what former employer said.

This is a real crisis. Surely the people who rant about "socialism" on health insurance are crazy. This is a civil right.

I've never been able to afford cobra, these people are lucky they are getting it subsidized in any way. Also, why are UE benefits in NY so low compared toother states?

Fixing potholes and schools does NOTHING for jobs for the general public, those are municipal jobs that are most likely union and have no relation to the regular schmo. It drives me crazy to keep hearing ivory tower eggheads suggest examples like this, it only shows how out of touch with the real workings of the economy are.

David from Great Neck, you might want to contact the NYS Dept of Insurance to see if your former company's advice that you're not covered under the NYS mini-COBRA law was correct. Also you might contact your insurance company directly. If insurance company says COBRA doesn't cover you, you can file a complaint with the NYS Dept of Insurance.

Good luck

The COBRA subsidy actually ran out 11/30/09, so folks are now on their own to pay 100% of the "benefit" of COBRA...

Well, I just got screwed. NY State has a mini-COBRA law that gives us an 18-month NYS COBRA And a defect in that law was "cured" Nov. 19 when Paterson signed a fix to it. But my former company just advised me that I am NOT covered! And I was hospitalized last month and require follow-ups. Now I am not insured and desperate for coverage. Fortunately, I am gotten help from my state senator and a legal group from Federation of Jewish Philanthropies and may have an alternate -- but it will cost an extra $300/month. I really don't have this money right now.

Describing the end of government subsidies for COBRA as millions of Americans losing health coverage and the end of COBRA aside (which is nothing but sensationalist fear mongering) why hasn’t anyone asked why the need for subsidies to cover the debilitating COBRA payments isn’t a reason for single payer health care?
If the government has to keep jumping in to cover the old, the sick, the unemployed, and the poor, it may as well cover everyone with reliable and consistent coverage.

When the government and others cite just the TARP money as going to the bailout, they omitting the deals made -- secretly -- by Timothy Geithner and Ben Bernanke with AIG, Goldman Sachs and others.

We still don't know what kind of loan guarantees the US has granted Wall Street. We do know that the US is keeping interest rates at near-zero while these same banks bleed us dry through elevated interest rates and fees.

What incubators have been or will be created and or funded by this money?

I can't imagine another legit way of creating sustainable jobs but haven't heard of incubators.

I have heard other countries promoting small business growth through unoccupied buildings or even their network of post offices.

The recommendation for tax credits for job creation does not assist nonprofits.

Imagine Hank Paulson's crestfallen mask when Geither actually managed to outspend him. The rich hate that.

The government needs to understand that it is not only the COBRA subsidy that is ending, it is COBRA coverage itself. Many long-term unemployed are soon going to be without access to any health coverage at all when their 18 months ends. There needs to be an emergency extension of COBRA to 36 or 48 months.

Yes, let's spend money we don't have. That is working so well for Greece.

Idea!

Rather than calling it "Unemployed," the government can REclassify scrambling for health insurance as a full-time job ... with health insurance!

My insurance runs out on 12/31. I just found out about the COBRA ARRA program from my brother. Apparently you can qualify based on job loss and income to pay 35% of your normal COBRA bill for 9 months.

i understand why the government would be interested and accountable for making sure people aren't dropping dead in the streets by using tax dollars on health care. But why on earth should people expect them to "create jobs?" Aren't our current laws and instincts still legislated to look to "free market" mechanisms to eventually create jobs (even if that means establishing incubators and setting up financial incentives for entrepreneurs)?

If talking heads support government "job creation" with the hope it will eventually lead to "normalization" of our economy, then how will we know that day has come? I am sincerely flummoxed as how job creation programs is at all related to health care initiatives.