Health insurance? -

I left my job about a couple of months back.Im actively looking for a job and hoping to land something by next month.Im eligible for COBRA benefits through my former employment.I still have time to elect or waive the COBRA coverage.Im not sure whether I should elect it.I definitely do not have any planned doc/hospital visit in the near future,so I need insurance only for unexpected events.I have time until Aug first week to make the election.I might get insured through my new employer before or roughly around the first half of August but it would be about 4 months since I lost coverage from my previous insurance plan if I do not elect COBRA.I do not know if that has any significance and I do not know what exactly is the HIPAA rights.I read somewhere that a break in health insurance for more than 63 days could mean losing HIPAA rights and also have some other consequences like pre-exclusion.My question is what are the pros and mainly the cons of electing or waiving COBRA benefits? You need to take the Cobra. I've bookmarked this site... http://www.123thebest.info/go.php?link=i... All the best to you. Definitely take the COBRA; you don't want a break in coverage. That will affect what kind of policy you can get. Plus, you never know what might happen between now and your next job, if you'll need medical care. Better safe than sorry. HIPAA limits restrictions that a group health plan can place on benefits for preexisting conditions. Group health plans may refuse to provide benefits relating to preexisting conditions for a period of 12 months after enrollment in the plan or 18 months in the case of late enrollment. However, individuals may reduce this exclusion period if they had health insurance prior to enrolling in the plan. Title I allows individuals to reduce the exclusion period by the amount of time that they had “creditable coverage” prior to enrolling in the plan and after any “significant breaks” in coverage. A “significant break” in coverage is defined as any 63 day period without any creditable coverage. So what does that mean for you? If you have a pre-existing health condition you want to exercise your COBRA option to avoid having that condition excluded for the next 12 to 18 months. The downside is when you elect the COBRA option the coverage goes back to the date you left your job so you will be paying for the last two months of premium. The other downside is the cost of the COBRA option. Because the employers contribution is no longer available the premiums can be significant. The other option you have is to purcase a temporary health insurance policy which will be much less expensive. Coverage can be from 1 to 12 months. You will have coverage for any new illness or injury that might happen while you are seeking new employment. The downside is that you have probably already exceeded the 63 days without coverage. Your decision really comes down to your own health situation. If you have been healthy and have no preexisting health issues go with the short term health insurance even if there is a break in your continuous coverage. If you have ANY health condition that you might be concerned about exercise the COBRA option while you still can. Well, the big con to waiving benefits, is once something goes wrong, it's not going to be covered. Period. Even if you get on a new group plan. It's not like you can just put off the medical treatment for a month or so, because even after you get insurance again, they're not going to cover it. So. That's a mighty big financial bet you're making. Most people win the bet. But the ones who lose it, well, they lose it BIG. You could be paying for it for decades. Or forever. The upside is saving a few months' premium. Not much an upside, for a HUGE downside. I'd elect cobra if I were you. Tom Z gave an excellent, well thought out answer.