Out of Work and out of Insurance

Monday, December 22, 2008
Topics: Economy, Health
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With unemployment sharply on the rise, many people who find themselves out of a job also find that they are out a critical benefit: health insurance. ideastream® health reporter Gretchen Cuda examines what it's like to be one of the nations 45 million uninsured.

Sharon Cupicelli had a good job. And like most Americans her job provided her with health insurance.

CUPICELLI: I had dental I had vision, I had full coverage. When I went to see my family doctor or the GYN all I had to do was pay my co-pay and I was set.

But last February all that changed when she lost her job. Her health insurance was terminated the very next day.

CUPICELLI: February 29, and March first I had nothing. If I had been terminated two weeks after that I would have had it for two more weeks but because it was the end of the month -boom. My insurance was gone. I had nothing.
Under the federal COBRA statute, she could have continued to buy into her company’s group health plan, but only if she paid the full cost. 346 dollars a month was more than she could afford now that she wasn’t working. She was too young for Medicare, and was denied Medicaid -twice - the woman at the family services center office broke the news

CUPICELLI: She said I’m just so sorry to tell you, there’s just nothing I can do for you. You will get short-term food stamp supplies, but it will be over in 6 months. OK Thank-you

Cupicelli is a single adult in her 50’s, and according to government guidelines, only adults who are disabled, elderly, or the parents of dependent children are eligible for assistance through Medicaid. A cancer survivor, she could no longer see her doctor for her regular follow-up care, she could no longer get annual mammograms, or gynecological screening. She says the strain and worry of being unemployed and without healthcare began causing her to have anxiety attacks, and high blood pressure. One of her old doctors wrote her a prescription for an anti-anxiety medication, but when she got to the pharmacy she realized it wasn’t just the office visit she could no longer afford

CUPICELLI: It was 108 dollars for 10 tablets. So I just sauntered out of that little place and said OK Sharon you’d better find another way to take care of yourself

But even families WITH children can find themselves in a similar predicament. When Renee Lester’s husband Patrick was laid off from his job in manufacturing, he lost insurance for himself, his wife and his baby daughter. Like Cupicelli, the family’s coverage was terminated the next day. Their COBRA coverage was $1500 a month. Renee Lester couldn’t believe it.

LESTER: I said, ‘but they can’t do that!’ And he said ‘well, they just did.’

Two weeks later, Patrick Lester found another job - but his new health insurance plan wouldn’t kick in for 9 full months

LESTER: I couldn’t believe it when I found out it was nine months.  I said you mean 90 days right? And he said no, 9 months.  And I said no, no no, 90 days.  And then he showed me the paper - and I had never heard of that.

The fact that he was working made them ineligible for Medicaid. For the first few months, they managed - but one night their daughter Isabella became sick with a high fever and had a seizure. Fortunately, Isabella recovered, but financially the family may not. Medical bills upwards of 80 thousand dollars have forced them to consider filing for bankruptcy, and they still don’t have insurance. Neither does Sharon Cupicelli, who admits that some days she’s so depressed she doesn’t want to leave the house or answer the phone.

CUPICELLI: You feel pretty much like a squeezed out grape. You get sick of telling your story, because you just are so discouraged to hear it over and over and over again. You lose your dignity. It’s very difficult to walk into these institutes and know that you can’t do what you used to do and just pull out your insurance card and know that it’s carte blanche.

Both women say they were both humbled and shocked to discover how vulnerable they are. Lester tells me it has opened her eyes to the frailty of a health insurance system that is tied to employment, and made her reevaluate her political views.

LESTER: I used to believe that government shouldn’t get involved in these things, but now I’m like whoa - something needs to be done.

Why? Because if it happened to her, she says, it can happen to anyone.

Gretchen Cuda, 90.3