Many people who are now out of work didn't just lose their jobs, they also lost their health insurance.
“As many as 35 million Americans might lose their health insurance, and this is the time when we really need it most,” said RxSaver Medical Expert, Dr. Holly Phillips.
There are several options you should consider if you've lost your insurance.
Your first option is to maintain your current plan through COBRA. It allows laid off workers to continue using their same health plan for up to 18 months.
That means you can continue seeing the same doctors and have all the same benefits you're used to. The problem is that it's expensive.
Instead of sharing the cost with your employer, you're responsible for paying all of the premium.
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Dr. Phillips says more affordable options you may want to consider can be found through the Affordable Care Act Marketplace, known as Obamacare.
That will allow you to shop for different plans that fit your needs and level of income. It also offers subsidies that will cap premiums if your income is low enough.
If you cannot afford coverage, Dr. Phillips says it's important to still maintain your prescription regimen.
"Going off your medication if you’ve been on chronic medication can really create health issues that we don’t want to see now, so focusing on getting low cost prescription medicines can be really important. One way to do that is to always consider generic versions of medications, and of course you’d have to talk to your doctor about it, but generics are often much less expensive than the brand name versions and just as effective," said Dr. Phillips.
You can use tools like RXSaver to lower your costs as well.
It can help you find coupons and the lowest price for prescriptions at pharmacies near you.
Dr. Phillips says even if you have insurance, you may be able to save money on prescriptions through RXSaver.
