Gypsy,

I’ll be ending my contract soon and I’m planning to take time off between contracts.  What do you do for insurance between contracts?  COBRA is so expensive.

Thanks!
Jackie, RN

Thank you for reading The Gypsy Nurse. You have taken the first step on your journey to become A Gypsy Nurse.

Jackie,

Insurance worries are a common issue among travel nurses.  PANTravelers.org has some great information regarding this issue.  Personally, I choose to carry private insurance.  I tend to work with multiple different travel nursing agencies and prefer not to have to worry about switching insurances with employment.  If you rely on the company provided insurance, PANTravelers.org offers the following advice for maintaining health insurance coverage between contracts.

When your contract ends, your agency is required to send you a letter explaining your COBRA rights. You then have 60 days from the end of your contract (or 60 days from the letter’s date) to positively select COBRA coverage. Be sure to check with your agency if you haven’t seen this letter in good time. After you elect coverage (no reason not to), you have 45 days to pay the premium. This gives you an effective minimum of 105 days (three and a half months) of insurance coverage without paying a cent.

So what does this mean? It means that you are covered by your agency’s insurance for well over three months after the contract ends if you select COBRA coverage at the last moment. And there are no consequences from not paying the premium three months later other than your insurance coverage will be cancelled retroactively back to when your contract ended. If you had no events during this period that required insurance, you have just received a free ride! And if any events do occur, they would have to add up to more than $1,000 (your minimum likely premium during this period) to be worth paying the premium. This is an insurance company nightmare – clients fully covered but electing to pay only if the insurance benefits are more than the cost of premiums.

There is one possible glitch – you want to ensure this strategy works in the worst possible scenario. If you are incapacitated (think unconscious or major trauma) during this period, you may not be able to make the COBRA election or pay the premium. So you should give clear instructions to a family member on what to do just in case with the appropriate forms. Otherwise, your medical bills will not be covered and that would be a real catastrophe!

- PANTravelers.org

I hope that this has addressed your question.   - Gypsy Nurse, RN

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(Disclaimer:  Please note that this is the Authors opinion only.  I do not provide career counseling, legal or medical consults.  If you require any of these, please search out the appropriate resources)

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TheGypsyNurse

Owner at The Gypsy Nurse

As a travel nursing educator, Candy aka Gypsy Nurse, RN has worked in healthcare for nearly 20 years, working up the ranks from CNA to LPN to RN. For the past eight years, she’s worked as a travel nurse, allowing her to practice and live in 14 states throughout the U.S. She regularly shares advice for those interested in travel nurse jobs on her website at: www.thegypsynurse.com.

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