This may help: How Is Health Insurance Marketed in California? Health insurance coverage is marketed to consumers through individual policies or group policies. Individual health insurance coverage should be pursued when your employer does not offer health insurance as a benefit of employment, when you cannot be named as the dependent on another personÂs insurance policy, or when you are not a member of a professional or trade association that offers group coverage. Many consumers are self-employed, contract employees, or work for small employers and do not have access to a group policy secured by an employer. Individual coverage can be obtained by contacting a licensed health insurance agent or broker. You will need to complete an application that includes your medical history, which will be reviewed by a medical underwriter at the health insurance company. If you meet the underwriting qualifications and are issued a policy, the company may not cover preexisting conditions up to one year after the effective date of the policy. However, if you have been previously insured under an individual or group policy without a break in coverage of more than 62 days, your new insurance company must apply the prior creditable coverage (refer to the "Health Insurance Terms" on page 15) towards any waiting period for preexisting conditions. Individual health insurance companies may reject your application based on your medical history. Group health insurance offers certain advantages over individual health insurance policies. The waiting period for preexisting conditions is six months, not one year as with individual policies. Also, if you have been previously insured under a group policy without a break in coverage of more than 180 days, your new insurance company must apply the prior creditable coverage toward the six-month waiting period for preexisting conditions. Large employer group health insurance (more than 50 employees) and association group health insurance, like individual health insurance, is subject to medical underwriting. You can be denied coverage based on your medical history. Medical underwriting rules for small group health insurance (2-50 employees) differs from large group and individual health insurance policies. Regardless of any preexisting condition, you must be offered coverage under a small group policy on a guaranteed issue basis. However, the small group insurance company can utilize the six-month waiting period for preexisting conditions. Of course, if you have prior creditable coverage it must be applied to decrease or eliminate the waiting period. CA.Gov

"Interestingly, it is a disprportionate amount of the sons and daughters of the poor and disenfranchised that bear the burden of military service. " Lakeguy, Not really sure where you're going with that. If you're implying that the US Army is taking advantage of the lower class by enticing inner-city high school dropouts to join their service (no GED required), I'd have to disagree. I don't think that taking a kid off the streets, replacing his .22 pistol and pants around his knees with an M-16A4 and BDUs and paying him $34,000 a year (or over $40k for an E-2 in a combat zone) is a bad thing. Of course when we lower the recruiting standards the end result is a sub-standard armed force, but in the fifth year of the Iraq war, with the US Army running on empty for the past two years, that's what it's come to. Say the kid decides it's not a bad career, and stays in beyond his initial 4-year obligation. At that point he's a sergeant (E-5) making $45k a year (not counting deployment pay/re-enlistment bonuses). While he's on active duty he finishes his GED, and starts taking a few college courses, and maintains a 3.0 average (being reimbursed for 75% of the fees by the government WITHOUT using his GI bill). He applies for a commissioning program, and gets his degree (using the GI bill, while being paid full time as a sergeant during college). Eight to ten years into it he becomes a lieutenant, and continues the promotions through the officer ranks, making a salary his boys back on the block could never dream of. At around 15-18 years the mustang (prior enlisted officer) tops six figures. At 20 years, he retires, pockets the pension, and takes on a secondary career as a civilian government employee for slightly more than his previous salary; he now has medical care and a steady income for life. He buys 30 acres and a few horses in Virginia, puts his kids through Georgetown, and never looks back. Culturally, it's a completely level playing field. Racial or sexual discrimination is absolutely not tolerated (the highly revered CO of the largest Marine Corps Installation on the East Coast is a black female). I can't imagine a better escape from poverty than the US military. All it takes is a strong work ethic, average intelligence, heterosexual orientation, an aversion to narcotics, and an ability to perform while scared out of your mind. Of course, the entire scenario is predicated on the fact he didn't get his legs blown off by an IED in the first year, or shot out of the sky by a shoulder-fired SA-16 in the tenth year. But that's where the love of your country and willingness to sacrifice kicks in--if it's not in you, no amount of money will get you to put yourself in harm's way, especially if you have a family. Here is a link that might be useful: enlisted pay charts

I need help - I recently purchased 2 HM recliners - it's only been a few months but so far I really like them, though we have had an issue already with the cushions. The cushions we got were not the same ones that the chairs had in the store. But they are replacing them. After months of contemplating purchasing the Journey sofa & bringing home leather samples, all Class 2 (document and cavalier) we finally made the purchase this past Fri. night - bought the Journey Sofa in Cavalier Hunter Green - so excited-put the required 25% down and was told it would be 4 mos till it would be delivered. I was willing to wait that long because this is the sofa and color we really want. Unfortunately, today I got a call from the store and they said the leather I picked can only go on the City Sofa. I can only chose from Document she told me-otherwise if I want the Cavalier it will cost me $$$$$$ - I can't believe I find out after 2 mos of shopping at this store. I feel like it's bait and switch. Does anyone know where I can get the Journey Sofa with the Cavalier Hunter Green without paying out the wazoo!!! This shouldn't be so confusing and misleading. Now i need to stop the transaction and start the whole process over. Up until reading this no one at the store I've been working with ever mentioned this "married" issue of the leater and the sofa's. I'm so disappointed

There's a lot of info on COBRA with good FAQs on the internet. If your wife accepts the buy out, she will be given the opportunity to pay for the COBRA coverage for, I think, 18 months - and that should provide the same levels of coverage for her that she's had thus far. The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) requires most employers with group health plans to offer employees the opportunity to continue temporarily their group health care coverage under their employer's plan if their coverage otherwise would cease due to termination, layoff, or other change in employment status (referred to as "qualifying events"). A child who is "born to or placed for adoption with the covered employee during the period of continuation coverage under [Code §490B, the Code's COBRA provisions]" is also a qualified beneficiary regardless of whether the qualifying event occurred before, on, or after such date if they are enrolled within 30 days of birth or adoption. I'm not sure much of anything is negotiable in a buyout situation unless you're classified as essential personnel. If one isn't considered essential, being offered a buyout means - forgive me for being blunt - they really, really want you to accept it and to be gone. Trying to hold out just delays the inevitable and they may well cut jobs anyway and send people packing with zero. If I were you, I'd talk to the benefits people at your place of employment since I'd imagine you'll be going to the family plan on your health insurance once COBRA is exhausted.