I am a T1 diabetic and a grad student, and at the end of this year, I will turn 26 and age off my parents insurance, about a month before I graduate from school. I currently do not have a job with benefits, and because my school requires a rigorous unpaid internship in their own clinics in addition to regular coursework, I won’t be able to work before I graduate. It likely won’t take me long to find work after graduation, and I’ll be making good money, but for now I’m scraping by on student loans and scholarships- I have no savings left to spend on medications. What options do I have for between losing my parents’ insurance and beginning a full-time position with employee health insurance? I’ve looked over the ACA marketplace plans and haven’t seen one even remotely affordable, I’ve yet to come across a private short-term plan that covers pre-existing conditions, and my school does not offer student health insurance. Are (even more) loans an option? Has anyone been in a similar situation?
@EmLa93 Hi Emma,
when life puts up a barricade to reaching a goal, sometimes it’s a test to see how bad you want it.
sorry in advance if this sounds obvious - I am just thinking out loud…
If I may summarize, you’re broke now, you will make money later. there are 3 or 4 optimizations you can look at. 1) if you buy any kind of insurance, the premiums HAVE TO more than offset the benefit. 2) you can try to do the hard thing, find other ways to make some money in the short term to help pay (and yes, there goes your nights and weekends), 3) you can minimize costs in the short term, such as potential pump holiday, or using “regular” and generic long acting, 4) and then of course, you can borrow, because you can leverage future earnings - but beware, things rarely go as planned and you don’t want to dig an enormous hole for yourself.
no I started working and had benefits before graduating. there was no lapse for me and while it was very hard work, I also realize I was fortunate.
edit: given your financial situation, you may qualify for manufacturer’s assistance… for example Lilly Cares http://www.lillycares.com/resources.aspx
Check with your school’s administration. Many schools offer health insurance that you can use while a student. Not sure if graduate school is different than under grad, but both my boys had coverage options for their under grad that they had to opt in or out of every year.