Paying for Healthcare in the Age of Coronavirus

Given that about half of Americans get insurance through an employer, the huge numbers of people losing their jobs may suddenly find that they no longer have coverage, says Christen Linke Young, a fellow at USC-Brookings Schaeffer.

If that happens to you, time is of the essence because you don’t want to be caught uninsured during this period of high peril and because, in some cases, you must sign up for new insurance within 60 days of losing your job, Young says. Here are some options.

See whether you qualify for Medicaid. The ACA, passed in 2010 to provide insurance to more people, allowed states to expand their Medicaid programs, something 36 states and the District of Columbia have done (see map above).