What to do if you lose your health insurance in the USA? Quick guide for emergencies
GOP passes OBBBA ahead of July 4 with critics warning Medicaid cuts may leave 12M uninsured. Options if you lose coverage.
Republicans have passed the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ (OBBBA) on party lines in the House of Representatives, meaning the president will be able to sign it into law before his self-imposed deadline of July 4th.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the cuts to Medicaid—implemented in various forms, including the imposition of work requirements—will leave nearly 12 million people without healthcare coverage over the next decade. Currently, around 78 million people, including 37 million children, are insured through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
What percent of the U.S. population is uninsured?
In 2023, about 25 million people, including 4 million children, were uninsured in the U.S., representing around 9.5% of the population. This is one of the lowest rates on record. However, policy analysts warn that the GOP’s bill could undo much of this progress. Republicans reject these claims, and the full impact of the bill will take time to assess, as the work requirements do not go into effect immediately.
The Senate bill would cut federal #Medicaid spending by $1 trillion over 10 years, per CBO.
— KFF (@KFF) July 3, 2025
Provisions that only apply to ACA expansion states account for $526 billion of the federal spending reductions.
Our analysis estimates the effects on states: https://t.co/VXkM2xuYGj pic.twitter.com/VyUEwiPMCE
Why do millions remain uninsured?
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), the primary reason is cost. In a 2023 survey, 63% of respondents aged 18 to 64 said they were uninsured because “the cost of coverage was too high.”
When will work requirements go into effect?
The work requirements are scheduled to begin on December 31, 2026, after the midterm elections. States will also be able to apply for waivers to delay implementation until 2028.
Options if your Medicaid coverage is revoked
If you receive a letter from the state agency that oversees Medicaid, you should contact them right away. It may be due to an administrative error or a request for additional information to confirm your eligibility.
Healthcare.gov, a resource and marketplace for health insurance, also advises reapplying to see if you still qualify. There may be programs you weren’t aware of that could help you stay covered.
The state will also put you in touch with what they call an “assister” which is a person who “provide[s] free, fair, impartial, and accurate information to you and your household [... and] are trained by [the federal government] to give you information about your health coverage options, answer your questions, and help you enroll in a Marketplace plan, Medicaid, or CHIP."
What to do if you lose your employer-provided health coverage
Aside from losing access to Medicaid, there are other ways people lose insurance in the U.S. Since most workers receive insurance through their employer, losing a job often affects not only their own coverage but also that of any family members on the plan.
Healthcare.gov lists two main options for those who are laid off or furloughed.
The first is to purchase a plan through the Health Insurance Marketplace®
You can get an estimate of your monthly premium by entering your annual income. If your income drops below the federal poverty level due to job loss, you may qualify for Medicaid. If you leave your job—voluntarily or involuntarily—you have 60 days to enroll in a Marketplace plan under a Special Enrollment Period, allowing your new coverage to begin the first day of the month after you lose your job-based coverage.
The second is to continue your coverage through COBRA Insurance.
What about COBRA?
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COBRA Insurance allows you to stay on your employer’s health plan for a limited time (usually 18 months) by paying the full premium yourself, plus a small administrative fee. While COBRA lets you avoid switching plans immediately, it can be expensive. Depending on your state, the average monthly premium ranges from $400 to $700.
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