I was one of those people who, by virtue of working for companies that provided health insurance as a benefit, never had to worry about it... I always simply a

I was one of those people who, by virtue of working for companies that provided health insurance as a benefit, never had to worry about it... I always simply assumed that it was simply a matter of paying. Then I got laid off. That in itself was no problem - I simply went on COBRA, and nothing changed about my coverage or anything else, for a few months. Unfortunately my employer was struggling with business issues, and wanted to switch to a different insurer, which did not provide service to my region. They asked if I would seek out private health insurance coverage, and I agreed to. That's when I learned what health insurance is like for the 20%... Employer-provided (and thus group negotiated) health insurance - what I thought of as "normal" health insurance - is a far cry from what you can get if you're out there on your own. Not only do individual health plans cost more and give you less, they are also hard to get. The underwriters are suspicious of absolutely anything you saw a doctor for, even if it turned out to be nothing, or was subsequently fixed, and they want 10 years of your history to pick over too. I had to go to my most recent doctors and persuade them to send letters to the insurance company explaining that I was cured, or didn't have a case that required surgery, etc. I'm covered now, but it was kind of a nightmare. And I'm not just healthy, but somewhat well off financially. What must it be like for the rest?