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Comment by antonymoose | Hacker News Reader

Leaving a job is a “life event” so couldn’t you then go out and get a simple marketplace plan? Last I checked it was only a few hundred dollars per month for a single individual?

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They mention having kids, so presumably it's more expensive. And on top of that, if you have nontrivial medical needs, the cheap marketplace plans often don't cover a lot of medications or treatments, or will make you redo things like step therapy before covering them. Or they'll have high deductibles which will leave you on the hook for most/all expenses if you're not on the plan for long enough to fill up the deductible.

While I understand the idea of american private health insurance, I don't get how do you have to pay for kids. Do you have to pay for primary school too?

You pay for private health insurance for everyone covered. Usually this is either just for yourself, for yourself and a spouse, or for yourself and a spouse and children. Each costs more than the last.

Public schools are generally paid for via property taxes at a pretty local level.

I was able to do this a while back in my late 40s. Took 7 months off or so, and insurance was $42/month (bronze). I had enough savings for the gap if I needed it, and it was just me, unlike the OP. Ended up getting a job sooner than expected and had to pay back the subsidy in full at the end of the year. :) So be ready for that. But at least at the time, it was good for cash flow.

It is astronomically higher for a family, as they said they have. The better way would probably be to go on a spouses plan and swap back and forth that way, but that also is a luxury that most underestimate.

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