I had health insurance through my last job. How long do I have after I quit to still use it?

I've heard of a thing called "cobra act" which allows the employee a certain amount of time to still use his/her insurance benefits.

Now for the correct answer.

COBRA is guaranteed to be available to you if your prior employer had over 20 employees covered by insurance. If there was less than 20 it may or MAY NOT be offered. You have 63 days to decide whether or not to elect COBRA. If you do you have to pay the premium from the first day. The premium will be 102% of what you and the employer both paid while you were still working. For example, you paid $60 per month and the employer paid $140 your premium will be $204.

If you do get on COBRA you have exactly 18 months where you can stay on the plan. If you move out of state during this time you probably will lose your coverage.

If you and your family are healthy you're better off with a short term medical or individual plan. If you or any member of your family have major pre-existing conditions you will need to stay on COBRA with that family member but get everyone else off. COBRA was not meant for healthy people.

In order to be eligible for COBRA, you need to have arranged with your last job how your healthcare insurance premiums would get paid (many companies require you to pay 100% of the premiums when you are no longer an employee).
Your employer needs to have at least 20 employees aswell.

COBRA lasts from 18 to 36 months, I believe dependent on which state you live in. The insurance premium payments must not lapse, or else the coverage ends and cannot be reinstated.

I hope this helps.

Technically you insurance ends the day you stop working for that employer. Any previously filed claim can be paid, but no new conditions will be covered.

Cobra allows you to BUY insurance for that time period before before your new employer's plan starts covering you. It is about the only type of insurance that you can actually purchase after the fact - in other words you can buy it after a medical condition develops.

In order to have continued health care coverage after you leave a job, you must talk to the insurance benefits person at your old company. You have up to 60 days from your termination from the company to elect COBRA. If you decide to enroll within the time frame and you pay the monthly premium, you should have no break in coverage from the time you left the company. There is usually an 18 month limit for COBRA, but you have to talk with the benefits coordinator at your old job to find out how long it can extend. The key is electing COBRA within the 60 days and paying the premium each month.