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Guide · Between jobsHealth insurance between jobs in Florida.
You have four realistic options and about 60 days to choose. Here is how each one works, what it costs, and the one mistake that locks people into the wrong plan for months.
If your job-based health insurance is ending, the decision feels urgent and complicated. It is mostly urgent. Once you know the four options and the deadlines, most people can decide in under an hour.
Your four options
1. COBRA: same plan, full price
COBRA lets you keep the exact plan you had, with the same doctors, network and deductible progress. The catch is the price: you pay the whole premium, including the part your employer used to cover, plus up to a 2% fee. For many families that is three to five times what came out of their paycheck. COBRA usually lasts up to 18 months.
If your employer had fewer than 20 employees, federal COBRA does not apply. Florida's state continuation law covers smaller employers instead, with its own notice and payment rules, so read your notice carefully.
2. A Marketplace (ACA) plan, often with a subsidy
Losing job coverage opens a 60-day special enrollment period on HealthCare.gov, which is what Florida uses. Subsidies are based on your expected household income for the whole year. If you were paid well for six months and expect little for the next six, your annual income may be far lower than your old salary suggests, and the subsidy can be large.
Florida also has more Marketplace carriers than most states. Broward County, for example, has eleven on-exchange carriers for 2026.
3. A spouse's employer plan
Losing your coverage is a qualifying event for your spouse's plan too. Check this first, because the window is often only 30 days, not 60. If the spouse's plan is affordable, it also affects whether you can get a Marketplace subsidy at all.
4. Private coverage outside the Marketplace
If your income for the year will be too high for a subsidy, compare private plans sold outside the Marketplace before accepting COBRA at full price. A licensed advisor can show you both side by side.
The mistake that costs the most
People often elect COBRA "to be safe" and plan to switch to something cheaper later. You cannot. Dropping COBRA part-way through does not open a new enrollment window, so you may be stuck paying COBRA until open enrollment, which for 2027 coverage runs November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027. Decide inside your 60 days.
When COBRA is actually the right choice
- You have already met most of this year's deductible or out-of-pocket maximum.
- You or a family member is mid-treatment with doctors only in your current network.
- You expect a new job with benefits within a month or two.
- Your income this year will be high enough that no subsidy applies and private options do not fit.
Run your own numbers
Our free COBRA vs private insurance calculator compares your COBRA premium against an estimated Marketplace plan after your subsidy, month by month. If you are going out on your own, the self-employed health insurance calculator shows what a plan really costs after the tax deduction. For more detail, see COBRA alternatives.
Or skip the math: send us your COBRA notice and ZIP code and a licensed advisor will price the real options within 24 hours, free.
Common questions
How long do I have to get coverage after losing my job?
Usually 60 days. You have 60 days to elect COBRA and a 60-day special enrollment period for a Marketplace plan, both starting when your job coverage ends. A spouse's employer plan often gives you only 30 days.
Is there a gap in coverage if I wait to elect COBRA?
No. COBRA is retroactive to the day your coverage ended, as long as you elect within the 60 days and pay the first premium on time. A Marketplace plan starts on the first of the month after you enroll, so enrolling early avoids a gap.
Can I switch from COBRA to a cheaper plan later?
Only at open enrollment or after a new qualifying event. Dropping COBRA part-way through does not open a special enrollment period. Compare before you elect.
Will I get a subsidy if I had a good salary this year?
Possibly. Premium tax credits are based on your expected household income for the whole calendar year, including any months without pay. A job loss mid-year often brings that figure into the subsidy range.
