# HR and insurance types: question about job hunting while having cancer **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 10, 2007, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535 "2007-04-10T20:03:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Emilio\_Lizardo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Emilio\_Lizardo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emilio_Lizardo)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/1 "2007-04-10T20:03:53Z")
I have reached that stage in my life where I need more money; and the best way to get a good bump is to take a new job. The one complicating factor is: I have cancer. It is a very mild, low grade cancer, to be sure. I have had it for 4 years with no symptoms, and my current “treatment” regimen is a checkup every 3 months, and this may continue indefinitely. So I don’t feel any obligation to inform a potential employer about it. But I absolutely DO need to make sure that I am covered under my new employers insurance, and not have any future treatment rejected as a “pre-existing condition.” Is this a realistic worry? Any way around it? I suppose that I could wait until AFTER I have been offered a position to confirm that their insurance will carry me. If they rescind the offer after that it will look mighty fishy, no? ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/2 "2007-04-10T20:18:57Z")
It depends mostly on state law. Here in california, small business insurance is considered guaranteed issue meaning that there are no health questions. I tried getting on the maryland department of insurance website but was getting errors so I’m not sure what the rules there would be. I would call the DOI and ask what the state guidelines are. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/3 "2007-04-10T20:56:22Z")
The general case is if you have been covered by a current employer group health plan and go immediately onto another with no break in coverage, you should not have a problem. However, in your case it pays to know the details. Two federal laws to be familiar with are Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), best known for its privacy provisions but also having an important bearing on portability (changing jobs), and COBRA, which relates to continuing the insurance from your current employer. Here is the Department of Labor’s fact sheet on HIPAA > **[Portability of Health Coverage](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/health-plans/portability)** > > The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) provides rights and protections for participants and beneficiaries in group health plans. HIPAA includes protections for coverage under group health plans that prohibit discrimination... Here is the sheet on COBRA > **[Continuation of Health Coverage (COBRA)](https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/health-plans/cobra)** > > The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) gives workers and their families who lose their health benefits the right to choose to continue group health benefits provided by their group health plan for limited periods of time under... State law can be more generous to you, but not less so. Also, I’m not sure \*\*Antinor1’s \*\* criteria of “no health questions” is quite the one you want to be going by. There can be no health questions, meaning they do issue you the policy, but the policy could still refuse to pay for preexisting conditions. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/4 "2007-04-10T20:58:23Z")
[QUOTE=Harriet the Spry] Also, I’m not sure \*\*Antinor1’s \*\* criteria of “no health questions” is quite the one you want to be going by. There can be no health questions, meaning they do issue you the policy, but the policy could still refuse to pay for preexisting conditions. [/QUOTE] That is why I noted that was California law and to check with his own states DOI. It was meant as an example of one possibility depending on state law. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/5 "2007-04-10T21:03:28Z")
Please don’t take this as snarky. Insurance is complicated and I’m trying to be very clear for the sake of the OP. Even if Maryland says “Nope, no health questions here, either” I don’t think that is the information the OP needs. He needs to know whether his bills for the preexisting cancer in particular will be covered, not whether he will be issued a policy. That’s why I included the clarification. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/6 "2007-04-10T21:07:33Z")
Not sure about your state, but I had a co-worker here in Illinois who was a double- or triple-transplant patient. She had to take anti-rejection drugs and such, and they hired her, but made her wait six months or a year before they’d cover her expenses. I think she made a stink about it and the time limit may have been lessened. Unfortunately, she died from stress on her other organs due to her illness. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/7 "2007-04-10T21:09:09Z")
I totally understand Harriet. I sell business health insurance so I’m well versed in the complexities. I probably should have left the CA example out of it and just advised checking with the DOI. Sorry if I complicated matters for the OP by throwing that in. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2007, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/8 "2007-04-10T21:10:59Z")
Am I wrong in thinking that the group insurance provided by most employers has to cover all employees? I didn’t think that they _could_ discriminate based on any particular condition. But I’m hardly an expert… ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/9 "2007-04-11T03:18:12Z")
[QUOTE=Athena] Am I wrong in thinking that the group insurance provided by most employers has to cover all employees? I didn’t think that they _could_ discriminate based on any particular condition. But I’m hardly an expert… [/QUOTE] They can and do exclude pre-existing conditions - typically (thanks to the law changes cited above) only if you didn’t have coverage before. If you’re coming off of another group plan, or (I think) an individual plan, then your pre-existing condition would still be covered. There are some limitations on that (I don’t have cites handy but IIRC, if the company is especially small, or is self-insured, they may still be able to restrict pre-existing conditions). I remember back before the law went into effect, a colleague was panicking when she was facing a layoff - her husband had a heart condition, and had insurance through her job, so they were looking at being uninsured ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Sophistry\_and\_Illusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sophistry_and_Illusion)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2007, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hr-and-insurance-types-question-about-job-hunting-while-having-cancer/399535/10 "2007-04-11T09:38:02Z")
My impression was that if you are covered by a health insurance plan up until the time you start your new job (or technically, up until 63 days before you being your new job), the [Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_Insurance_Portability_and_Accountability_Act) means that your preexisting conditions will be covered. From the Wiki summary: > [@](#): > > Title I also limits restrictions that a group health plan can place on benefits for preexisting conditions. Group health plans may refuse to provide benefits relating to preexisting conditions for a period of 12 months after enrollment in the plan or 18 months in the case of late enrollment. However, individuals may reduce this exclusion period if they had health insurance prior to enrolling in the plan. Title I allows individuals to reduce the exclusion period by the amount of time that they had “creditable coverage” prior to enrolling in the plan and after any “significant breaks” in coverage. “Creditable coverage” is defined quite broadly and includes nearly all group and individual health plans, Medicare, and Medicaid. A “significant break” in coverage is defined as any 63 day period without any creditable coverage. I am not involved in the health care industry, so I don’t know the ins and outs, but I’ve always been under the impression that if you are already covered by health insurance, then you are good to go.