As the members of the class of 2010 prepare to flip their tassels to the left in May, there’s more than just studying to cross off of their to-do lists. While stressing over where to live and finding a job, many young adults do not address the issue of health insurance.

Reality will set in for some graduates when their parents’ plan or student insurance coverage expires, if it hasn’t already. Whether these current students are busy studying sociology or calculus, they need to make time to read up on their health insurance options before they suddenly find themselves uninsured.

“Thirty percent of people ages 19 through 29 are uninsured,” said Steve Trattner, president of Cinergy Health, in his article “Congratulations on Your College Graduation – Now Get Health Insurance.”

“Instead of being smart about the frailty of life, this age group tends to believe they’re invincible or simply do not recognize the necessity of health insurance, especially as we confront seemingly ever-rising health care costs,” Trattner continues in the article.

CNN Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen agrees with Trattner’s viewpoint in her article, “What’s a Recent College Graduate to do about Health Insurance?” Cohen acknowledges that some students are trying to find health insurance, but “others, dubbed the ‘young invincibles’ think they don’t need it since they’re young and healthy.” Cohen makes the point that all it takes is “a car accident, a cancer diagnosis” to put a 20-something college grad in “real trouble.”

To save themselves the pain and hassle of acquiring medical debt on top of already-looming college loan debt, students should check out their options now.
Insurance laws vary by state. As of Jan. 1, 2009, Connecticut law states that “Every individual health insurance policy providing coverage of the type specified in [certain] subdivisions… shall provide that coverage of a child shall terminate no earlier than the policy anniversary date on or after whichever of the following occurs first, the date on which the child: Marries; ceases to be a resident of the state; becomes covered under a group health plan through the dependent’s own employment; or attains the age of twenty-six.” This law does not apply to all insurance plans.

In “What’s a Recent College Graduate to do about Health Insurance?” Cohen suggests looking into the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). According to the U.S. Department of Labor Web site, 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 certain circumstances.”

COBRA is not a free option. The Web site explains that “Qualified individuals may be required to pay the entire premium for coverage up to 102 percent of the cost of the plan.”