Why Is Health Insurance Tied To Job? 
Your health insurance is only tied to your job if you are covered by a group insurance plan through your employer . You always have the option to purchase an individual health plan on or off the health insurance exchanges . The big advantage of a group health insurance plan is that the carrier is paying for a portion of the premiums and the benefits are usually pretty competitive when compared to an individual policy . So why do carriers offer group coverage if it 's a big expense to them ? - It 's an incentive for people to come work for them . Some companies offer other types of coverage as well such as group life insurance or group disability insurance . The drawback is that if you left the company , you can not take the coverage with you because the employer owns the policy . You have the option for COBRA in many instances which will allow you to continue coverage for up to 18 months . However , under the Affordable Care Act , losing group coverage would grant you a special enrollment period to buy a new individual health plan and insurance companies can no longer decline you for a pre-existing condition or other health-related illness . So , in short , you will want to compare COBRA coverage to a new individual plan - an independent health insurance agent/broker can help you with this comparison . 