Personal Finance: How to shop for health care insurance Sacramento Bee
Buying health insurance is no one's idea of fun.
But for many folks who have lost a job, just graduated from college or maxed out their COBRA, it's a necessity.
One of those is 60-year-old Nancy Thompson of Camino, who lost her shipping office job at Sierra Pacific's mill last year. This month, the COBRA health coverage from her former employer ran out.
Determined to stay covered, she went shopping for health insurance – online – and found it an unpleasant experience.
Using one of the many comparison sites for health insurance, she started filling out her online application. "It was overwhelming. There were so many questions and I started feeling uncomfortable," said Thompson. "I didn't even finish filling it out."
That's when the e-mails, phone calls and letters started arriving from brokers or agents eager to sign her up.
Frustrated, she opted to purchase a $541-a-month Aetna policy from a Citrus Heights insurance broker who came to her home. (Her husband, who is retired, has his own health coverage through Medicare.)
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