Unemployed individuals, however, generally bore the full  cost of the premium. States’ Protections Generally Allow Unemployed Individuals to Purchase Insurance at Full Cost

The six states we reviewed had in place a variety of protections, which  were established prior to the economic downturn. Key protections to assist unemployed  individuals in maintaining health insurance coverage included:    State-mandated continuation coverage, through which states require small  businesses to extend their group health coverage to former employees and  their families if the former employees pay for it;    Guaranteed conversion, through which states require insurers to give  eligible individuals the ability to convert their group coverage to an  individual health insurance policy;    Guaranteed issue, through which states require insurers to offer coverage  to individuals who do not have access to group coverage or public  insurance; and    High-risk pools, in which states create associations that offer  comprehensive health insurance benefits to individuals with acute or  chronic health conditions.
What GAO Found

The six states reviewed had in place a variety of protections, established prior to the economic downturn, to assist unemployed individuals in maintaining health insurance coverage: State-mandated continuation coverage, which required small businesses to extend their group health coverage to former employees and their families who choose to pay for it. Guaranteed conversion, which required insurers to allow eligible individuals to convert their group coverage to individual health insurance policies. Guaranteed issue, which required insurers to offer coverage to those who did not have access to group coverage or public insurance. High-risk pools, state-created associations that offered comprehensive health insurance benefits to individuals with acute or chronic health conditions. However, individuals usually bore the full cost of the premiums, which was usually higher than their premium cost under employer-sponsored plans. For individuals who relied on unemployment benefits as their principal income, premiums absorbed a significant share of the benefit.