College Students: Don't Forget about your Health Insurance
When high school graduates are moving onto college and college students are looking for new jobs, be sure not to forget about health insurance coverage.
When enrolled in college, many students are covered by their parents' health insurance policies. However most insurers require that the student be enrolled full time to maintain coverage unless they are on medical leave. Full-time students on medical leave are eligible to remain on their parents' health insurance policies for up to one year after leaving school. And, students who stay enrolled under their parents' policies should make sure they understand how the policy works before leaving for college. While emergency care is mandated to be covered, for routine or followup care, students may need to return to their home town to access the health care network contained in their policy.
College graduates who enter the workforce also need to consider the various health insurance options available. Before accepting a job offer, inquire of potential employers about health care benefits or if the employer does not provide health care coverage, check into purchasing an individual health insurance policy. As you sort through job prospects, don't always make salary your sole priority. Health insurance coverage may be the most important benefit you can receive.
If you feel you can't afford regular health insurance, think about purchasing a high deductible major medical policy that only covers very serious or catastrophic health costs. Or, consider a health savings account partnered with a high-deductible health plan. An HSA allows you to accumulate and spend pre-tax money for health expenses through an account that you own and can take with you when you change jobs.
What is COBRA?
The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) is a federal law that allows most employees, spouses, and their dependents who lose their health coverage under an employer's group health plan to continue coverage at their own expense for a period of time. This law applies to insured health plans and self-funded employer-sponsored plans in the private sector and those plans sponsored by state and local governments. However, COBRA does not apply to certain church plans, plans covering less than 20 employees, and plans covering federal employees.
Under the federal law, employees who terminate employment for any reason other than gross misconduct, or who lose their eligibility for group coverage because of a reduction in work hours, and the covered spouses and dependents of the employees may continue the group coverage for up to 18 months. A spouse and dependents may continue coverage for up to 36 months if they lose coverage due to the death of the employee, divorce from the employee, loss of dependent status due to age, or due to the employee's eligibility for Medicare.
The Wisconsin State Law gives the following individuals who have been continuously covered under a group health insurance policy for at least three months the right to continue the group coverage, or to convert to an individual policy providing similar benefits:
- A former spouse whose coverage ends because of divorce or anulment.
- An employee who voluntarily or involuntarily loses eligibility for coverage other than discharge for misconduct, along with the employee's spouse and dependents, if covered.
- A covered spouse and/or dependents of an employee who has died.
MEDICAL NEWS 
FIBROMYALGIA
You hurt all over, and you frequently feel exhausted. Even after numerous tests, your doctor can't find anything specifically wrong with you. If this sounds familiar, you may have fibromyalgia.
Fibromyalgia is a chronic condition characterized by widespread pain in your muscles, ligaments and tendons, as well as fatigue and multiple tender points — places on your body where slight pressure causes pain.
Fibromyalgia occurs in about 2 percent of the population in the United States. Women are much more likely to develop the disorder than are men, and the risk of fibromyalgia increases with age. Fibromyalgia symptoms often begin after a physical or emotional trauma, but in many cases there appears to be no triggering event.
Signs and symptoms of fibromyalgia can vary, depending on the weather, stress, physical activity or even the time of day.
Widespread pain and tender points
The pain associated with fibromyalgia is described as a constant dull ache, typically arising from muscles. To be considered widespread, the pain must occur on both sides of your body and above and below your waist.
Fibromyalgia is characterized by additional pain when firm pressure is applied to specific areas of your body, called tender points. Tender point locations include:
- Back of the head
- Between shoulder blades
- Top of shoulders
- Front sides of neck
- Upper chest
- Outer elbows
- Upper hips
- Sides of hips
- Inner knees
Fatigue and sleep disturbances
People with fibromyalgia often awaken tired, even though they seem to get plenty of sleep. Experts believe that these people rarely reach the deep restorative stage of sleep. Sleep disorders that have been linked to fibromyalgia include restless legs syndrome and sleep apnea.
Co-existing conditions
Many people who have fibromyalgia also may have:
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Depression
- Endometriosis
- Headaches
- Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Lupus
- Osteoarthritis
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Restless legs syndrome
- Rheumatoid arthritis
In general, treatments for fibromyalgia include both medication and self-care. The emphasis is on minimizing symptoms and improving general health.
Medications
Medications can help reduce the pain of fibromyalgia and improve sleep. Common choices include:
- Analgesics. Acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) may ease the pain and stiffness caused by fibromyalgia. However, its effectiveness varies. Tramadol (Ultram) is a prescription pain reliever that may be taken with or without acetaminophen. Your doctor may recommend nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) — such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others) or naproxen sodium (Aleve, others) — in conjunction with other medications. NSAIDs haven't proved to be as effective in managing the pain in fibromyalgia when taken by themselves.
- Antidepressants. Your doctor may prescribe amitriptyline to help promote sleep. Fluoxetine (Prozac) in combination with amitriptyline is effective in some people. Duloxetine (Cymbalta) may help ease the pain and fatigue associated with fibromyalgia. And milnacipran (Savella) was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of fibromyalgia symptoms.
- Anti-seizure drugs. Medications designed to treat epilepsy are often useful in reducing certain types of pain. Gabapentin (Neurontin) is sometimes helpful in reducing fibromyalgia symptoms, while pregabalin (Lyrica) is the first drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat fibromyalgia.
Therapy
- Physical therapy. Specific exercises can help restore muscle balance and may reduce pain. Stretching techniques and the application of hot or cold also may help.
- Counseling. Cognitive behavioral therapy seeks to strengthen your belief in your abilities and teaches you methods for dealing with stressful situations. Therapy is provided through individual counseling, classes, and with tapes, CDs or DVDs, and may help you manage your fibromyalgia
Exerpts taken from the Mayo Clinic.
This newsletter is not intended to give medical advice. If you are experience physicial symptoms, you need to consult with a physician.
