u/foghornleghorm

Had a shot today, first time. After a couple hours, my hand and forearm are a bit swollen and pain is worse. Normal side effect?

Hello!

Under 65 married couple in NY (NYC, if that matters). I was sole earner and got laid off last year. I pay ~$1850/month for COBRA for the two of us. Trying to figure out what our options are, if any.

Medicaid and ACA are both on the "NY State Of Health" site. If I put in my expected income for the year, it's very low because it's only the 6 months of unemployment I can claim. The way the NY site works, as soon as you put in an income that's low enough, you are redirected to the Medicaid application instead of the ACA marketplace.

Having read the NY State Of Health site documentation and started the application, I'm confused on a few points.

1. Do I have to include my current COBRA under "existing insurance?" I'm trying to figure out if I can discontinue COBRA and switch to Medicaid, but I'm not clear if that's allowed. Am I required to avail myself of COBRA in order to apply for help from the state?
2. I did include my existing COBRA details in my application to see what would happen, and there was a message to the effect that the state might be able to subsidize my COBRA premium. But I can't find any documentation about what the requirements are for this.
3. On the final page of the application, I have to agree to a bunch of things. For example, "I know that if I qualify for Medicaid, I must choose and join a Medicaid Managed Care Health Plan" and "I know that if I qualify for the Essential Plan, I must choose and join an Essential Plan health plan." Does this mean I can't just submit an application to see what I'm qualified for? By submitting the application am I committing myself?

Thanks for any help! Cheers!