Of course, that leaves out a laundry list of other potential expenses, most of which unemployed people have already done away with — including, in most cases, insurance. Auto liability insurance is mandatory in most states, so most have that. But renter’s/home insurance, fire insurance, extended warranty coverage on a car, and particularly health insurance for the unemployed are luxuries that they just can’t afford on the income that unemployment insurance benefits provide.
Of course, 99ers are even worse off in that regard. If the unemployed insurance situation is grim, the 99ers’ is positively dour. When you can’t even collect income from unemployment, protection from insurance is way off your radar.
So is there help for the unemployed when it comes to dealing with disasters? That depends a lot on the specific disaster in question.
Health Issues Without Insurance
In most cases, if you’re collecting unemployment insurance benefits, you’re not covered by Medicaid because, ironically, you make too much money. If you have a sudden severe problem, a hospital is required to treat you even if they can’t bill you. If you have a chronic condition, however, you have to rely on local free clinics. Generally, even the strictest free clinics will accept proof that you’re collecting unemployment insurance as evidence that you need their services.
Auto Problems Without Insurance
If your unemployment check vanishes long before you can pay out for extended warranty coverage, having a car breakdown is like having a lifeline severed. Unfortunately, there are no national resources for this dilemma. Some local areas have services that can drive you to job interviews, the DSHS office, and the like — again, provided you can prove you’re collecting unemployment insurance — but barring that, you have to hope the bus stops somewhere near your home.
Home Catastrophes Without Insurance
You know that your unemployment insurance benefits aren’t going to be nearly enough to cover something like the damage caused by a house fire or a flood. Regrettably, there’s almost nothing you can do about it. The only resource that can help you if you end up in this tragic scenario is an emergency shelter or a tent city. You may have significant difficulty getting your unemployment insurance checks without a permanent address, so try to find a friend who can collect them for you.
Legal Help For the Unemployed
Of course, US law provides for a lawyer if you need to defend yourself from criminal charges. But if you have other issues and they aren’t covered by the auspices of the National Employment Law Project (which largely covers unemployment appeals, unemployment tax issues, unemployment insurance fraud, and related legal work), it can be tough to find help in some places. There are many locales that have enough unemployed lawyers that they’ve organized into groups to help other people on unemployment insurance with their legal troubles. If you’re lucky enough to live in one of those places, you can take advantage.
What If You’re Not On Unemployment Insurance Anymore?
If you’re a 99er and no longer able to collect unemployment insurance benefits, things get even worse. Without proof of unemployment insurance to show people that you’re truly needy, some of the services listed above won’t actually help you. In that case, you would be well advised to try to get some sort of statement from your State government that explains that you’ve run out of unemployment insurance benefits, but you’re still unemployed and thus in need of generosity.
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