The Economy Project
(2010-01-04)
SPRINGFIELD, IL
(wsiu) -
From now on, young adults in Illinois can stay under their parents' health insurance longer. A new state law that took effect at the start of the year extends dependents' cut off age from 23 to 24."There are many young adults who have preexisting conditions or other medical conditions, and instead of getting off their parents' health insurance, they're able to stay on, instead of getting out into the Wild Wild West of the insurance and likely not being able to afford any care," said Jim Duffett, Director of the Campaign for Better Healthcare.
He says the new state law is a good news for hundreds of thousands of young adults in the state.
Duffett says the new law won't cost the state anything - it's up to parents if they want to pay extra to keep their kids covered. Young, unmarried adults are eligible as long as they don't have a job with a company that offers its own insurance plan.
Duffett adds that the federal legislation being discussed in Washington mirrors the Illinois law. He says federal proposals would let children stay on their parents' health care plans until they're 25 or 26.
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