With unemployment rising, Dow Jones Newswires columnist Victoria Knight provides some strategies this week for keeping health insurance if you find yourself out of work.

Your spouse’s employer. Suppose you and your spouse both have full-time jobs. You’re both covered through your employer, so your spouse waives the coverage offered through work. Then you lose your job, and the insurance that came with it.

Turns out, you may not have to wait until next year to get coverage through your spouse’s employer. Your “special enrollment” rights under the law may allow you to enroll immediately. Don’t dawdle, though: Your rights expire 30 days after you lose coverage.

COBRA. This is the classic option for staying covered when you get laid off. For 18 months, you can keep the insurance you had through your work — but you have to pay the whole premium, including the part formerly subsidized by your company.

But COBRA doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing proposition. For example, you can elect to pay for COBRA for yourself, but purchase a separate policy on the individual market for your children, which may prove to be cheaper than keeping them on your old policy.

Private and public options. If you’re relatively healthy, you may be able to find coverage on the private insurance market for less than you’ll pay through COBRA. Don’t be shy about considering high-deductible plans, which come with a lower premium than traditional coverage. Sure, a $10,000 deductible may sound like a lot. But a high deductible plan could save you from bankruptcy if you get seriously ill and wind up in the hospital.

Even if you’re not poor, your children may qualify for coverage through the state. Knight cites Wisconsin as an example, where all children without health insurance can enroll in a state program. Families over a certain income level pay premiums and, for certain services, co-pays.

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