Fifty-four percent of unemployed, low-income U.S. residents are unable to afford private health insurance through COBRA and are not covered by Medicaid, according to a report released on Friday by Families USA, the AP/San Francisco Chronicle reports. The report used estimates provided by the Lewin Group and focused on lower-income and middle-class workers with annual incomes of about $44,100 for a family of four, or about 200% of the federal poverty level. Many of these uninsured either do not qualify for or are unable to afford COBRA coverage after losing their jobs and are not covered by Medicaid (Freking, AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 2/6).

COBRA allows former employees of companies with at least 20 employees to remain on their employer-sponsored health plan for up to 18 months provided they pay the full premium plus administrative fees, the Detroit Free Press reports (Anstett, Detroit Free Press, 2/7). A recent Families USA study found that the average COBRA premium costs about 84% of an average unemployed person's monthly unemployment check (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 1/12)…