By Clark Howard
For the Journal-Constitution
Published on: 09/09/06

According to the latest shocking figures, one out of six people in this country is living without any sort of health coverage.

One of the problems we face in Georgia is that state laws do not protect you if you get sick. The game here is that an insurer will take you on, and everything will be fine —- until you get sick. Then they raid your wallet by raising premiums. Some raise the price so high that many people have to give up their insurance when they need it most. It's ugly.

For instance, if you have cancer and are on a multiyear treatment, your premiums could go up by so much that you would not be able to afford both them and treatment. In my opinion, Georgia should pass a law that says that once you are insured, you cannot be hit with these "death-spiral" premiums when you become ill.

There is a company in Atlanta that doesn't penalize you for getting sick. Kaiser Permanente is one of the few companies that treats you fairly, while offering individual and group health coverage at a reasonable cost. The plans are only available in eight other states and the District of Columbia.

Under Kaiser's plans, you first pass a physical to be accepted for coverage. The cost you pay is then based on your age and sex. The rates are set for five-year periods. Kaiser offers a wide variety of plans. So if you don't want to spend a lot of money, you can go into a limited benefit plan. If you don't mind spending more, buy a plan that's more comprehensive and even allows you to go outside Kaiser for treatment.

Now, the big knock on Kaiser is that you do have to go to its facilities and doctors. But it does have some plans with the option of going to whomever you want —- they just cost more.

You can check out some of the Kaiser rates by visiting its Web site, www.kaiserinsuranceonline.com. Punch in your age range, sex and ZIP code, and you can get a look at what monthly coverage will cost. For instance, a male, 35 to 39, living in ZIP 30305, will spend $76 a month. For a female, it's $134. The premium plan is $189 for a male; $334 for a female.

It sounds expensive, but compared to many other policies, that's cheap.

But the best thing about Kaiser plans is that once you're in, it's not going to kick you out or rip you off. And that's the real bargain.

H.M. Cauley contributed to this article.

Clark Howard answers questions of general interest in this column. Because of volume, he can't respond to all questions.

Listen to Clark Howard's radio show 1-4 p.m. Mondays-Fridays on WSB-AM (750).