You may be unemployed, but you can invest some time in contacting local and state agencies to find cheap or free health care benefits.

Lost your health insurance? Don't give up, somewhere there's a stethoscope with your name on it.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—At last count, there were more than 45.7 million people in America without health insurance—at least 1 in 10 children and 1 in 5 nonelderly adults. And in our traumatized economy, people who never worried before about health coverage have been left jobless, uninsured, and looking for help. Even people who have health benefits are nervous—a March survey found that more than a third of U.S. adults are extremely worried about losing their health insurance.

THE DETAILS: A recent Institute of Medicine of the National Academies study found that having health insurance is essential for people’s health and well-being; relying long-term on safety-net services like Medicaid isn’t good enough to prevent avoidable illness, worse health outcomes, and premature death. The recent wave of recession-linked layoffs coupled with skyrocketing premiums (the average sum employees paid per year for family coverage more than doubled from $1,543 in 1999 to $3,354 in 2008) are leaving more people than ever to fend for themselves.

WHAT IT MEANS: Losing health care coverage due to a layoff or price hike can be debilitating, but don’t give up hope. You have options, and help is out there to assist you until you get back onto your feet again. You do need to know where to look, so read on.

Here’s what to do if you lose your job and find yourself stuck without health insurance.

• Look at these options first. Can you get coverage through your spouse’s or domestic partner’s employer? If not and you worked for a company with more than 20 employees, the COBRA law (don’t worry about what that stands for) requires that it offers you an extension of your health insurance. In the past it’s been hard for people to pay the high premiums associated with COBRA coverage, which typically lasts 18 to 36 months after you lose your job. But the recent American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus package passed by Congress includes a subsidy that will cover 65 percent of the premium for 9 months for people who lost (or will lose) their jobs between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009. If you’re one of them, you may be responsible only for the remaining 35 percent. For more information, visit Continuation of Health Care Coverage—COBRA.

• Seek state assistance. If you live in Massachusetts, you’re probably in the best position to receive health insurance because through mandates and heavy subsidies on the state and federal level, Massachusetts residents are covered. “Like a car or house, your health has to be insured, too. The state gives a group of options, depending on your circumstances,” explains Octavio Hernandez, program coordinator for Community Health Programs, a nonprofit health organization. “The first year was a pilot program, but it’s not an experiment anymore because it’s working. Ninety-five percent of Massachusetts residents are currently insured.”

The rest of the nation is watching, and similar programs could be adopted in other states. Until then, find out what’s available in your area through your state's guide to finding health insurance. There you’ll also find information about qualifying for Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and other types of coverage.