Chandra Beal

The 32-year-old freelance writer is a classic example of how many entrepreneurs of today are facing the choice of sink or swim.

Chandra was a staff writer for a local law firm when staff cutbacks forced her out of a job in August 2001. Without unemployment benefits, COBRA payments at $300 a month became a luxury she could no longer afford, and with a history of breast cancer in her family, the California native is understandably nervous.

"My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 38," says Chandra. Her lack of health insurance is something she says she’s always aware of, however, the high premiums are enough to sink her budget.

Chandra continues to freelance while holding a part-time job at another law firm. She also is enrolled in massage therapy school and hopes to one day subsist wholly as her own boss. But health insurance continues to be an issue.

"When I plan my monthly budget, I often forget to include medical expenses, but it’s something that seems to come up all the time," says Chandra.

Until she finds a solution, however, Chandra will continue to tread water without health insurance, hoping for the best. "I don’t have a full-time job, and I’m self-employed, so I continually fall through the cracks," she says. "I want to know what’s available for people like me."