Dear CareerBabe:

I desperately need some advice. About four months ago my husband accepted a position with a small company in which the owner was also a friend. He made my husband an attractive offer including hospitalization that would start immediately. Now four months later we are still not covered, which we only recently discovered when our daughter became very ill. The owner of the company told my husband that he would cover any medical expenses we may incur and that a new state mandated law in New Jersey was preventing my husband from being included on his plan. We received all the medical bills and now the owner said he will only cover certain ones and that he would act as the insurance company and apply the rest towards our deductible, if and when we ever get covered. I became very upset and phoned my husband's company. I was told they're looking into a new insurance company with a $4,800.00 deductible per year per family, which I told them was outrageous. I desperately need advice. Thank You.

Dear Desperate:

You have raised a BIG concern in changing jobs. Get everything in writing. If you have a family, this is doubly important. The crux of this issue may depend on your documentation, which per your letter might just be verbal, in which case it is your word against his. Do you have notes of any of these conversations? Phone messages left on your answering machine? Offer letters documenting what the new boss was offering? You know, if the company is fewer than 20 persons, it is more difficult to enforce "standards" than with larger, more well-established entities.

In any event, there are two steps I would take at once: Contact Elizabeth Randall, New Jersey's Insurance Commissioner. Is Health Insurance covered by the Insurance Commissioner? If not, then who governs this? Second, contact your state or county's bar association and ask for the employment or benefits lawyer on rotation for an inexpensive consultation. You definitely need advice specific to your situation.

Best of Luck! I hope your daughter is OK.