What is short term health insurance?   No one is immune to accidents.  Accidents happen and you want to make sure you and your family are covered.   Short term health insurance plans provide you with coverage for a limited period of time, and may be an ideal solution for those between jobs, an alternative to COBRA, temporary worker, or those waiting for other health insurance to start. Typically, short-term plans offer coverage up to six months, although some plans may offer coverage up to 12 months. If you need coverage for longer than 12 months you should research a permanent health insurance plan.  However you will need a short term health plan to cover you for the couple of months that it takes to underwrite a permanent plan.   The application process for short-term health insurance is extremely simple and can be done completely online in typically less than 5 minutes. Short-term health insurance plans are designed to protect against unforeseen accidents or illnesses, rather than to provide comprehensive coverage, and, as such, typically do not include coverage for preventive care, physicals, immunizations, dental or vision care.    Short-term health insurance plans do not cover pre-existing medical conditions. The definition of a pre-existing condition varies by state, but, in general, short-term health insurance policies exclude coverage for conditions that have been diagnosed or treated within the previous 3 to 5 years.