Roommate currently in ICU and insurance expires tomorrow

Hi all,

My roommate has coverage through her employer from BCBS, but her employer is swapping insurance companies and there is a gap from tomorrow through October 4th where everyone will be uninsured. The employer essentially just told the employees to not get sick for two weeks, and my roommate didn’t think an emergency would happen in this time frame and didn’t get marketplace insurance to cover the two weeks.

Unfortunately, my roommate developed a migraine and symptoms worsened to the point where she had to go to the ER this morning, and she is know being put into the ICU for brain swelling. I assume this is a serious issue that will require an overnight stay, but I’m not sure what will happen because the coverage will end at midnight. I also assume buying short-term health insurance will not solve anything because the current hospitalization will be seen as a pre-existing condition so they will not cover treatment. Is this correct, or are the circumstances different because of the nature of the emergency? Does she have any options at this point?

I am aware that this is not a good situation to be in and I had previously advised her to get marketplace insurance or some kind of coverage for that time frame, but at this point what’s done is done and I would really like to do what I can to make sure she doesn’t end up with medical debt for life because of a $50k+ bill. I just was in the ER myself and have seen how high these bills can be, but I was lucky to have very good coverage from my job. Any advice would be really appreciated.

Additional info: Roommate is 30F, we live in MA