Going out on your own means becoming your own benefits department. These are the policies an employer used to provide — and now you need to arrange yourself.
Self-employment removes the employer safety net: health insurance, disability, life, and any business liability are now yours to arrange. Handled well, you can match or beat employer benefits with tax advantages; handled poorly, a single illness or lawsuit can undo the business.
This guide walks through the coverage the newly self-employed most often need and links to the tools and deeper guides.
Buy individual health coverage — leaving a job triggers a Special Enrollment Period, and you may qualify for Marketplace subsidies based on your self-employment income. An HSA-eligible high-deductible plan pairs coverage with triple-tax-advantaged savings. Because your income depends on your ability to work, individual disability insurance is critical, and life insurance replaces employer group coverage you've lost.
Your homeowners policy won't cover business activities. Depending on what you do, you may need general liability, professional liability (errors & omissions) if you advise clients, commercial auto if you drive for work, and cyber coverage if you handle customer data. A Business Owner's Policy (BOP) bundles the common ones.
The core list: your own health insurance (often via the Marketplace, possibly with subsidies), individual disability insurance to protect your income, life insurance to replace lost employer coverage, and business liability appropriate to your work — general liability, professional liability if you advise clients, commercial auto if you drive for work, and cyber if you handle data. A Business Owner's Policy bundles the common business coverages.
Leaving a job triggers a 60-day Special Enrollment Period on the ACA Marketplace, where freelancers can buy individual coverage and may qualify for income-based subsidies. Compare a Marketplace plan against COBRA (continuing your old employer plan), which is usually more expensive. An HSA-eligible high-deductible plan can pair coverage with tax-advantaged savings.
Jennifer Walsh
Editorial Lead, Health & Medicare
This article was researched and written by the Cover Forge USA editorial team against federal sources (NAIC, CMS, FEMA, DOL, SSA, state DOIs) and standard policy forms. Bylines organize content by topic — they do not assert individual licensure. See our editorial-policy for details.
Reviewed 2026-06-14
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