COBRA quote is huge, any alternatives? - what worked for you?

I just got my COBRA paperwork and the deadline to decide is close. There are 15 people counting on me, so I am trying to be careful. I saw that marketplace plans might cost less. Is the decision time really that tight?

If you have a planned treatment, COBRA can make sense for a few months. Otherwise look at the marketplace first.

A quick call to the plan's member line cleared up two things for us that the letter did not.