Health insurance gap after a layoff after 17 years as a payroll clerk

My employer coverage ended at the end of the month and I am trying to work out what to do as a payroll clerk. It has been weighing on me all week. I do not want a gap in coverage. Is there help filling out the forms?

Thanks for writing this out. I went through something close to it 11 months ago, and it settled down once I kept a simple log of every call and form.