My friend Millie expects to be unemployed soon. At age 60 and after 10 years with her employer, she had her hours cut last fall. She has been told to expect fewer hours next month and no work after August.

Because Millie works in health care research with project-specific funding, she’ll get no severance pay, and ironically, no continuation of health insurance. A break-up with her partner a couple years ago forced her to buy back half her house, leaving her without much financial cushion.

Millie hasn’t shown up in unemployment statistics yet, but she’s feeling the uncertain economy. So is Richard, age 28, who was laid off April 30. He found work at a large insurance company two years ago, thinking it was a firm where he could move up and make a career. Instead, the company outsourced his whole department. The contractor offers only a $100 per month voucher toward health insurance, instead of the full benefits package the insurance company provided.

Richard is now in a temporary job, looking for anything that will pay the bills. At least he got severance pay, and will have health insurance from his former employer until November. He’s making it for now, but told me he feels like he’s walking on eggshells, unsure what will happen next.

Overall, government data show jobs in Washington still edging up, but growing at only half of last year’s rate. From May 2007 to May 2008, Washington gained 38,000 jobs — while the state’s working-age population grew by 83,000.

The good news for the Everett-Seattle area is that some industries in this region have continued to grow, even though the financial activities and non-profit sectors where Richard and Millie worked shrank. Over the past year, aerospace added 6,300 new jobs, software and computers 5,500, restaurants 4,500, and health care delivery 2,600. Washington is also continuing to do far better than the nation. In fact, the new jobs in our state over the past year make up 36 percent of the job gain in the entire U.S.

Now new high school and college grads have hit the job market. Hannah, who graduated in May from Willamette University, has been searching the online sites and consulting with a recruiting company. She’s also signed up with two temp agencies. She’s looking for a position that will give her a start in business. She’s finding herself pitted against far more experienced candidates and has yet to get even a temporary placement. She’s living with her parents and covered by her father’s health insurance plan, though that now costs $250 per month.

Health insurance emerges as one of the biggest concerns for people facing unemployment. A serious illness or accident can happen at any time. Monthly premiums are costly, even when able to tap into a company plan. A recent AARP poll of Washington businesses found an average increase of 32 percent in individual premiums since 2005.

Washington’s Legislature took a good step in 2007 by allowing young adults to stay on their parent’s plans until age 25. At least Hannah now has the option of coverage.

This year the Legislature took another step, approving a study of five proposals to make health care more affordable and extend coverage. The Healthy Washington Coalition, representing faith communities, unions, businesses, women’s groups and others, is hosting seven forums around the state to comment on those proposals. The first was in Seattle last week. Other locations include Bellevue on August 12 and Everett on September 9. Details are available at healthywacoalition.org.

Our economy will have ups and downs, as well as structural shifts that open up new occupations and close off others. Education is critical to prepare the workforce for economic change. But Millie, Richard and Hannah all have college degrees, intelligence and resourcefulness. As a society we have to recognize that gaps in employment can happen to anyone in the 21st century economy.

The U.S. has the world’s most expensive health care system, yet we have lower life expectancies and higher infant deaths than most developed countries. Fixing our health care mess is one of the best things we could do to help workers struggling through unemployment and give businesses of every kind a boost.

Marilyn Watkins, policy director of the Economic Opportunity Instititue (www.eoionline.org), writes every other Wednesday. Her e-mail address is marilyn@eoionline.org.