COBRA EXTENSION PASSED
The U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration announced today that the COBRA premium subsidy eligibility period has been extended to cover qualified employees who lose their jobs through February 28, 2010. The time period for receiving the subsidy has also been extended from nine months to 15 months.
COBRA is a program that allows employees and their families to continue the health care insurance they received from their employers after their employment ends. Prior to the adoption of the COBRA subsidy, employees had to pay the full cost of their health insurance, which was prohibitive for many unemployed workers. Employees who qualify for the subsidy only need to pay 35% of the premium amount during the subsidy period. COBRA eligibility continues for a period of time after the subsidy ends, but employees will need to pay up to 102% of the costs of their coverage at that point.
Not all employees who are eligible for COBRA are eligible for the COBRA subsidy. For details, see www.dol.gov/cobra.
This posting is not legal advice, and should not be relied on for any purpose. It is a summary of a complex area of the law, which may have changed since this posting was written on December 22, 2009.
Tags: ARRA, COBRA, COBRA reduction, COBRA subsidy, employee health insurance
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