COBRA subsidy extended
The US Congress voted in late December to extend the COBRA subsidy available to qualified workers who have involuntarily lost their jobs.
This legislation originally provided the grant covering 65% of the COBRA premium for up to nine months. The new legislation expands eligibility to up to fifteen months.
The legislation originally covered qualified workers whose employment had ended by December 31, 2009. The new legislation extended the employment ending date as late as February 28, 2010.
The most recent Kiplinger Newsletter reminds employers of two new deadlines relevant to this extension of the COBRA subsidy.
- Employers must send a (separate) notice by January 31st to any involuntarily unemployed workers eligible for retroactive coverage under COBRA. This would include workers whose original 9-month subsidy expired in 2009 and who dropped COBRA coverage as a result.
- Employers must notify by February 27th all COBRA-qualified former workers about the subsidy extension.
The Department of Labor website has additional information about the ARRA-funded COBRA subsidy. You may access this by clicking here.