Any COBRA experts here that will engage in a quick dialogue with me?

[LeftyFingerPop]

If so, I will post my question. Thank you.

[LeftyFingerPop]

1. I'll post it anyway...

Hypothetical...

Laid off on Jan 30. Company subsidiary closed doors. COBRA letter received that stated medical insurance was in effect until 2/28. After that, check would have to be sent for COBRA payments.

Company canceled insurance on 1/31, leaving a lapse in coverage.

Is this legal?

[flashsmith]

2. If they discontinued all their health plans, your screwed.

http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/newsroom/fsbankruptcy.html

[LeftyFingerPop]

3. Thanks for this....but only a small office shut down...

The company's health plan remains firmly intact.

[RB TexLa]

4. It's a dispute between the company and the insurance carrier.

The carrier is correct. You are caught in the middle. The carrier is billing your company for the next month but your company wants to drop you from the bill as if they are paying for the previous month. If they were deducting from your paycheck a month behind ie money taken from you in January paying for January's insurance they should have to eat the cost for February.



If you start paying for your insurance yourself beginning with March 1 you only have a 28 day lapse in coverage. Shouldn't cause you any problems.

[LeftyFingerPop]

6. Thank you. n/t

[MiniMe]

5. You have 60 days to opt into COBRA

The previous poster is correct, unless they cancelled all their insurance for all employees. So no, they can't do that if they have continued coverage.

[LeftyFingerPop]

7. Thank you. n/t

[phillysuse]

8. The real question I have is do you have a pension

through the Pension Benefit Guaranteed Loan Program. If you do and you are on COBRA, they will pay up to 65% of your COBRA under the HCTC. It's a little known law to help people whose companies didn't pay up for the pensions and they had to be taken over by the PBGLP.

[LeftyFingerPop]

9. The individual in question does not have this...

but I appreciate this info. Thank you.

[tritsofme]

10. The Obama Recovery Plan will subsidize COBRA at that amount as well.

I do not happen to know when it begins/end however.

[Shakespeare]

11. That's routine. What's important is that you opt in before the deadline.

You were terminated under their employee coverage--COBRA is (usually) covered under a different category for/within companies.

I used to work in labor & employment law, and got to know the ins and outs of this pretty well. Employers have crystal-clear guidelines they have to follow regarding terminal employees and COBRA information (regardless of whether they quit or are terminated). You should also have received some sort of formal notice in writing from your employer RE your options for signing up for COBRA coverage--hang on to that in case your insurance company gives you trouble anywhere down the line, and document all of your correspondence and payments when you start the COBRA coverage (goes without saying, but I'm saying it anyway).