Department of Labor Publishes Model COBRA Notices
Employees terminated during the period of September 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009 are entitled to continue health care coverage under COBRA with a 65% premium subsidy in accordance with The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). See prior blog entries, “Who Cares About Jobs: Let’s Fix Health Care Through COBRA,” and “The IRS Answers Questions For Employers About the New COBRA Subsidy.”
Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Labor published four separate model notices for employers to use when notifying employees of their ARRA rights. The first notice called the General Notice should be sent to any employee who experienced a qualifying event at any time from September 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009, regardless of the type of qualifying event. The second notice called the General Notice (abbreviated notice) may be sent to individuals who experienced a qualifying event during on or after September 1, 2008, have already elected COBRA coverage, and still have it. The third notice called the Alternative Notice applies only to insurance issuers that provide group health insurance coverage under state law. Finally, the fourth notice called the Notice in Connection with Extended Election Periods applies to terminated employees who:
1. Had a qualifying event at any time from September 1, 2008 through February 16, 2009; and
2. Either did not elect COBRA continuation coverage, or who elected it but subsequently discontinued COBRA.
This fourth notice must be provided by April 18, 2009, which, incidentally, is the birthday of the well known DuPage County, Illinois politician and statesman Henry Hyde.
Last 5 posts by Ross Molho
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- COBRA Subsidy Extended - December 22nd, 2009
- Illinois Employers Face Greater Liability for Managers Who Engage in Sexual Harassment - June 16th, 2009
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