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COBRA’s protection only arises upon the occurrence of a “qualifying event.” In other words, COBRA is triggered any time an employee or a dependent loses group health plan coverage. For COBRA to apply, there must be a loss of coverage caused by one of the specific statutory events: termination or reduction in hours of employment, […]
Question: If you offer a Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) to your regular full time employees, are you obligated to offer the HRA to people that terminate and elect COBRA? If yes, can you charge the employee for the COBRA premium AND can you charge for a premium equivalent rate for the HRA (or administrative charge)?
Most HR professionals (and a lot of laymen, too) are at least familiar with Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) in general terms. We know that it gives employees the chance to continue their former employer’s insurance coverage for a while after leaving a job. But what law is this part of? And how long […]
by Gwen Cofield To have standing to sue an employer for a Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) notice violation, the individual alleging the violation must be either a participant or a beneficiary, as those terms are defined in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). COBRA coverage is designed to continue, for a limited time, […]
It is tempting to use telephonic and e-mail delivery to send notices on COBRA continuation coverage rights, but this is hard to do and not very practical, says COBRA expert Paul M. Hamburger, Esq. of Proskauer Rose in Washington, D.C. So the best way to ensure success compliance with COBRA’s continuation coverage rules – and […]