ARRA Subsidary will end in 2010

For those of you who are looking to be laid off after the 31st of December, please note you will not recieve the 65% reduction.

People are still getting laid off left and right. As of know the unemployment rate still stands at 10%. How are those people going to pay for COBRA. Is this right? If they can extend the bailout program until December of 2010, then this summplement should be included. 

Here is some information regarding the ARRA Subsidary:

ARRA Premium Subsidy


The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ("ARRA") requires an employer to subsidize the COBRA premium for an Assistance Eligible Individual ("AEI"). An AEI is an employee whose qualifying event under COBRA is a result of his or her involuntary termination from employment between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009, who is eligible for COBRA coverage and timely elects such coverage.



The former employer must pay 65 percent of the COBRA premium, and the AEI must pay 35 percent of the COBRA premium. The employer may receive a Federal tax credit to recoup the 65 percent premium payment made on the AEI's behalf.



ARRA Extension

With economic experts forecasting a "jobless recovery," the Extended COBRA Continuation Protection Act of 2009 (HR 3930) was introduced into the House of Representatives this week. The Act extends the COBRA subsidy period from 9 months to 15 months, makes workers involuntarily terminated between January 1, 2010 and June 30, 2010 eligible for the subsidy, and extends the COBRA period from 18 months to 24 months for AEIs. The Act sunsets subsidies and extended COBRA periods on December 31, 2010, providing a limited window for individuals to take advantage of these additional benefits. The Obama Administration has indicated support of extended benefits, but there is uncertainty whether the extension will pass the House and then the Senate.



Workers Involuntarily Terminated in December 2009 but Losing Coverage January 1, 2010

If the COBRA subsidy period is not extended, employers must begin to prepare for the end of the subsidy period as to new AEIs. One major issue not referenced in the legislation is the eligibility of employees for the subsidy who are involuntarily terminated as of December 2009 but do not lose coverage under the health plan until the "last day of the month." Do these individuals lose coverage as of December 31, 2009 (an AEI) or lose coverage as of January 1, 2010 (not an AEI)?



To illustrate this uncertainty an example is helpful: An employee is involuntarily terminated December 5, 2009, and the health plan provides that the employee receives coverage until the "last day of the month." The employee timely receives COBRA forms and elects coverage and asks whether he or she is eligible for the subsidy. You, as the employer, ask "What is the date the employee lost coverage?"



If the ARRA subsidy was not an issue, almost all employers, as part of common COBRA practice, would answer that the last day of coverage is December 31, 2009, and the first day the employee loses coverage is January 1, 2010. A health claim submitted as incurred at 11:59 PM on December 31, 2009 would be covered, and a health claim submitted as incurred at 12:01 AM on January 1, 2010 would not be covered. The relevant COBRA statute, Internal Revenue Code Section 4980B(f)(8), states that a health plan may provide an optional extension of coverage (until the end of the month) and that the COBRA period will commence as of the date of the loss of coverage. The date of the loss of coverage would, thus, appear to be January 1, 2010.



However, the IRS ARRA information indicates a different potential answer.



IRS Notice 2009-27 (ARRA Questions and Answers) includes an example in Q/A 14 stating that if an employee is involuntarily terminated on November 15, 2009, and if the employer does not use the optional extension of coverage (until the end of the month), the COBRA period is November 15, 2009 plus 18 months to May 15, 2010. If the employer does use the optional extension of coverage, then the COBRA period, and thus the date of loss of coverage, is November 30, 2009 (last day of month) to May 31, 2010. Additionally, if an employee were to be involuntarily terminated on December 31, 2009 as the legislation states, being eligible for the subsidy, there is no situation where the employee would be actually eligible for the subsidy because the employee would have coverage through midnight as of the day of his or her termination.


This is just food for thought. I really do hope that this will be extended as well.