COBRA college - three articles you should study
February, 2011

Basic COBRA 101 - Is your company subject to COBRA? The first step is acceptance...that is, if you are required to offer continuation coverage to your employees. The second is compliance – yes, the "c" word.

We'll cover just the employer eligibility basics here. If you're required to offer COBRA and you don't, you could be hit with a $100 per day, per "missed notification" penalty! We're here to help you avoid a visit from the Department of Labor.

Intermediate COBRA 201 - The devil is in the details. And there are lots of details to be aware of when talking about COBRA. Once you know you have to offer continuation coverage, you'll find that it's all about the notifications. Well, that and deadlines.

Let's deal with the employer requirements first. There are notifications to provide, and timelines for you to meet. And if members elect coverage, you will need to keep them in mind every time your health plans renew.

Advanced COBRA 301 - Now the real fun begins. You've notified your COBRA Qualified Beneficiaries of their Qualifying Event. Now sit back and wait. They now get to decide if they want the coverage…and they get up to two months to decide.

So let's review the member-side of COBRA. Elections, payment, and deadliness, oh my! It really doesn't have to be that scary, honest.

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