Anyone know when the discount for cobra health ins will take place now that the stimulus bill has been signed?
I am sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have used the word "discount". I read that the stimulus bill would allocate a certain amount of money to Cobra which would reduce the premiums by 65%. Just wondered if anyone knew when that would take affect.
Tagged with: amount of money • cobra • premiums • stimulus bill
Filed under: Health Discount
fFrom the e-mails I get from Presidents Obama’s staff, it looks like the 65% credit that the stimulus would help people on cobra, will start this summer.
What I read, said it would take six to nine months to implement that part of it. So .. . .maybe next year.
There is no wording on the bill concerning when this will take place. What it does address: the timeframe that the COBRA administrators must notify eligible individuals within 60 days of the effective date of the bill. It also gives the Health Secretary 30 days to begin an "educational outreach program" so I guess we’ll find out then.
FYI - eligible individuals for the purpose of this bill are people who were involuntarily terminated from their job and only if you were terminated September 1 2008 through December 31 2009. The subsidy will last for 12 months or until you qualify for benefits elsewhere. When you do qualify for benefits elsewhere you must notify the COBRA administrator immediately or face a monetary penalty.
I haven’t seen anything about a COBRA "discount" in the news reports.