Part-Time Employee Reminder

·  Do you have any part-time employees who used to be eligible for your group health plans? 

·  Are there any current COBRA participants who are now employed with you part-time?

When you are preparing your “exit” paperwork for any part-time employees, please check your records to see if they lost coverage under your group health plans between 9/1/2008 to 3/1/2010 due to a reduction in hours.  If those individuals are/were involuntarily terminated on or after 3/2/2010, they will have a “second chance” opportunity to enroll in COBRA and receive the ARRA premium subsidy.

We will have to rely on you to keep an eye on these individuals; they may not be eligible for your group health plans so the usual “trigger” (loss of coverage) doesn’t exist.  Thus you will need to identify and report those individuals immediately to us for special handling.

The Future of ARRA; The Premium Subsidy

Yesterday, March 17, 2010, the House of Representatives passed the Continuing Extension Act of 2010 which would extend the ARRA premium subsidy eligibility for another month; to allow employees involuntarily terminated in April 2010 to be eligible for the ARRA subsidy.  The bill will next go to the Senate where another bill is already being reviewed that would extend the ARRA subsidy eligibility period to the end of 2010.

The future of the ARRA Premium Subsidy is open-ended at this time.  The current “generation” of ARRA Subsidy Eligible individuals could continue to receive the subsidy until the middle of 2011.  However, it is possible that the ARRA COBRA Premium Subsidy could continue well into 2012. 

For more information about the ARRA subsidy, please refer to:

    http://blog.flextoday.com/2010/03/08/1017--arra-iii--temporary-extension-act-of-2010.aspx

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