AUGUSTA – State Rep. Tyler Clark said that Maine residents who lose their jobs in the current recession can use federal subsidies to help cover the cost of remaining in a previous employer’s group insurance plan.
To help unemployed workers maintain coverage, the federal stimulus package contains funds to subsidize the cost of keeping insurance through COBRA – the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985. Under the plan, laid-off workers can maintain their former health coverage with 65 percent of the premium paid by the federal government for up to nine months.
Rep. Clark (R-Easton) said the little-known benefit applies to workers who have been involuntarily terminated. A Maine law called “mini-COBRA” provides similar benefits to those who worked for a company that had 20 or fewer employees. Both laid-off workers and their family members who were covered under a company plan are eligible.
Some Mainers who became eligible for mini-COBRA after September 1, 2008, but before the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act subsidy was available, may have declined the coverage (or may have accepted it and later dropped it) because of the cost. Thanks to recent state legislation, these people have a second chance to enroll in mini-COBRA and take advantage of the federal subsidy.
The subsidy is available only to workers involuntarily terminated between Sept. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2009. Also, employees who lose their jobs because an employer goes out of business cannot qualify for COBRA because the employer plan no longer exists. Mainers who might benefit from the new legislation should soon receive a notice from their former insurer.
More information is available on the Bureau of Insurance Web site at www.maine.gov/insurance or by calling toll-free 800-300-5000.
