The recent "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009" (Stimulus package) signed into law February 17, 2009 greatly affects employers who are subject to offering COBRA - virtually every employer with more then 20 employees.
In a nutshell, the package allows for employees who have been involuntarily terminated between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009 to elect COBRA and be responsible for paying for only 35% of the premium by offering a 65% subsidy. Even if an employee previously didn't elect COBRA, a new window of enrollment is being offered which means every HR out there has to open the record books and contact every member terminated since September.
Not saying this is a bad thing. Now people are able to sign up for healthcare for a much reduced cost. The question is; with unemployment rising and the Stimulus package only increasing unemployment benefits by $25 a week (keep in mind the average cost of a family health plan is over $400 a month) do you think more or less people will be inclined to sign up for healthcare? Do you think this portion of the Stimulus package could have been spent more wisely?
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