UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES
ATTENTION: New Employees of the State of Connecticut
SUBJECT: INITIAL COBRA NOTIFICATION
**VERY IMPORTANT NOTICE**
It is important that all covered individuals take the time to read this
notice carefully and be familiar with its contents.
Under federal and state law, the State of Connecticut is required to
offer covered employees and covered family members the opportunity to elect
a temporary continuation of health coverage at group rates, when coverage
under the plan would otherwise end due to certain qualifying events.
This notice is intended to inform you and your covered dependents, if any,
in a summary fashion of your options and obligations under the continuation
coverage provisions of the law.
Qualifying Events
For Covered Employee
If you are an employee of the State of Connecticut covered by a state-sponsored
group health plan, you may have the right to elect this continuation coverage
if you lose your group health coverage because of a termination of your
employment or a reduction in your hours of employment.
For Covered Spouse
If you are the spouse of an employee of the State of Connecticut and are
covered under his or her state-sponsored group health insurance plan, you
may have the right to elect continuation coverage if you lose such group
health plan for any of the following reasons:
-
A termination of your spouse's employment or a reduction of your spouse's
hours of employment with the State of Connecticut;
-
The death of your spouse; or
-
Divorce or legal separation from your spouse
For Covered Dependent Children
If you are the dependent child of an employee covered by a state-sponsored
group health plan, and are covered under the plan, you may have the right
to elect continuation coverage if you lose such group health coverage for
any of the following reasons:
-
A termination of the employee's employment or reduction in the employee's
hours of employment with the State of Connecticut;
-
The death of the employee;
-
Parent's divorce or legal separation; or
-
You cease to be a "dependent child" under the group health plan.
If you are a child born or placed for adoption with a covered employee
during the continuation coverage period, you may also elect continuation
coverage.
Notification Requirements for Covered Employees, Spouses, and Dependents
Under the law, the covered employee, spouse, or other family member has
the responsibility to inform the State of Connecticut of a divorce, legal
separation, or a child losing dependent status under the state sponsored
group health plan. This notification must be made within 60 days
from the later of the date of the event or the date on which coverage would
be lost because of the event. This notification must be made to your
personnel or payroll office. Check the dependent eligibility rules
of your plan carefully to determine when a child loses dependent status
under the plan If this notification is not completed in a timely
manner rights to continuation coverage may be forfeited. Your agency
has the responsibility to notify the COBRA Administrator of your termination
of employment, reduction in hours, or death.
Election Period
Once your agency is notified that a qualifying event has occurred, it will
in turn notify covered individuals (also known as qualified beneficiaries)
of their right to elect continuation coverage. Each qualified beneficiary
has an independent election right and will have 60 days from the later
of the date coverage is lost under the group health plan or from the date
of notification to elect continuation coverage. If a qualified beneficiary
does not elect continuation coverage within this election period the right
to elect continuation coverage will end.
If a qualified beneficiary elects continuation coverage and pays the
applicable premium, the State of Connecticut is required to provide the
qualified beneficiary with coverage that is identical to the coverage provided
under the plan to similarly situated employees and/or covered dependents.
If coverage is modified for similarly situated active employees, then continuation
coverage may be similarly changed and/or modified.
Length of Continuation Coverage 18 Months
If the event causing the loss of coverage is termination of employment
or a reduction in employment hours, then each qualified beneficiary will
have the opportunity to continue coverage for 18 months from the date of
the qualifying event.
-
Disability Extension - The 18 months of continuation coverage can
be extended to 29 months if the Social Security Administration determines
that a qualified beneficiary was disabled during the first 60 days of continuation
coverage according to Title II or XVI of the social Security Act. It is
the qualified beneficiary's responsibility to obtain this disability determination
from the Social Security Administration and notify the COBRA Administrator
within 60 days of the date of determination and before the original 18
months expire. It is also the qualified beneficiary's responsibility
to notify the COBRA Administrator within 30 days of a final determination
by Social Security that the qualified beneficiary is no longer disabled.
-
Secondary Events - Another extension of the 18 month continuation
period can occur, if during the 18 months of continuation coverage, a second
event takes place (divorce, legal separation, death, Medicare entitlement,
or a dependent child ceasing to be a dependent). If a second qualifying
event does take place, then the 18 months of continuation coverage can
be extended to 36 months from the date of the original qualifying event
date. If a second event occurs, it is the qualified beneficiary's
responsibility to notify the COBRA Administrator. In no event, however,
will continuation coverage last beyond three years from the date of the
event that originally made the qualified beneficiary eligible for continuation
coverage.
Length of Continuation Coverage 36 Months
If the original event causing the loss of coverage was the death of the
employee, divorce, legal separation, or a dependent child losing such status
under the state-sponsored group health plan, then each qualified beneficiary
will have the opportunity to elect continuation coverage for 36 months
from the date of the qualifying event.
Eligibility, Premiums, and Potential Conversion Rights: A qualified
beneficiary does not have to show that he or she is insurable to elect
continuation coverage. You must be covered under the plan at the
time of the qualifying event to be able to elect continuation coverage.
The State, through its COBRA Administrator, reserves the right to verify
eligibility status and terminate continuation coverage retroactively if
an individual is determined to be ineligible or if there has been a material
misrepresentation of the facts. A qualified beneficiary will have
to pay all of the applicable premium plus a 2% administration charge for
continuation coverage. The premium may change in the future when
the premium for the active employee plan is changed. There is a grace
period of 30 days for the regularly scheduled monthly premiums. At
the end of the continuation coverage period, a qualified beneficiary must
be allowed to enroll in an individual conversion plan if one is available.
Notification of Address Change
To ensure that all covered individuals receive information properly and
efficiently, it is important that you notify your personnel or payroll
office of any address change as soon as possible. Failure on your
part to do so may result in delayed notification or a loss of continuation
coverage options.
Termination of Continuation Coverage
The law allows continuation coverage to end prior to the maximum continuation
period for any of the following reasons:
-
The State of Connecticut ceases to provide any group health plan to any
of its employees;
-
Any required premium for continuation coverage is not paid in a timely
manner;
-
A qualified beneficiary becomes covered under another group health plan
that does not contain any exclusion or limitation with respect to any preexisting
condition of such beneficiary;
-
A qualified beneficiary who extended continuation coverage due to a disability
is determined by Social Security to be no longer disabled.
-
A qualified beneficiary notifies the Anthem Blue Cross COBRA Continuation
Unit (1-800-433-5436) to cancel continuation of coverage.
Current Cobra Rates:
For current Cobra Rate information **Click Here**
Any Questions
If any covered individual does not understand any part of this summary notice
or has questions regarding the information or his or her obligations, please contact
Jeanne Germain at the Department of Human Resources by phone at (860) 486-2432
or via email at jeanne.germain@uconn.edu