Here’s guidance from one insurer released last week:
- Our “standard requirement for employees to be actively working in order to be eligible for coverage will be relaxed through May 31, 2020, as long as the monthly premium payment is received.”
Who will pay that premium is another question:
- Employers with reserves, can pay all or some portion of the premium as long as coverage is offered on a uniform, non-discriminatory basis to all furloughed employees.
- Employees who are on layoff, will generally be offered COBRA/State Continuation, meaning they pay the whole premium.
In that case, ‘Obamacare’ may be a better option.
Without a paycheck - depending on your household income - your cost for an individual policy may be a small fraction of COBRA, thanks to ACA tax credits. And, the loss of coverage through the employer group plan creates a Special Enrollment Period (SEP), regardless of pre-existing conditions.
So, collect your Unemployment, make sure you stay insured and, somehow try and enjoy the time off.
Because, when this crisis ends, we’re all going to be working overtime to recover.
One can hope!
