Looks like Congress is trying to make Santa’s “nice” list. The Senate, in particular, was quite busy over the weekend, not only clearing one of the last procedural hurdles in the way of a final vote on health care reform legislation, but also voting 88-10 on Saturday to
Since the House already had approved the measure in the last few days, President Obama wasted no time today signing the bill to extend COBRA relief to unemployed workers.
Now, instead of applying to workers laid off through Dec. 31, the extension maintains the 65% subsidy on COBRA premiums for workers laid off through Feb. 28, 2010. In addition, the new law allows for another six months of subsidized coverage for unemployed Americans whose nine-month subsidy already had ended, and let individuals claim the subsidy retroactively.
And as a special holiday gift for employers (sarcasm), the extension law requires employers to notify and/or re-notify terminated workers about the new subsidy provisions.
So, enjoy a nice long holiday break, pros. Between overseeing the new COBRA extension notifications and keeping a watchful eye on health care reform, you’ll be hitting the ground running come January. Rest up while you can!
