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Quote: DRich

I thought Cobra was only for a year. Maybe different companies have different negotiated terms. My company never even offered Cobra when they layed people off. I know legally at least in Nevada it is required. I was considering not getting my own insurance and then suing the company when I get ill. Pretty sure I would win that but I don't want to sue my former company as they always treated me well.

It is costing me about $750 a month just to be added to my wife's insurance policy.

Its 18 months everywhere that is a Federal requirement (some states and circumstances may be longer, but its required to be at least 18 months). If your employment ends (even if you quit) they have to offer it to you.

The size of the company (full time employees) does matter, I think (could be wrong, it may have a different formula) the company has to be the same size to be required to offer FMLA for cobra to be a requirement. However, it sounds like that was a large company so I am sure they are well over the 50 fulltime employees to be required. However, there is no time line for Cobra, if you get fired the first day after enrolling in your employer's insurance plan they have to offer it to you for 18 months.

Did you ask HR during your separation paperwork? If asked they will almost always get you the information. I doubt you would have to sue them, its most likely an oversight or an honest mistake (you may have received the cobra notice in the mail and thought it was junk mail as it often looks). Have you tried calling anyone from HR?

Quote: Gandler

Did you ask HR during your separation paperwork? If asked they will almost always get you the information. I doubt you would have to sue them, its most likely an oversight or an honest mistake (you may have received the cobra notice in the mail and thought it was junk mail as it often looks). Have you tried calling anyone from HR?

We had no separation paperwork. We were called at home on a Sunday and told not to come in anymore. Never received anything in the mail. The HR department was let go too.

Quote: DRich

We had no separation paperwork. We were called at home on a Sunday and told not to come in anymore. Never received anything in the mail. The HR department was let go too.

Wow
How many employees when business was good?
I'm pretty shocked at the way you are treated
I felt fortunate Amex is a good company but it was a real struggle for me to put in over 25 years. Big companies can be frustrating to work for. Have to deal with a lot dumb and stupid decisions by management.
I'm paying almost as much as you are for health insurance. 700 a month

Quote: terapined

Wow
How many employees when business was good?
I'm pretty shocked at the way you are treated
I felt fortunate Amex is a good company but it was a real struggle for me to put in over 25 years. Big companies can be frustrating to work for. Have to deal with a lot dumb and stupid decisions by management.
I'm paying almost as much as you are for health insurance. 700 a month

It was a small company of maybe 60 people total. I have no hard feelings as they always treated me well. I am just assuming that they let go the HR person that would have handled it.

Quote: DRich

It was a small company of maybe 60 people total. I have no hard feelings as they always treated me well. I am just assuming that they let go the HR person that would have handled it.

That can happen. I was hired to part fill a HR role among other roles in a collapsing company that was selling out to a major. It screwed up the health insurance of half their drivers and almost caused a big Teamster grievance. Solved in about 20 minutes but one of those time bombs a fired person can leave.

Quote: DRich

We had no separation paperwork. We were called at home on a Sunday and told not to come in anymore. Never received anything in the mail. The HR department was let go too.

It sounds like it is quite possible they downsized a lot to either be under the COBRA requirements or just cut all insurance benefits (possibly both).

They only need to offer you what they currently offer employees, so if they ended health insurance completely, they do not have to offer you any. However, if during the 18 months they start a new plan they have to offer you whatever is available to current employees. However, if no employee is offered insurance any longer that would explain why you are not (which based on your posts sounds quite possible if they cut most of their staff, even HR and benefits). You are entitled to what they offer their current employees, so if that is nothing, that could be why you cannot go the COBRA route.

For example if you are on COBRA (which means your former employer's health care) and they change plans you would have to change to whatever current employees have, or if they cut all health insurance you would lose insurance, your are only eligible for the current plan offered by your former employer, not what you used to have (this can also mean that the price can drastically increase or decrease while still using COBRA if they change plans as you are playing all of it, plus an admin fee so you don't get the reduced rate subsided by your employer).

Quote: Gandler

It sounds like it is quite possible they downsized a lot to either be under the COBRA requirements or just cut all insurance benefits (possibly both).

They only need to offer you what they currently offer employees, so if they ended health insurance completely, they do not have to offer you any. However, if during the 18 months they start a new plan they have to offer you whatever is available to current employees. However, if no employee is offered insurance any longer that would explain why you are not (which based on your posts sounds quite possible if they cut most of their staff, even HR and benefits). You are entitled to what they offer their current employees, so if that is nothing, that could be why you cannot go the COBRA route.

For example if you are on COBRA (which means your former employer's health care) and they change plans you would have to change to whatever current employees have, or if they cut all health insurance you would lose insurance, your are only eligible for the current plan offered by your former employer, not what you used to have (this can also mean that the price can drastically increase or decrease while still using COBRA if they change plans as you are playing all of it, plus an admin fee so you don't get the reduced rate subsided by your employer).

In my case I doubt that was it. I really think it was an oversight on their part.

Quote: DRich

In my case I doubt that was it. I really think it was an oversight on their part.

Well I only said that because you mentioned pre-downsize there were 60 employees. If they downsized to less than 50 it is quite possible they are small enough to not require to offer it (which if they cut all of HR and many other employees, downsizing just 11 employees does not seem out of the question). I believe like FMLA it is based on physical location, so even if there are thousands of employees at the company nationwide if within the radius (I don't know the formula, but saying County where you worked is probably fair) that were cut from the assigned location they would be under the 50. That formula may not be (probably is) not precisely correct, but for some reason I have 50 employees and 100 miles miles in my head, but its something along those lines I believe.

But, if it was an oversight, just call somebody and ask. I think based on letters and emails I have received you only have a certain number of weeks to claim so I would contact somebody and say that you were recently separated and need to speak to somebody about COBRA enrollment. I know when I have put in a resignation notice in, my email and regular mail starts to be flooded with COBRA information from HR up until the time of your termination (and beyond) to the point where it feels like overkill. I have never experienced a termination without notice so I am not sure how it is when there is no notice for either party, but I am pretty sure if you directly ask for it they have to provide it, so I would just call or send emails and clearly state what you want to know, the worst they can do is say you are not qualified or there is no plan anymore, etc...

Quote: Gandler

But, if it was an oversight, just call somebody and ask. I think based on letters and emails I have received you only have a certain number of weeks to claim so I would contact somebody and say that you were recently separated and need to speak to somebody about COBRA enrollment. I know when I have put in a resignation notice in, my email and regular mail starts to be flooded with COBRA information from HR up until the time of your termination (and beyond) to the point where it feels like overkill. I have never experienced a termination without notice so I am not sure how it is when there is no notice for either party, but I am pretty sure if you directly ask for it they have to provide it, so I would just call or send emails and clearly state what you want to know, the worst they can do is say you are not qualified or there is no plan anymore, etc...

Thank you. It has been over 8 months and I already got my own health insurance so I am no longer worried about it.

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