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Action required 30 days before renewal: COBRA eligibility notification

Several federal regulations affect small group business owners, including requirements to provide health plan benefits and rules governing the types of benefits offered. Our goal is to help you meet these requirements.

This article focuses on COBRA.

When COBRA applies

COBRA applies to every employer, except employers classified as “church groups,” that maintains a group health plan and employs 20 or more employees on 50% of its typical business days during the preceding calendar year (or as further defined under the 2001 Final COBRA Regulations). Qualified beneficiaries whose coverage ends because of a qualifying event may elect COBRA coverage.

Because the law is complex and judicial decisions about compliance can occur at any time, this article does not provide a complete description of legal requirements. Please consult an attorney if needed.

Groups subject to COBRA may use a third-party compliance administrator or administer COBRA themselves.

Notify us before renewal

If COBRA now applies to your group, please notify Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield 30 days before your renewal date.

To administer COBRA coverage, we must establish a dedicated COBRA division in our system. We complete this work during the renewal process as we update your group’s information and benefits.

Because we make these updates only during renewal, groups must report COBRA eligibility 30 days before the renewal is complete. We generally cannot accommodate requests to add COBRA eligibility later in the plan year.

Before submitting your renewal

  1. Review your group’s COBRA status.
  2. Confirm your COBRA eligibility 30 days before your renewal date so we can establish the necessary COBRA division in our system.
  3. Notify your Arkansas Blue Cross representative if COBRA applies to your group, and update your renewal application to reflect your group’s COBRA eligibility.

Thank you for your partnership. For more information about the COBRA process, refer to the Group Administrator Manual.