Is there a required timeframe for providing the Cobra notification/paperwork to terminated employees?

If the employer is the Plan Administrator, the employer must give COBRA notification within 14 days after termination. If the employer is not the Plan Administrator, then the employer must notify the Plan Adminstrator within 30 days after termination and the PA must notify the employee within 14 days after receiving the notice from the employer.

Some courts have ruled that the employer has 44 days (the 30 + 14) but other courts have ruled the employer has 14 days. Regulatory guidance on this is not clear, so it would be better to err on the side of caution and use the 14 days.

Under the amended rules adopted this year the following applies:

Employer's Notice Requirement

The employer is responsible for notifying the group health plan administrator about a qualifying event triggering an individual's right to elect COBRA continuation coverage. This notice must be provided within 30 days of the qualifying event, although plans may provide for the 30-day period to begin running when the qualified beneficiary actually loses coverage. Qualifying events include the employee's termination or reduction in hours; the employee's death; the employee's enrollment in Medicare; and the employer's bankruptcy. The notice must include sufficient information to enable the plan administrator to determine the plan, the covered employee, the qualifying event and the date of the qualifying event.


Notice Requirements for Covered Employees and Beneficiaries

Covered employees or qualified beneficiaries are responsible for giving notice, within 60 days after the occurrence of certain qualifying events, to the plan administrator. These events include the divorce or legal separation of the employee from a spouse or a dependent's loss of eligibility for coverage under the plan due to age or higher education status. The covered employee or qualified beneficiary must provide notice within 60 days of experiencing a second qualifying event after COBRA coverage begins and must also provide notice regarding any disability determination that might extend the period of COBRA coverage. The 60-day time period is a minimum standard, and plans are free to adopt a longer period for employees and beneficiaries to give such notices.

Reasonable procedures are to be established for the furnishing of notices by covered employees and qualified beneficiaries. The proposed regulations set forth general standards for determining the "reasonableness" of such procedures. These include a description of the notification procedures in the summary plan description; the person to receive such notices; the means to be used for giving the notice and the information the notice must contain; and a description of the qualifying events necessary for the plan to provide continuation coverage rights.


Notice Requirements for Plan Administrators

A group health plan administrator has 14 days after receiving notice of a qualifying event to provide a COBRA election notice to each qualified beneficiary. Where the employer is responsible for notifying the plan administrator of a qualifying event and the employer is the plan administrator, the employer has 44 days to provide the election notice. The election notice must describe the continuation coverage being made available, how long it will last and any events that may cause it to be discontinued earlier; explain how COBRA rights must be exercised and that each qualified beneficiary has an independent right to elect continuation coverage; set forth the plan's payment requirements, including grace periods and consequences of nonpayment; describe any conversion options and how choosing them may affect continuation coverage rights; and explain the consequences of electing or not electing continuation coverage, including any effects on the individual's HIPAA portability and special enrollment rights.