COBRA gives workers who lose their jobs, and thus their health benefits, the right to purchase group health coverage provided by the plan under certain circumstances.

If the employer continues to offer a group health plan, the employee and his/her family can retain their group health coverage for up to 18 months by paying group rates. The COBRA premium may be higher than what the individual was paying while employed but generally the cost is lower than that for private, individual health insurance coverage.

The plan administrator must notify affected employees of their right to elect COBRA. The employee and his/her family each have 60 days to elect the COBRA coverage, otherwise they lose all rights to COBRA benefits.

Note: COBRA generally does not apply to plans sponsored by employers with less than 20 employees. Many States have similar requirements for small plans providing benefits through an insurance company. The premium reduction is available for plans covered by these State laws.

Employers with 20 or more employees are usually required to offer COBRA coverage and to notify their employees of the availability of such coverage. COBRA applies to plans maintained by private-sector employers and sponsored by most state and local governments.

The premium reduction for COBRA continuation coverage is available to "assistance eligible individuals".

An "assistance eligible individual" is the employee or a member of his/her family who: