COBRA lets a person keep group health coverage after a qualifying event. Two numbers decide most items: how long coverage lasts, and how long they have to elect it.
18 months is the default
- COBRA continuation coverage usually lasts up to 18 months following termination of employment or a reduction of hours.
- A routine layoff is an 18-month event. So is a cut in hours below the plan's eligibility line.
- Do not reach for 12 months here — that is FMLA's measuring period, not a COBRA duration.
36 months for the family events
DOL identifies life events that can extend coverage to 36 months:
- Death of the covered employee
- Divorce or legal separation from the covered employee
- Medicare entitlement
- Loss of dependent-child status
The pattern is worth holding onto: events tied to the employee's job produce 18 months; events that change the family's relationship to the covered employee produce 36. A plan changing carriers is not a qualifying event at all.
The 60-day election period
There are 60 days to enroll in COBRA, starting when job-based coverage ends or when the election notice is received, whichever is later.
- Worked example: coverage ends March 31 and the election notice arrives April 10. April 10 is the later date, so the 60 days run from April 10.
- Two traps sit in the same item. One uses the correct 60 days but counts from the earlier date, March 31. The other keeps the right start date and shortens the period below 60 days.
- The rule protects the person who gets a late notice, which is why the count runs from the later of the two events.
Carry this in: 18 unless the event is death, divorce or legal separation, Medicare entitlement, or loss of dependent-child status; and 60 days from the later of coverage loss or notice.