Business First of Louisville • Tuesday, March 31, 2009<
Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear has signed an emergency regulation that will extend the deadline for some unemployed residents of the state to receive health insurance assistance.
Funds for the program are being provided to the state through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Under the program, the state will offer assistance to displaced workers who are on a health insurance plan governed by the federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) or state-regulated continuation plans, often called mini-COBRA.
The state will provide a 65 percent premium subsidy for up to nine months for eligible residents who were involuntary terminated, or will be terminated, between Sept. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2009.
Eligible individuals will pay 35 percent of the premium for health insurance coverage under the program.
The additional 65 percent will be reimbursable to the employer, insurer or health plan as a credit against certain employment taxes, Beshear’s office said in a news release.
Eligible individuals will be notified by their insurance companies.
People who previously elected to decline the COBRA or state continuation plan will be given the opportunity to enroll in one of theplans.
More information about the program can be obtained by contacting the U.S. Department of Labor at (866) 444-3272.