COBRA and Coverage for one day - what would you do

[tominboise]

Situation is that I retired at the end of September and went on DW's HI through work. DW retired on October 17. We will be signing up for a ACA health care plan that will start on Jan 1.

COBRA coverage is defined by months, but sign up is defined at 60 days, so we end up with December 31st to worry about.

We have a 60 day window to sign up for COBRA, clock starts Nov 1 (Covered through the end of October by DW HI from work}. If we don't have any issues in the 60 days (November & December), we wouldn't elect for COBRA (we will elect if something happens and we needed coverage inside the 60 days). Cost of COBRA is $1500/month.

Given the 60 day window to elect for COBRA, we would have to sign up by December 30, for coverage on the 31st, just in case something were to happen on that day. So it would cost us $3000 for coverage for the one day.

As a loophole, we could elect for COBRA, but not pay the bill if we don't have any issues on the 31st. It is supposedly legit but I am wary of this approach.

What would you do? Elect for COBRA and pay the $3k; Elect and not pay; Find one day coverage somewhere else, if there is such a thing and it is affordable; go without coverage for the one day and gamble no chokes on a Dorito watching football on New Years eve?

[PaunchyPirate]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tominboise Situation is that I retired at the end of September and went on DW's HI through work. DW retired on October 17. We will be signing up for a ACA health care plan that will start on Jan 1. COBRA coverage is defined by months, but sign up is defined at 60 days, so we end up with December 31st to worry about. We have a 60 day window to sign up for COBRA, clock starts Nov 1 (Covered through the end of October by DW HI from work}. If we don't have any issues in the 60 days (November & December), we wouldn't elect for COBRA (we will elect if something happens and we needed coverage inside the 60 days). Cost of COBRA is $1500/month. Given the 60 day window to elect for COBRA, we would have to sign up by December 30, for coverage on the 31st, just in case something were to happen on that day. So it would cost us $3000 for coverage for the one day. As a loophole, we could elect for COBRA, but not pay the bill if we don't have any issues on the 31st. It is supposedly legit but I am wary of this approach. What would you do? Elect for COBRA and pay the $3k; Elect and not pay; Find one day coverage somewhere else, if there is such a thing and it is affordable; go without coverage for the one day and gamble no chokes on a Dorito watching football on New Years eve?

I’d probably just risk it for one day myself and stay home all day on the couch. But if you really want coverage, I think you could sign up for one month of the cheapest ACA plan for 2020 also. Might be less expensive than COBRA.

[Aerides]

For a month I would suck it up and pay.

For a day? I'd stay home, sleep in, go to bed early, and do nothing but read.

(assuming i had no active serious conditions, etc.,)

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tominboise ....As a loophole, we could elect for COBRA, but not pay the bill if we don't have any issues on the 31st. It is supposedly legit but I am wary of this approach. ...

Elect and don't pay the bill unless something bad happens on Dec 31.. from what I'm reading you have 45 days from the day you elect to pay your first COBRA premium.

Quote:

Your Initial COBRA premium must be paid within 45 days of the time you elect COBRA coverage.1 Your COBRA administrator will consider the date your COBRA election form is postmarked to be the date you elect COBRA. That postmark sets your 45-day clock ticking. This initial COBRA premium payment might be larger than subsequent monthly payments since it could cover more than one month of health insurance coverage, depending on how soon you elect COBRA. For example, let's say you get laid off on June 15, your coverage is scheduled to end on June 30, and you elect COBRA on August 10. You'll have another 45 days to pay your first premium (so it will be due September 24), but you're going to have to get caught up on premiums for July, August, and September at that point. There is no grace period if you’re late paying your initial COBRA premium payment.3 If it isn’t paid on time (ie, within 45 days of electing COBRA), you lose your right to have COBRA coverage; you’ll have to find other health insurance options or you’ll be uninsured. However, in a situation like the one described above, in which a person has to pay multiple months of COBRA premiums, the health plan must allow at least a 30-day grace period for the months after the first month (this applies to all months after the first month, as described below).4 So in the example above, if the person is paying their initial payment by September 24, they'd need to pay the July and August premiums in full. But assuming payments are due on the first of the month, they'd have until September 30 to pay September's premium

[MBSC]

Group plans usually wait until 11/1 to notify the COBRA administrator and it takes them a few days to prepare the election package. In these cases, the 60-day clock starts when the COBRA election package is mailed out around 11/5. 12/31 could be in the 60-day election period if you don't already have the package.

Quote:

Q8: How long do I have to elect COBRA coverage? If you are entitled to elect COBRA coverage, you must be given an election period of at least 60 days (starting on the later of the date you are furnished the election notice or the date you would lose coverage) to choose whether or not to elect continuation coverage. Q15: Who pays for COBRA coverage? When you elect continuation coverage, you cannot be required to send any payment with your election form. You can be required, however, to make an initial premium payment within 45 days after the date of your COBRA election (that is the date you mail in your election form, if you use first-class mail). More info: https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/fil...e-consumer.pdf

Otherwise, my decision would be to elect and not pay if not used. You can stay home all day but that doesn't prevent you from having a heart attack or stroke.

Due to how inpatient hospital reimbursement is calculated, the coverage in effect on the admit date (including self-insure) is responsible for the entire stay. If you are admitted for a week, the ACA plan pays for doctor services incurred on or after 1/1 but none of the hospital facility charges.

[PaunchyPirate]

For the option to sign up for COBRA, but not pay it yet... would this possibly mess up your qualification to sign up for ACA? Once you sign up for COBRA, you can't just drop it at any time to switch over to an ACA plan. You normally need to wait until the COBRA expires or the next open enrollment season.

I would be concerned that since you would be electing to have COBRA starting on November 1, you would not be eligible to sign up for ACA for 2021. Although, I will admit, I don't know the ramifications of not actually paying for the COBRA. But you might consider this situation.

[fh2000]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaunchyPirate For the option to sign up for COBRA, but not pay it yet... would this possibly mess up your qualification to sign up for ACA? Once you sign up for COBRA, you can't just drop it at any time to switch over to an ACA plan. You normally need to wait until the COBRA expires or the next open enrollment season. I would be concerned that since you would be electing to have COBRA starting on November 1, you would not be eligible to sign up for ACA for 2021. Although, I will admit, I don't know the ramifications of not actually paying for the COBRA. But you might consider this situation.

Life changing event also includes losing group insurance, like in our situation. We retired on January, 2019, and started our ACA in February, 2019.

Maybe someone already suggested this. OP can start ACA for November and December outside of open enrollment period. Then enroll again for the following year during open enrollment.

[tominboise]

Does anyone know, if we chose to elect for COBRA and then not pay the premium (unless needed of course), would that negatively affect our credit rating or ability to get insurance in the future?

[CRLLS]

One other option is to get short term catastrophic health care insurance. IIRC when you cancel, you get a refund for days not used. However, I think starting ACA on Nov1st may be the best solution. OOPS that is tomorrow and that is still the weekend. I doubt if any offices are open to issue the policy.

[Sunset]

Get travel medical insurance (primary) and take a trip outside USA for a week or two covering the time you are not insured by COBRA.

Otherwise, skip worrying about the day, and sleep in.

[conversationalphrase]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunset Get travel medical insurance (primary) and take a trip outside USA for a week or two covering the time you are not insured by COBRA. Otherwise, skip worrying about the day, and sleep in.

No need to go that far. Many travel medical insurance policies start 100 miles from home, but read the policy carefully for that and also "trip" definition.

[badatmath]

I would honestly probably go without for one day - just do not use any chain saws, climb ladders, etc. Take it easy. But I have no known serious health conditions at this time and am only by myself where a couple has double the exposure. I would NOT go without for Nov&Dec but one day? Eh. You can't control everything in the world.

[bluelight]

I had this same issue on Sept 30th.

I retired on Friday, March 29, 2019 and took Cobra for 18 months. It ended on Sept 29, 2020, but my individual insurance didn't start until Oct 1, 2020. A bit unsettling that for the first time in my adult life that I didn't have health insurance. I chose to be a couch potato that day and only went out to get the mail. Oct 1st, life went back to normal.

[ivinsfan]

I don't understand why people suggest it's OK to take out insurance and then simply not pay for it. The 45 day window for payment is to protect the policy holder. It's not to give you free HI.

How it that any different then going through the self check at WalMart and "forgetting" to scan stuff.

If you want to be ethical either take the ACA on Nov 1 or pay the COBRA premium. When you sign up for COBRA you agree to pay for it.