Long Run wrote:The majority of states had subsidized high-risk pools that would cover anyone, including pre-existing conditions provided the individual went from prior coverage into the pool within the 63 day portability period. COBRA was never intended to be a long-term source of health insurance, but to deal with the typical situation of a person who temporarily loses coverage between jobs.Big RR wrote:Medicaid and group plans covered pre existing conditions, but even if you could afford s personal policy, few, if any, provided that coverage.
The subsidies were provided only for a short time and only very recently. Not 'state by state'.
And it only applied to those who were fired. Not those who left work to follow a spouse's job &c. And you claimed it covered everyone and was an equivalent to universal access to HI coverage. It never was and isn't.
https://www.irs.gov/uac/cobra-health-in ... um-subsidy
COBRA Health Insurance Continuation Premium Subsidy
Update Jan. 21, 2015: The COBRA premium assistance credit was available to an employer for premiums paid on behalf of employees who were involuntarily terminated from employment between Sept. 1, 2008 and May 31, 2010. The COBRA premium assistance credit is not available for individuals who were involuntarily terminated after May 31, 2010. Therefore, only in rare circumstances, such as instances where COBRA eligibility was delayed as a result of employer-provided health insurance coverage following termination, will the credit be available.
The Recovery Act established an employer-provided health insurance continuation subsidy for workers who involuntarily lost their jobs between Sept. 1, 2008, and March 31, 2010. This subsidy was extended through May 31, 2010.
The U.S. Department of Labor website also contains information on this subsidy.
Employers
See these resources:
IR-2009-15, IRS Releases Information to Help Employers Claim COBRA Medical Coverage Credit on Payroll Tax Form.
Questions and answers on how to administer the COBRA continuation premium subsidy to former employees.
Notice 2009-27, Premium Assistance for COBRA Benefits.
Employers should use the updated:
Form 941-X, Adjusted Employer's Quarterly Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund to report their COBRA premium assistance payments.
Form 941-X Instructions, which explain how to complete lines 19a and 19b, which address the COBRA premium assistance payments.
Small employers that file Form 944, Employer’s ANNUAL Federal Tax Return — generally those with an estimated employment tax liability of $1,000 or less in the calendar year — may claim their COBRA credit on Form 944-X. Additionally, agricultural employers may claim the COBRA credit on Form 943-X, Adjusted Employer’s Annual Federal Tax Return for Agricultural Employees or Claim for Refund.
Employees and Former Employees
If You Lost Your Job between Sept. 1, 2008, and May 31, 2010
The Recovery Act provides eligible workers who lost their jobs between Sept. 1, 2008, and May 31, 2010, with a 65 percent subsidy for COBRA continuation premiums for themselves and their families for up to 15 months.
Eligible workers pay 35 percent of the premium to their former employers.
To qualify you must have been involuntarily separated from your job between Sept. 1, 2008, and May 31, 2010.
This subsidy is reduced if your filing status is single and your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $125,000 ($250,000 if you file a joint return). If your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $145,000 ($290,000 for joint filers), you do not qualify for the subsidy.
