When Your COBRA Insurance Begins
Your COBRA coverage starts once you make your first premium payment. After you elect to continue your employer health plan, your coverage is retroactive to the date it would have ended. If you had any out-of-pocket medical costs during that gap, you may be able to get reimbursed by your insurance carrier.
Most employer health plans end on the last day of the month. No matter when your coverage ends, COBRA is designed to restart that same plan without a lapse in coverage
What You Need to Know
- COBRA coverage can begin the day after your employer plan ends if you enroll and pay your premium on time.
- You may be reimbursed for eligible medical costs that occur before you officially elect COBRA.
- You have up to 60 days to decide if you want COBRA and still get coverage backdated to when your job-based plan ended.
- Employers must send your COBRA election notice within 45 days, and you have 60 days to enroll.
- COBRA lets you continue your exact same health plan without a gap, as long as you act within the required time frame.
How COBRA Retroactive Coverage Works
COBRA is retroactive to the day after the original health insurance ended, as long as the election is made and any required premiums are paid. It continues without interruption, keeping the same benefits and terms as the original plan.
Any coinsurance already paid toward deductibles still counts, so there’s no need to start over with out-of-pocket costs. This ensures that eligible medical expenses during the gap period are covered under the terms of the plan.
What happens if I incur costs before COBRA starts?
Medical expenses incurred after the end of employer-sponsored coverage but before electing COBRA may be eligible for retroactive reimbursement once COBRA is elected. Out-of-pocket costs during this gap may require submitting a claim after coverage begins.
What is the COBRA loophole?
The "COBRA loophole" refers to the 60-day period you have after your job-based health coverage ends. During this time, you can choose to sign up for COBRA continuation coverage without paying right away. This gives you time to decide if you really need the coverage. If you choose COBRA within those 60 days, your coverage will go back to the day your job-based plan ended.
How Do You Begin COBRA Coverage?
To start COBRA coverage, your employer or their benefits administrator will send you an election notice within 45 days of your coverage ending. You’ll then have 60 days to choose whether to enroll. COBRA continues the same employer-sponsored health plan you had before.
Frequently Asked Questions
COBRA coverage begins retroactively the day after your employer-sponsored health insurance ends, as long as you elect coverage and pay the required premium within the allowed time. Most plans end on the last day of the month, so COBRA typically picks up the very next day with no lapse in benefits.
Yes. COBRA is fully retroactive to the date your previous coverage ended. If you incur medical expenses during the gap before you elect and pay for COBRA, you may be reimbursed after coverage starts—so long as the claims are eligible under your plan.
The “COBRA loophole” refers to your 60-day window to elect COBRA coverage without paying right away. If you need time to decide, you can delay your decision. As long as you elect coverage within 60 days and pay your premium, your COBRA benefits will apply retroactively from the day your job-based coverage ended.
Yes, in most cases. If you had eligible medical expenses after your employer coverage ended but before you officially elected COBRA, you may submit those claims for reimbursement once COBRA is active, since your coverage will backdate to the day after your plan ended.
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