LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 23, as amended, Jones. Cal-COBRA: premium assistance.
Existing federal law, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA), requires group health plans
providing coverage to employers of 20 or more employees to provide
former employees with continuation of benefits, as specified.
Existing federal law, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of
2009, provides specified premium assistance under COBRA and state
programs that provide comparable continuation coverage for certain
assistance eligible individuals, as defined.
Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975,
provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service
plans by the Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful
violation of that act a crime. Existing law also provides for
regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance.
Existing law, the California Continuation Benefits Replacement Act
(Cal-COBRA), requires health care service plans and health insurers
providing group coverage to employers of 2 to 19 employees to offer
continuation of that coverage for a specified period of time to
certain qualified beneficiaries, as specified.
This bill would require health care service plans and health
insurers to provide notice of the availability of premium assistance
under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to
qualified beneficiaries who may be eligible for that assistance, as
specified, and would require the notice to include certain
information and to be sent within specified periods of time. The bill
would allow a qualified beneficiary eligible for the federal premium
assistance to elect Cal-COBRA coverage within a certain period of
time and would allow individuals enrolled in Cal-COBRA coverage as of
February 17, 2009, to request application of the federal premium
assistance, as specified. The bill would authorize the Director of
the Department of Managed Health Care and the Insurance Commissioner
to adopt emergency regulations in the event that any federal
assistance is or becomes available to persons eligible for Cal-COBRA,
as specified. The bill would enact other related provisions.
Because a willful violation of these requirements by a health care
service plan would be a crime, the bill would impose a
state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute.