Governor Strickland just signed into law a bill (House Bill 300) that would extend Ohio’s state “mini COBRA” coverage for any policies delivered, issued, or renewed on or after February 25, 2010.

The coverage under the Ohio mini-COBRA law will be extended from 12 months to 15 months so long as the employee is eligible for the federal COBRA subsidy. At present, the federal COBRA subsidy does not apply to any employees involuntarily terminated after February 28, 2010. This state extension was passed in anticipation of a federal extension of the COBRA subsidy beyond that date, which is presently under consideration in Congress. We will continue to update you if the federal government passes an additional COBRA subsidy extension or if the Ohio Department of Insurance issues guidance on this new bill.