Oregonians who lose their jobs have two options to continue coverage under their group health plan. If their former employer has 20 or more workers, they are eligible under the federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA). If their former employer has fewer than 20 workers, they are eligible under Oregon's state continuation law. The federal economic stimulus package extends a 65-percent subsidy for up to nine months of coverage. Recognizing the need for changes to state law to allow Oregonians to obtain the full advantage of the federal subsidy, the Oregon Legislative Assembly enacted House Bill 2433, which extends the period of eligibility for state continuation coverage from six to nine months and allows the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services to adopt rules as necessary to allow Oregonians to take full advantage of the benefits provided by the federal law. 

The Legislative Assembly declared an emergency exists so House Bill 2433 could take effect immediately upon passage, and on April 28, 2009, the director adopted temporary rules OAR 836-053-0850T, 836-053-0855T, 836-053-0860T, 836-053-0865T (the Temporary Rules) in recognition of the need to expedite the rules to put in place the mechanisms to facilitate Oregonians obtaining the subsidy.  These temporary rules were replaced by permanent rules that became effective October 23, 2009.

The director again adopted temporary rules in December 2009,  March 2010 and April 2010 in response to federal extensions and changes to the federal subsidy program.

These rules enact permanent provisions that establish the requisite notice insurers must provide to assistance eligible individuals, revise the dates of eligibility for the federal subsidy and establish eligibility requirements to maximize the benefit.  The existing temporary rules expire June 16, 2010 and these rules are intended to replace the current permanent rules and all temporary amendments to those rules in their entirety.