Goofy COBRA situation

[Miner88]

I could really use some opinions on this!

Here's the situation:

Employer A is part of a controlled group of employers with Employer B and Employer C. All three employers contribute to a multiemployer welfare plan on behalf of their employees. Employer A does not have collectively bargained employees, but is allowed to participate in the plan. Employer A sells its assets to Company X and most of its employees are employed by Company X and enrolled in Company X's health plan (any remaining employees are terminated). Employer A stops making contributions to the multiemployer plan because it no longer has any employees; however, Employers B and C continue to contribute on behalf of their employees.

Who is required to provide COBRA coverage for the people who were on COBRA with the multiemployer plan before the asset sale and for the people who are terminated because of the asset sale??

Is the multiemployer welfare plan responsible for COBRA for these people under 54.4980B-9, Q&A-10 (which says that if an employer stops contributing to a multiemployer group health plan, the multiemployer group health plan has the obligation to make COBRA continuation coverage avaible to a qualified beneficiary who was receiving coverage under the multiemployer plan on the day before the cessation of contributions, UNLESS the employer that stopped contributing makes group health plan coverage available to the employees formerly covered by the multiemployer plan)?

Or is Company X responsible for COBRA for these people under 54.4980B-9, Q&A-8 (which says that in the case of an asset sale, if the selling group ceases to provide any group health plan to any employee in connection with the sale and if the buying group continues the business operations associated with the assets purchased from the selling group without interruption or substantial change, the buying group is a successor employer to the selling group, and therefore responsible for COBRA)?

Or is there some other authority that addresses this issue??

[Guest arasalin]

Did anyone ever have an answer to this one? I've had the same situation come up, but from the multiemployer plan side.