Options for Switching Plans Mid Year

[sltbiz]

The situation is that the employee was laid off as of June 1st 2015. The company agreed to continue to subsidize his health insurance payments for 1 year. Him and his wife were moved to Cobra at that time. The monthly rate after the company subsidy is $400 a month. When the subsidies end June 1st of 2016 the rate jumps to $1100 a month.

Are there any options for him and his spouse or just his spouse to jump off of Cobra and join another plan mid-year?

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

[Guest matthew222]

individuals on cobra are not governed the same way as employees on a section 125 plan. there need not be a qualifying event for them to drop cobra - they can just stop paying premiums. there are limitations, however, if the plan that the individual wants to jump on to is an exchange plan. technically they can only do this during the exchange open enrollment or once they have exhausted cobra.