In the case of a loss of coverage due to end of employment or reduction in hours of employment, coverage generally may be continued for up to a total of 18 months. In the case of losses of coverage due to an employee’s death, divorce or legal separation, the employee’s becoming entitled to Medicare benefits or a dependent child ceasing to be a dependent under the terms of the plan, coverage may be continued for up to a total of 36 months. When the qualifying event is the end of employment or reduction of the employee’s hours of employment, and the employee became entitled to Medicare benefits less than 18 months before the qualifying event, COBRA continuation coverage for qualified beneficiaries other than the employee lasts until 36 months after the date of Medicare entitlement. This notice shows the maximum period of continuation coverage available to the qualified beneficiaries.

Continuation coverage will be terminated before the end of the maximum period if:

• any required premium is not paid in full on time,
• a qualified beneficiary first becomes covered, after electing continuation coverage, under another group health plan that does not impose any preexisting condition exclusion for a preexisting condition of the qualified beneficiary (note: there are limitations on plans’ imposing a preexisting condition exclusion and such exclusions will become prohibited beginning in 2014 under the Affordable Care Act),
• a qualified beneficiary first becomes entitled to Medicare benefits (under Part A, Part B, or both) after electing continuation coverage,
• the Social Security Administration (SSA) makes a final determination that a qualified beneficiary is no longer disabled beyond the initial 18-month period. In such a case, coverage will end for all qualified beneficiaries with the first month beginning more than 30 days after the SSA makes such a final determination., or
• the Plan no longer provides group health coverage.

Continuation coverage may also be terminated for any reason the Plan would terminate coverage of participant or beneficiary not receiving continuation coverage (such as fraud).