President Obama Signs into Law Bill Extending COBRA Subsidy Eligibility to Involuntarily Terminated Employees

President Barack Obama has signed into law the Continuing Extension Act of 2010, a bill that extends critical unemployment and health care benefits, ensures that Medicare beneficiaries can continue seeing their doctors and extends other programs that expired at the end of March 2010.

The features of the bill include the following:

· Unemployment Insurance:  Extends unemployment benefits retroactively, including the increased payouts and longer duration of benefits from the Recovery Act, through June 2, 2010.

· Help with Health Insurance for Unemployed Workers (COBRA): Extends eligibility for the COBRA health insurance 65% subsidy for people who have lost their jobs through May 31, 2010 and provides transition relief for individuals who lost their jobs between March 31, 2010 and the date of enactment.

· Medicare Physician Payments: Extends current Medicare payment rates for physicians (preventing a 21% payment reduction) through May 31, 2010.

· Poverty Guidelines: Extends current provision maintaining 2009 poverty guidelines through May 31, 2010 (to prevent a lowering of the poverty line due to deflation in 2009).

· Flood Insurance:  Extends the National Flood Insurance Program authorization through May 31, 2010.

· Satellite Television: Extends the compulsory copyright license used by satellite television providers through May 31, 2010.

· Small Business Loans:  Extends two temporary improvements to the Small Business Administration’s loan guarantee program, raising the percentage of loan amounts that the SBA can guarantee and allowing SBA to waive or reduce loan fees through May 31, 2010.

· Compensation for Furloughed Employees:  Provides compensation for federal employees furloughed during March 1st and 2nd as the result of the lapse in expenditure authority from the Highway Trust Fund.

The bill was introduced on March 16, 2010, and passed the House March 17, 2010, It was amended and passed in the Senate April 15, 2010. The House agreed to the Motion to Concur in the Senate’s Amendments, April 15, 2010 by a vote of 289-112.  President Obama signed the bill into law in the evening of April 15.

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