(a) General. In accordance with the authority of sections 505 and 606(a)(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (the Act), this section sets forth requirements for group health plans subject to the continuation coverage requirements of part 6 of title I of the Act with respect to the responsibility of covered employees and qualified beneficiaries to provide the following notices to administrators:
(1) Notice of the occurrence of a qualifying event that is a divorce or legal separation of a covered employee from his or her spouse;
(2) Notice of the occurrence of a qualifying event that is a beneficiary's ceasing to be covered under a plan as a dependent child of a participant;
(3) Notice of the occurrence of a second qualifying event after a qualified beneficiary has become entitled to continuation coverage with a maximum duration of 18 (or 29) months;
(4) Notice that a qualified beneficiary entitled to receive continuation coverage with a maximum duration of 18 months has been determined by the Social Security Administration, under title II or XVI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq. or 1381 et seq.) (SSA), to be disabled at any time during the first 60 days of continuation coverage; and
(5) Notice that a qualified beneficiary, with respect to whom a notice described in paragraph (a)(4) of this section has been provided, has subsequently been determined by the Social Security Administration, under title II or XVI of the SSA to no longer be disabled.
(b) Reasonable procedures.
(1) A plan subject to the continuation coverage requirements shall establish reasonable procedures for the furnishing of the notices described in paragraph (a) of this section.
(2) For purposes of this section, a plan's notice procedures shall be deemed reasonable only if such procedures:
(i) Are described in the plan's summary plan description required by § 2520.102-3 of this chapter;
(ii) Specify the individual or entity designated to receive such notices;
(iii) Specify the means by which notice may be given;
(iv) Describe the information concerning the qualifying event or determination of disability that the plan deems necessary in order to provide continuation coverage rights consistent with the requirements of the Act; and
(v) Comply with the requirements of paragraphs (c), (d), and (e) of this section.
(3) A plan's procedures will not fail to be reasonable, pursuant to this section, solely because the procedures require a covered employee or qualified beneficiary to utilize a specific form to provide notice to the administrator, provided that any such form is easily available, without cost, to covered employees and qualified beneficiaries.
(4) If a plan has not established reasonable procedures for providing a notice required by this section, such notice shall be deemed to have been provided when a written or oral communication identifying a specific event is made in a manner reasonably calculated to bring the information to the attention of any of the following:
(i) In the case of a single-employer plan, the person or organizational unit that customarily handles employee benefits matters of the employer;
(ii) In the case of a plan to which more than one unaffiliated employer contributes, or which is established or maintained by an employee organization, either the joint board, association, committee, or other similar group (or any member of any such group) administering the plan, or the person or organizational unit to which claims for benefits under the plan customarily are referred; or
(iii) In the case of a plan the benefits of which are provided or administered by an insurance company, insurance service, or other similar organization subject to regulation under the insurance laws of one or more States, the person or organizational unit that customarily handles claims for benefits under the plan or any officer of the insurance company, insurance service, or other similar organization.
(c) Periods of time for providing notice. A plan may establish a reasonable period of time for furnishing any of the notices described in paragraph (a) of this section, provided that any time limit imposed by the plan with respect to a particular notice may not be shorter than the time limit described in this paragraph (c) with respect to that notice.
(1) Time limits for notices of qualifying events. The period of time for furnishing a notice described in paragraph (a)(1), (2), or (3) of this section may not end before the date that is 60 days after the latest of:
(i) The date on which the relevant qualifying event occurs;
(ii) The date on which the qualified beneficiary loses (or would lose) coverage under the plan as a result of the qualifying event; or
(iii) The date on which the qualified beneficiary is informed, through the furnishing of the plan's summary plan description or the notice described in § 2590.606-1, of both the responsibility to provide the notice and the plan's procedures for providing such notice to the administrator.
(2) Time limits for notice of disability determination.
(i) Subject to paragraph (c)(2)(ii) of this section, the period of time for furnishing the notice described in paragraph (a)(4) of this section may not end before the date that is 60 days after the latest of:
(A) The date of the disability determination by the Social Security Administration;
(B) The date on which a qualifying event occurs;
(C) The date on which the qualified beneficiary loses (or would lose) coverage under the plan as a result of the qualifying event; or
(D) The date on which the qualified beneficiary is informed, through the furnishing of the summary plan description or the notice described in § 2590.606-1, of both the responsibility to provide the notice and the plan's procedures for providing such notice to the administrator.
(ii) Notwithstanding paragraph (c)(2)(i) of this section, a plan may require the notice described in paragraph (a)(4) of this section to be furnished before the end of the first 18 months of continuation coverage.
(3) Time limits for notice of change in disability status. The period of time for furnishing the notice described in paragraph (a)(5) of this section may not end before the date that is 30 days after the later of:
(i) The date of the final determination by the Social Security Administration, under title II or XVI of the SSA, that the qualified beneficiary is no longer disabled; or
(ii) The date on which the qualified beneficiary is informed, through the furnishing of the plan's summary plan description or the notice described in § 2590.606-1, of both the responsibility to provide the notice and the plan's procedures for providing such notice to the administrator.
(d) Required contents of notice.
(1) A plan may establish reasonable requirements for the content of any notice described in this section, provided that a plan may not deem a notice to have been provided untimely if such notice, although not containing all of the information required by the plan, is provided within the time limit established under the plan in conformity with paragraph (c) of this section, and the administrator is able to determine from such notice the plan, the covered employee and qualified beneficiary(ies), the qualifying event or disability, and the date on which the qualifying event (if any) occurred.
(2) An administrator may require a notice that does not contain all of the information required by the plan to be supplemented with the additional information necessary to meet the plan's reasonable content requirements for such notice in order for the notice to be deemed to have been provided in accordance with this section.
(e) Who may provide notice. With respect to each of the notice requirements of this section, any individual who is either the covered employee, a qualified beneficiary with respect to the qualifying event, or any representative acting on behalf of the covered employee or qualified beneficiary may provide the notice, and the provision of notice by one individual shall satisfy any responsibility to provide notice on behalf of all related qualified beneficiaries with respect to the qualifying event.
(f) Plan provisions. To the extent that a plan provides a covered employee or qualified beneficiary a period of time longer than that specified in this section to provide notice to the administrator, the terms of the plan shall govern the time frame for such notice.
(g) Additional rights to continuation coverage. Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude a plan from providing, in accordance with its terms, continuation coverage to a qualified beneficiary although a notice requirement of this section was not satisfied.
(h) Applicability. This section shall apply to any notice obligation described in this section that arises on or after the first day of the first plan year beginning on or after November 26, 2004.
[69 FR 30097, May 26, 2004]