COBRA subsidy ends Tuesday

A program is expiring that subsidizes 65 percent of insurance premiums for unemployed people who signed up for a continuation of health benefits formerly provided by their employer under the COBRA program.

The nine months of COBRA subsidies and the additional weeks of unemployment benefits were both core pieces of February's economic stimulus plan.

The COBRA health insurance subsidies expire Dec. 1 for those who signed onto the program when it first started last winter, though people who get fired before Jan. 1 are eligible for the full nine-month subsidy. People on unemployment would be able to finish out their present "tier" of benefits but would be ineligible for any of the recently passed additional coverage.

The benefits extension is under discussion among top Democratic leaders. While there's no agreement on a specific plan, there's a lot of sentiment behind a full-year extension, congressional aides say. The staggering cost, however, could preclude passing it.

People such as Jeff Diekema are somewhat lucky. On Monday, he lost his job. Although that is never good news, he will qualify for the subsidized COBRA insurance because he makes a critical deadline of who gets the subsidy and who does not.

"The way my employer did it, I fit that definition," he said. "My coverage ends by the end of the year."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.