Ask HR in writing. The first answer anchors every window; the third number is your COBRA price before the paperwork exists. Also ask whether payout of unused PTO extends the coverage end date.
"Please confirm in writing: the exact date my health coverage ends, the date the COBRA election notice will be mailed, and my plan's total monthly premium, employee and employer shares combined."
Short version, from the guide's first lesson:
"Can you confirm in writing the exact date my health coverage terminates, and the date the COBRA election notice will be mailed?"
The employee, your spouse, makes this call within 30 days of the loss date. The second item decides everything: moving to employee-plus-spouse or family tier often costs a few hundred dollars a month (the average worker's share of family coverage in 2025 was $571).
"I am calling to add my spouse to my plan. My spouse lost employer coverage on the fourteenth. What is the deadline to submit the change form, what will the new per-paycheck deduction be, and can you email both to me in writing?"
The marketplace navigator program is free, trained, federally funded enrollment help that does not sell anything; find one through the marketplace's find-local-help tool. Build the call from the worksheet numbers you already have.
"I lost employer coverage on . My household MAGI estimate for the year is $ , which is about % of the poverty line. My benchmark silver here runs $ a month. Help me check three things: whether my subsidy math is right, whether I qualify for cost-sharing reductions, and whether anything about the affordability firewall applies to my spouse's offer."
| Question | In writing? | Answer / where it is filed |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage end date | ☐ | |
| COBRA notice mailing date | ☐ | |
| Total monthly premium (both shares) | ☐ | |
| PTO payout effect on the end date | ☐ | |
| Spouse-plan deadline and per-paycheck deduction | ☐ | |
| Spouse-plan effective date | ☐ | |
| Navigator: subsidy math confirmed | ☐ |
A written answer is a filed answer: the file (termination letter, notices, confirmations, premium number, income estimate) turns any future dispute from your word against a bureaucracy into a settled question.