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2/3/2025

EBSA Releases Disaster Relief Notice 2024-01

In late 2024, the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and Treasury departments jointly issued a rule (referred to as the “Joint Notice”) extending certain compliance deadlines relating to employee benefit plans, participants, beneficiaries, qualified beneficiaries, and claimants impacted by Hurricane Helene (including Tropical Storm Helene) and Hurricane Milton. 

Additionally, EBSA released EBSA Disaster Relief Notice 2024-01, which provides ERISA plans affected by the storms additional time to comply with certain notice and disclosure requirements. We are writing to share information and an action plan regarding both the Joint Notice and Disaster Relief Notice (together, “the Notices”).

Here are the highlights of the Notices:

  • The Notices extend the deadline for individuals to file a claim for benefits and request an appeal under health FSAs and HRAs. Under the extension, the regular deadlines are paused until the end of the “Relief Period,” designated as May 1, 2025.
  • The Notices also require certain ERISA employee benefit plans to extend the deadlines for (i) HIPAA special enrollment and (ii) COBRA-related actions, including: elections, premium payments, and notice of qualifying events and Social Security disability determinations. Under the extension, the regular deadlines are paused until the end of the “Relief Period” designated as May 1, 2025.
  • The relief applies to individuals in designated disaster areas in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Individuals who resided, lived, or worked in a designated disaster area at the time of the hurricane or tropical storm, or whose benefit coverage was under a plan directly affected by the disasters, are eligible for these extensions.
  • The Relief Period ends on May 1, 2025, for all affected individuals. The Relief Period start date varies depending on the location of the individual and which disaster affected them. The start of the Relief Period aligns with the beginning of the “incident period” established by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Here are three examples of how the extensions may help impacted individuals:

1. FSA Claims Filing

  • Plan year end: 12/31/2024
  • Normal run out period end (90 days): 3/31/2025
  • Relief Period End + 90 days: 7/30/2025
  • Final Claim Filing Date: 7/30/2025*

*Please note that the Notices do not extend a participant’s timeframe to incur an expense, but rather to submit an expense incurred during the coverage period.

2. COBRA Election (COBRA event occurring before Relief Period)

  • Qualifying Event Date: 9/30/2024
  • COBRA Notice Date: 10/01/2024
  • “Normal” time period for making election: 60 days
  • Relief Period End (5/1/2025) + 60 days - 5 days that had passed before the incident start period (10/5/2024): 6/25/2025

3. COBRA Election (COBRA event occurring during Relief Period)

  • Qualifying Event and loss of coverage date: 12/9/2024
  • COBRA Notice Date: 12/10/2024
  • “Normal” time period for making election: 60 days
  • Relief Period End + 60 days = 6/30/2025

Action Plan

In the coming weeks, Sentinel will be communicating directly to FSA/HRA plan participants and COBRA beneficiaries whom our records show lived in or near an impacted area during the time of the storms mentioned in the Notices. Sentinel has built a custom form for impacted individuals to use in order to indicate they would like to take advantage of the relief. A link to the form can be found here. Please also communicate this message and form link to individuals within your organization who you know were impacted by Hurricane Helene (including Tropical Storm Helene) and Hurricane Milton.

If you have any questions regarding the Notices, please contact your Sentinel Health & Welfare and/or COBRA Account Manager.

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