Section 3001 of the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provides "Assistance Eligible
Individuals" with the right to pay reduced COBRA premiums for up to
9 months. If individuals request treatment as an assistance
eligible individual and are denied such treatment because of their
ineligibility for COBRA continuation coverage, ARRA section
3001(a)(5) requires the Secretary of Labor to provide for expedited
review of the denial upon application to the Secretary in the form
and manner the Secretary provides. The Secretary of Labor is
required to act in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury
and must make a determination within 15 business days after receipt
of an individuals application for review. The Application to the
Department of Labor for Expedited Review of Denial of COBRA Premium
Reduction (the "Application") is the form used by individuals to
file their expedited review appeals. Such individuals must complete
all information requested on the Application in order to file their
review requests with the Departments Employee Benefits Security
Administration (EBSA). The ICR relates to the Application.
The hour and cost burden
associated with this ICR has been reduced since EBSA made its
emergency submission in April 2009. This reduction is due to the
fact that of eligible enrollees, EBSA has found that only .12
percent of the eligible population both applied for the COBRA
subsidy, were denied, and formally appealed to the U.S. Department
of Labor. The Department therefore estimates that only 14,000
individuals (reduced from 95,000) would file an appeal with the
Department, and that the costs associated with the ICR would be
$7,960 (reduced from $52,000).
$6,858,000
No
No
Uncollected
Uncollected
Yes
Uncollected
Christopher Cosby 202-693-8425
cosby.chris@dol.gov
No
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.