Equal Access to COBRA Act

In the United States, the Equal Access to COBRA Act (S. 3182) was a bill which would have amended the Internal Revenue Code, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and the Public Health Service Act to extend COBRA health insurance coverage to qualified beneficiaries, defined to include domestic partners.^[1][2] The bill was introduced on March 25, 2010, by Senator Barbara Boxer. It was later reintroduced by Representative Anthony Weiner on March 10, 2011.^{[citation needed]}

Background

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) requires that a person and his or her spouse and dependent children be allowed to continue employer-sponsored health coverage after the employee leaves or loses his or her job. However, there is no requirement that benefits be extended to the employee's same-sex partner or spouse.^[3] To qualify for COBRA it may depend on the size of an individual's employer, and the individual cannot have their current health insurance.

Status

Upon being introduced, the bill was read twice and sent to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.^[2] The bill never left committee.