Managed Benefits · Rhode Island
Rhode Island is a mini-COBRA state: smaller employers must let departing employees keep group coverage under state law. BEG Managed Benefits, powered by isolved, runs the notices, elections, and premium tracking so the rules are handled. You keep your broker; we do the administration.
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Rhode Island Continuation, In Brief
| State law | R.I. Gen. Laws section 27-19.1-1 (Chapter 27-19.1, Extended Medical Benefits) |
| Employers covered | Group hospital, surgical, dental, vision, or medical insurance plans. Members of groups of 50 or fewer pay the carrier directly; those leaving groups of more than 50 pay the employer (or carrier if the workplace ceases to exist). Fully-insured/service-plan. |
| Maximum continuation | Up to 18 months |
| At 20 or more employees | Federal COBRA applies instead |
| Marketplace | Runs its own state-based marketplace: HealthSource RI (https://healthsourceri.com/). |
Source: Rhode Island statute and department of insurance (webserver.rilegislature.gov). This page is general information, not legal advice.
Why It Lands On You
The Rhode Island rule reaches companies too small to have a benefits department, yet the notices, election windows, and premium tracking look a lot like federal COBRA. Miss a required notice and the exposure accrues per person. BEG Managed Benefits, powered by isolved, runs Rhode Island continuation the same way it runs enrollment: notices generated on the qualifying event, elections and payments tracked, and the clock watched so nothing slips. Your broker keeps advising you and placing coverage. We own the administration behind it.
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See COBRA vs mini-COBRA, or return to the Managed Benefits overview.
Questions
Yes. Rhode Island has a state continuation, or mini-COBRA, law that lets employees of smaller companies keep group health coverage after a qualifying event, filling the gap below the federal COBRA threshold of 20 employees. Group hospital, surgical, dental, vision, or medical insurance plans. Members of groups of 50 or fewer pay the carrier directly; those leaving groups of more than 50 pay the employer (or carrier if the workplace ceases to exist). Fully-insured/service-plan.
Up to 18 months, subject to the state's early-termination rules such as non-payment of premium or becoming covered under another plan.
An insured member (plus surviving spouse and covered dependents) whose employment is terminated because of involuntary layoff or death, or as a result of the workplace ceasing to exist, or a permanent reduction in size of the workforce. Continuation is capped at the shorter of 18 months, the length of prior continuous employment, or until the member becomes eligible under another group plan.
No. Federal COBRA applies to employers with 20 or more employees, and the Rhode Island law covers the smaller groups federal COBRA does not reach. A company is generally subject to one or the other based on size.
The employer and insurer carry the notice and election duties, and the exposure accrues per person if they are missed. BEG Managed Benefits, powered by isolved, runs enrollment, notices, election tracking, and premium status in one system. You keep your broker; we do the administration.
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