Q.- We have a COBRA participant who didn’t pay his July premium. He wants us to accept his money now. Do we have to allow a late payment?
A.- Under the Federal COBRA rules, following their initial 45 day grace period, you must give a continuant a 30-day grace period to make payment each month. After the grace period expires, you do not have to accept any late payment. If you do accept a late payment, you might be setting a precedent for how you have to treat similar requests in the future.