The duration of COBRA for the employee is between e18 to 36 months.

The state of California has a similar version of the Federal programme called COBRA. It is called Cal-COBRA and it functions under certain conditions for residents of California. Cal-COBRA allows employees and families to keep their insurance for up to 36 months.

It must be remembered that COBRA and Cal-COBRA are not free health rides and that premiums must be paid on a timely basis.

According to the state of California, Department of Managed Care web page, the following people are ineligible to receive COBRA and Cal-COBRA. They are the people who have been fired for gross misconduct, medicare enrollees and those about to be enrolled in medicare.

The people who have been negligent in enrolling on time or have not met payment within the allotted time frame are also ineligible for COBRA and Cal-COBRA.

OBRA may be the Spanish word for work or the acronyms of the Oregon Bicycle Riding Association but it is a Federal programme for those who are disabled. OBRA was approved by the US Congress in 1989 and allows people who have used their COBRA benefits to extend their health care coverage beyond COBRA.

The individual who applies for OBRA must be determined by the social security administration to meet the disability provisions within 60 days of qualifying. The individual must also provide a copy of a letter from the social security administrator within 60 days of receiving the letter.

The beneficiary of OBRA must pay 150 per cent of their total health insurance premium and coverage may last up to 11 months. Since medicare begins within 30 months of a disability, there are no gaps in health care coverage if a person has used COBRA and OBRA.

OBRA is not a free ride and people can lose their benefits for the same reason they would lose it under COBRA and Cal-COBRA.