COBRA Alternatives in Rhode Island (2026)

Your options after leaving a job in Rhode Island

If you lose your job in Rhode Island, you may have two ways to keep your work plan. Federal COBRA applies to employers with 20 or more workers and usually lasts 18 months, but you can be charged up to 102% of the full premium.

Rhode Island also has its own continuation law for people who are laid off, lose their job because a workplace closes, or lose a spouse. You can keep the group plan for up to 18 months, but not longer than you worked there, and you pay the same rate the group pays. You must sign up within 30 days, and it ends once you can join another employer's plan.

Losing job-based coverage also opens a 60-day special enrollment period with HealthSource RI. A Marketplace plan with a premium tax credit often costs less than COBRA, especially if your income for the year will be lower.

If your income dropped sharply, check Rhode Island Medicaid. Adults under 65 can qualify with income up to 138% of the poverty level, and you can apply any time.

How federal COBRA works

Federal COBRA lets you keep your former employer’s group plan if the employer had 20 or more employees. Coverage usually lasts up to 18 months, and you can be charged the full premium plus a 2% administrative fee, because your employer stops paying its share.

You generally have 60 days from your election notice to choose COBRA. Coverage is retroactive, so some people wait and only elect it if they need care during that window. Talk to an agent before relying on that, because missing the deadline ends the option.

Rhode Island continuation of group coverage (R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-19.1-1)

If you are laid off, Rhode Island law lets you keep your group plan for up to 18 months, capped at the length of time you worked there, and it ends once you become eligible for another employer's plan. You pay the same monthly rate the group pays, with no extra administrative charge, and you must elect it within 30 days. Federal COBRA applies to employers with 20 or more workers, covers people who quit as well as those laid off, gives you 60 days to elect, and can charge up to 102% of the cost.

• Who it covers: People covered by an employer's insured group health plan who lose their job through an involuntary layoff, a workplace closing or a permanent workforce reduction, plus a surviving spouse and dependents if the employee dies. The statute is not limited to small employers.
• How long: Up to 18 months, but no longer than the time you worked continuously for that employer

Marketplace plans and your special enrollment period

Losing job-based coverage opens a 60-day special enrollment period, so you don’t have to wait for open enrollment. In Rhode Island, HealthSource RI is Rhode Island’s official, state-run health insurance marketplace. We’re an independent, licensed insurance agency, not part of HealthSource RI or any government agency, and we can help you compare Marketplace plans and enroll. Rhode Island runs its own exchange, and it is the only place in the state where you can get federal premium tax credits. For 2026, you had to pick and pay for a plan by December 23, 2025 to be covered on January 1. The whole state is one rating area, so prices do not change by ZIP code.

Marketplace premiums are based on your expected income for the year, not last year’s. If you’re between jobs, a lower income estimate can mean a much larger premium tax credit. The enhanced federal premium tax credits expired on December 31, 2025, because Congress did not extend them. For 2026, federal help is back to the original rules: credits stop above 400% of the federal poverty level, and HealthSource RI reports that average premiums after credits roughly doubled, rising about $111 per person per month.

If your income dropped

Rhode Island expanded Medicaid on January 1, 2014. Adults 19 to 64 who are not disabled can qualify with income up to 138% of the federal poverty level, and you can apply any time of year. Under the 2025 federal budget law, expansion adults will need to meet work or community service requirements (80 hours a month, with exemptions) starting January 1, 2027.

What coverage costs