I went on short term disability leave after having a baby on October 25, 2023. I was on STD until December 6, 2023 (6 weeks). I came back to work from December 6, 2023 - January 15, 2024 and then took FMLA for 12 weeks. My FMLA is almost exhausted and I’m set to go back to work on April 5, 2024. I got a call last week from HR saying when I come back, I owe them around $2800 for health insurance premiums they paid for me while I was out. I was expecting maybe around $1500, but definitely not $2800.
My monthly premium I pay is $350. They told me I owe them both the employee obligation and employer obligation from the time I was out on short term disability leave, then just the employee obligation from when I was out on FMLA (the FMLA part I’m absolutely fine with). I’m assuming they signed me up for COBRA during my short term disability leave, I can’t imagine another instance where I would owe both employer and employee obligations. I NEVER consented to COBRA. They also did not tell me ANYTHING about my health insurance or me owing once I got back, they didn’t communicate with me AT ALL until this recent phone call. HR lady stated she was “sorry she didn’t tell me sooner, she didn’t have a director (since our HR director quit during this time) and she forgot”. Also, I came back for a month (Dec 6, 2023 - Jan 15, 2023) and they still didn’t make me aware or try to deduct from my checks during that time. So after 5 months, I’m suddenly hit with this.
If I would have known I would have had to pay all this, I definitely wouldn’t have elected to keep coverage while I was out (as said before, I wasn’t even given the choice). The baby was/is on their father’s health insurance plan so there wouldn’t have been any issues. Not knowing I’d ever owe this amount, I continued to use that insurance to cover labor expenses, hospital stays, postpartum expenses, well child dr visits, etc.
If I were to bring up issues with this or “refuse” to pay, could they potentially go back and cancel my insurance from the date I left for short term disability, causing me to have to pay everything the insurance covered over the 6 weeks I was out? Was it COBRA they signed me up for without telling me? Is this normal? What if I refuse to pay (HR lady said the company could “come after me”). Any advice is appreciated!
My monthly premium I pay is $350. They told me I owe them both the employee obligation and employer obligation from the time I was out on short term disability leave, then just the employee obligation from when I was out on FMLA (the FMLA part I’m absolutely fine with). I’m assuming they signed me up for COBRA during my short term disability leave, I can’t imagine another instance where I would owe both employer and employee obligations. I NEVER consented to COBRA. They also did not tell me ANYTHING about my health insurance or me owing once I got back, they didn’t communicate with me AT ALL until this recent phone call. HR lady stated she was “sorry she didn’t tell me sooner, she didn’t have a director (since our HR director quit during this time) and she forgot”. Also, I came back for a month (Dec 6, 2023 - Jan 15, 2023) and they still didn’t make me aware or try to deduct from my checks during that time. So after 5 months, I’m suddenly hit with this.
If I would have known I would have had to pay all this, I definitely wouldn’t have elected to keep coverage while I was out (as said before, I wasn’t even given the choice). The baby was/is on their father’s health insurance plan so there wouldn’t have been any issues. Not knowing I’d ever owe this amount, I continued to use that insurance to cover labor expenses, hospital stays, postpartum expenses, well child dr visits, etc.
If I were to bring up issues with this or “refuse” to pay, could they potentially go back and cancel my insurance from the date I left for short term disability, causing me to have to pay everything the insurance covered over the 6 weeks I was out? Was it COBRA they signed me up for without telling me? Is this normal? What if I refuse to pay (HR lady said the company could “come after me”). Any advice is appreciated!