Can employer retroactively charge me for health insurance I didn’t have access to?

I started my new job on January 3rd of this year. According to the employee handbook, health insurance eligibility kicks in on the first of the month following two full months of employment. So, two full months would be March 3rd-ish, and the next first of the month is April 1st, 2023.

All of my onboarding documents confirmed April 1st as my first date of eligibility. I enrolled for a plan that started April 1st. I received my member ID cards on March 30th, and was able to access my online member dashboard/member handbook on the planned date of April 1st.

Yesterday, I received an email from HR. It states that since January 3rd was the first working day of January, they're counting that as a full month, and my eligibility date was actually March 1st. Therefore, they need to retroactively charge me for my insurance premiums for the two pay periods in March.

Can they do that? I had no access to my benefits or coverage information in March. They say it's to avoid a lapse of coverage, but I had COBRA from my last job. And, I received no medical care in March anyway.

submitted by /u/TerriQuiteContrary
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