By Ilyse Schuman The DOL’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) along with the Departments of the Treasury and Health and Human Services have issued a proposed rule (pdf) setting forth the requirements of the Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) disclosure that health insurers and group health plans must provide to consumers to enable them… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: August 2011
11th Circuit Finds Individual Mandate Unconstitutional
By Ilyse Schuman Two months after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, the 11th Circuit has come to the opposite conclusion, holding that Congress exceeded its powers in requiring individuals to obtain health insurance or pay a penalty. The lawsuit – Florida v. U.S…. Continue Reading
Agencies Issue Proposed Regulations on Employer Participation in Small Business Health Options Program
By Ilyse Schuman The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury have issued a proposed rule (pdf) that establishes standards for health exchange eligibility and enrollment in a qualified health plan (QHP) and employer participation in the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) as established under the Affordable Care Act. According… Continue Reading
New Health Care Survey by Mercer Indicates That Few Employers Plan to Drop Coverage
By Ilyse Schuman A new health care survey by the Mercer consulting firm reports that the level of those employers who claim they will drop health coverage as a result of the new mandates imposed by the Affordable Care Act has remained steady since last year. Specifically, the survey of 894 employers conducted in June… Continue Reading
The Latest in a Series of ERISA “Checkbook” Cases
By Melanie A. Houghton Beginning late last year, a number of lawsuits, now commonly known as “checkbook” cases, appeared on the federal docket. While each of these cases is somewhat different on the facts, they share a common basic scenario: Upon the death of an insured, the life insurance company creates an account for the… Continue Reading
Bill Would Repeal Portions of Health Care Law
By Ilyse Schuman The same week a congressional subcommittee held a hearing to discuss how the Affordable Care Act impacts small businesses, members of the House of Representatives introduced a measure that would repeal and amend a number of the health law’s provisions to favor small entities. Specifically, the Small Business Health Relief Act of… Continue Reading
Agencies Issue Interim Final Rule Expanding Coverage Requirements for Women’s Preventive Services
By Ilyse Schuman The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) along with the Departments of the Treasury and Health and Human Services have issued an interim final rule (pdf) that expands the types of women’s health preventive services that must be covered without any cost-sharing by non-grandfathered health plans, and expressly affirms that… Continue Reading