On March 1, the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury approved New York’s section 1332 waiver that expands affordable coverage to additional groups of New Yorkers. The waiver essentially suspends New...more
On December 28, 2021, HHS released a proposed rule governing plans issued in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces beginning with the 2023 plan year (the Proposed Rule). Among other changes to the...more
On July 17, 2020, a panel majority of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a rule issued by the Department of Treasury, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services (collectively, the...more
On April 9, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the long-anticipated final Notice of Benefits and Payment Parameters (NBPP) for plan year 2019, providing standards for health insurers and the health...more
On October 17, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) announced they had agreed on a proposal for a narrow, short-term individual market...more
On October 12, the Trump Administration announced that it would immediately terminate payments for Cost-Sharing Reductions (CSRs), which subsidize health coverage for low-income enrollees in the Affordable Care Act's (ACA)...more
The Future of Essential Health Benefits - Editor's Note: The Essential Health Benefits (EHB) rule may be among the many parts of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that are on the chopping block as the Trump Administration and...more
Congress moves forward on key healthcare appointments; the Administration takes steps to shore up the Marketplaces; and Governors prepare to gather in Washington as new reports document the ACA's impacts on states....more
Hullabaloo: noun: a commotion, a fuss. In recent years, almost every change to health care has caused a hullabaloo. Today, we thought you might enjoy reading about a few recent and proposed changes that, although...more
Overview - On September 9 Hawaii became the first state to post a draft 1332 waiver proposal for public comment. While Hawaii's waiver proposal is focused on the state's unique 40-year-old employer mandate, the 40-page...more
...So, why did HHS need over five years to propose the set of rules published September 8? Here are a few highlights. For brevity’s sake, we omit foreign language service requirements, disability accommodation, compliance...more
This is the 53rd in a series of WorkCite articles concerning the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and its companion statute, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (referred to collectively as the...more
As employers and plans prepare for 2016 open enrollment, they must be sure to address in their benefit design and with their third party vendors the new embedded out-of-pocket maximum limitations on individuals that were...more
On November 21, 2014, the Obama administration released two proposed rules affecting health insurance issuers’ offering of private health insurance products both inside and outside of the public insurance exchanges...more
The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury jointly issued a long-awaited final rule that implements the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008...more
The Department of Health and Human Services issued final regulations on the Affordable Care Act’s standards for essential health benefits, actuarial value, and accreditation. While these regulations primarily affect...more
In This Issue: - Minimum Essential Coverage ..HHS Proposed Rule - Shared Responsibility Payments and Exemptions ..HHS Proposed Rule ..IRS Proposed Rule ..IRS Final Rule - Essential Health Benefits ...more
As Washington and the rest of the country brace for cuts from the sequester to kick in on March 1, Florida Gov. Rick Scott surprised many and confirmed others' predictions by announcing his state will expand its Medical...more
In This Issue: Implementation of the Affordable Care Act; Other HHS and Federal Regulatory Initiatives; Other Congressional and State Initiatives; Other Health Care News; and Hearings and Mark-Ups Scheduled. Excerpt...more
In the past week, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released an updated federal budget to account for new regulations from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),...more
The IRS and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have issued two important pieces of guidance under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act regarding the responsibilities imposed on individuals to...more
On November 20, 2012, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued proposed rules under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, as amended (the Affordable Care Act or the Act), which beginning in...more
Commencing in 2014, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Act) requires that health insurance coverage provided in the individual and small group markets, including coverage offered through American Health Benefit...more
The essential health benefits proposed rule, issued on November 20, 2012, defines the so-called Essential Health Benefits Package, composed of essential health benefits, cost-sharing limitations and actuarial value...more