COBRA Subsidy Not Mentioned in Bill

Members of the Senate have voted 60-40 to let an unemployment benefits extension bill that says nothing about the COBRA health benefits subsidy extension come up for a vote.

The House already has approved a version of the bill, H.R. 4213, Promoting American Jobs, Closing Tax Loopholes and Preventing Outsourcing Act, in December 2009.

The Senate could vote on final passage of its version of the bill by 9 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Senate floor calendar.

Back in February, when Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, the highest ranking Republican on the committee, introduced a version of the bill that became H.R. 4213, the the bill included a provision that would have extended the 65% federal COBRA health benefits extension.

Health Reform Rules Clarify Preventative Cost-Sharing

Health care reform regulations issued on Wednesday clarify that employers and insurance companies will be able to continue to impose cost-sharing requirements on preventative services employees receive from out of network providers.

There were questions throughout the industry if reform would require 100% coverage of both in and out of network preventative services, removing any incentive for employees to go in network for their routine preventative care.

Grandfathered plans are exempt from the requirement to cover preventative services at 100% with no cost-sharing.

To read the full article click here: http://www.businessinsurance.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100714/NEWS/100719961/1287

DOL Issues Mental Health Parity Implementation Clarification

The Department of Labor (DOL) issued an important clarification to the mental health parity regulations strongly advocated for by many in the industry that will provide the critical flexibility needed to avoid making major changes in benefits or cost-sharing to comply with the interim final regulations.

The clarification, issued today in the form of a DOL "Frequently Asked Question" (FAQ), should permit plans to divide the outpatient classification established by the parity regulation into professional and non-professional services which will solve the most urgent “testing” issue identified by plans.Problems with the way the regulations were drafted would have required insurers to make changes that either would have increased premiums significantly or required major benefit restructuring. In addition, these changes could have caused a loss of grandfather status.
The welcome clarification impacts the scheduled compliance of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) Interim Final Regulations for new and renewing groups as of July 1, 2010.