Most Employers Will Continue to Provide Health Coverage Next Year
"The number of employers that plan to keep their grandfathered health plan status continues to decline. The larger the employer, the more likely it is to maintain its grandfathered plan status.... Approximately one in five employers (18%) claimed that they had increased their employees' share of plan premiums to contain costs." (Littler)

Trends in Health Coverage for Part-Time Workers
"The percentage of workers employed part-time has been rising since 2007, increasing from 16.7 percent to 22.2 percent in 2011. Part-time workers have experienced a much larger decline in coverage than full-time workers. Between 2007 and 2011, full-time workers experienced a 2.8 percent reduction in the likelihood of having coverage from their own jobs, while part-time workers experienced a 15.7 percent decline." (EBRI)

[Guidance Overview] Myth: My State Isn't Setting Up a Marketplace So the Affordable Care Act Doesn't Affect Me
"Small employers in all states will be able to compare a range of insurance options for their employees ... This is true whether a business is exploring options for coverage in a state-based Marketplace or a federally-facilitated Marketplace.... In 2014, employers will be able to choose a plan, from a variety of Marketplace options, to offer their employees. In states like California in 2014 and in all states starting in 2015, employers will be able to choose a variety of plans to offer to their employees -- empowering each employee to choose the plan that best suits his or her needs." (U.S. Small Business Administration)

[Guidance Overview] Proposed ACA Regs on Minimum Value, Premium Tax Credits Help Employers with Health Plan Duties for 2014 (PDF)
"While the safe harbor plan designs described are not yet formally recognized, it is encouraging to see that the government is considering typical high deductible health plans as providing minimum value. Presumably, employers with plans meeting the safe harbors can assume that the plans provide minimum value and disclose this in upcoming employee communications (i.e. the Notice and the Summary of Benefits and Coverage)." (PricewaterhouseCoopers)

Employers Can Minimize Exposure to Obamacare's Penalties by Offering Low-Cost 'Skinny' Coverage
"[A]ny health insurance plan that is legally sold within a state's boundaries counts as an 'eligible employer-sponsored plan.' In many states, insurers market inexpensive plans that cover a limited range of services.... [E]mployers can offer these inexpensive plans to their workers and thereby avoid the employer mandate's strong penalty.... Nonetheless, Obamacare's designers expressed surprise that employers would do such a thing." (Forbes)

Check Your Health Plan's Subrogation and Reimbursement Language to Eliminate 'Contractual Gaps'
"Plan language should also be examined to avoid the 'contractual gap' with respect to the source and right of repayment of the reimbursed or subrogated claim. For example, the plan's right of recovery should extend to any amount paid with respect to, associated with, or stemming from the injuries incurred whether paid directly or indirectly to the injured party, his spouse, dependents, beneficiaries or estate, or whether held in trust or constructive trust for the benefit of the injured party, his spouse, dependents, beneficiaries or estate. The plan should further provide that amounts shall be recoverable regardless of whether the funds have been commingled with other assets and the plan may recover from any available funds, without the need to trace the source of the funds." (Davis Wright Tremaine LLP)

[Opinion] Will Obamacare Implementation Really Be a 'Train Wreck'?
"[T]here are a few key indicators to watch over the next few months to assess how well implementation is progressing ... [1] can individual and small group purchasers of health insurance in the new marketplaces afford the likely cost? ... [2] will state marketplaces be operational by October? ... [3] CMS did not get the nearly $1 billion they said they need for outreach and implementation of the marketplaces. While this seems like a lot of money, it is not nearly enough to accomplish the task, especially given the difficulties CMS will have with some of the consumers they are trying to enroll -- low-income, less healthy, and 'young invincible' consumers, many of whom have not had insurance before." (Brookings)

[Opinion] Text of Comments by U.S. Chamber of Commerce on HRA Provisions of ACA FAQ XI (PDF)
"[T]he Chamber understands that the Departments believe that any employer subsidy to buy individual health insurance ... violates PPACA's annual limit proscription.... We believe that employers around the country are completely unaware that in nine months' time, the Departments intend to prohibit many common arrangements ... Under these non-HRA arrangements, employers typically reimburse employees for all or part of the cost of the individual coverage they obtain. The [IRS] long ago concluded that such arrangements qualify as tax-free employer-provided health coverage ... We believe that interpreting the PPACA as prohibiting such arrangements runs counter to the central goals of the PPACA, which are to make health insurance coverage more affordable and to increase the number of individuals insured in the United States." (U.S. Chamber of Commerce)

Is a Private Exchange Right for Your Organization?
[T]the number of employers considering offering a private exchange for active and/or retired employees has tripled in the past year to 56%." [An infographic provides three considerations for employers in making this decision.] (Mercer)

[Guidance Overview] Out-of-Pocket But Not Out-of-Mind
"[F]or the 2014 plan year only, if a non-grandfathered health plan uses different service providers to administer different health benefits, the Departments will consider the limitation on out-of-pocket maximums satisfied, if the out-of-pocket maximum of each health benefit that is separately administered individually complies with the limitation on out-of-pocket maximums." (Miller Johnson)

ML Strategies Health Care Reform Update, May 20, 2013 (PDF)
Update on developments in federal and state health care reform legislation and regulations, including summaries of recent announcements and regulatory activity by HHS, CCIIO, IRS and CMS. (ML Strategies, LLC)

A Checkup for Your EAP and Health and Wellness Programs
"Absent an industry standard for measuring and reporting utilization, employers are left to question what these rates mean, as well as how effective the program and services truly are. The simple use of a program does not equate to achieving outcomes that are relevant to your workplace." (Healthcare Reform Magazine)

Some Individual Policies Offer Way to Shrink Deductibles, But Is It Legal?
"Supporters say these programs reward good health by helping customers reduce their costs. But consumer advocates say the programs may discriminate against sick people and run afoul of the Affordable Care Act." (Kaiser Health News)

[Opinion] The Market for Medical Care Should Work Like Cosmetic Surgery
"When patients pay their own medical bills, they become prudent consumers. Thus, the real (inflation-adjusted) price of cosmetic surgery fell over the past two decades -- despite a huge increase in demand and considerable innovation. Since 1992: The price of medical care has increased an average of 118 percent. The price of physician services rose by 92 percent. All goods, as measured by the inflation rate, increased by 64 percent. Cosmetic surgery prices only rose only about 30 percent." (National Center for Policy Analysis)

A Failure to Communicate: How Cultural Incompetence Leaves Many Wellness Programs Incomplete
"Without improving cultural competency, the inability of minority wellness program participants to effectively communicate with healthcare providers and vendors is likely to worsen.... Poorer health outcomes may result when sociocultural differences between employees and providers, like language are not reconciled in the clinical encounter. This can lead to: [1] Increased likelihood of mistakes in collecting medical histories, [2] Decreased use of preventative services, [3] Increased use of diagnostic testing, and [4] Increased risk of drug complications affecting work or home life." (Healthcare Reform Magazine)

Is the Future of American Health Care in Oregon?
"[Oregon Gov. John] Kitzhaber said. 'What we're doing is instead of putting our budget into the ER and paying for congestive heart failure after congestive heart failure, we're putting it into care coordination and community health workers. We're investing in health. It's just a paradigm shift.' ... This is a potentially transformational notion, based on a belief that the health-care system doesn't decide or drive health, even that individuals don't particularly drive their own health." (The Washington Post)

[Guidance Overview] Now is the Time to Prepare for Health Plan Pay-or-Play Rules in 2014
"Determining whether your [company] is subject to penalties, when your [company] has incurred a penalty, and the amount of the penalty is a multi-step process.... Although some changes to the rules can be expected, the time is now to work out a strategy for avoiding or minimizing the penalties." [Article includes a flow chart outlining the process.] (Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP)

Deloitte Health Care Reform Memo, May 20, 2013
"According to the National Conference of State Legislators, in the average state, health care is 28-35 percent of the budget.... Governors across the country are asking good questions. They ask about the ACA ... They ask about Medicaid: ... They ask about state employee health plans ... They ask about the private sector ... They wonder about the health care workforce and jobs in their state ... And they ask about public awareness." (Deloitte)

Majority of Employers Plan to Offer Healthcare Coverage After 2014
"More than two-thirds of employers (69%) say they will continue to provide healthcare coverage when health insurance exchanges begin operation in 2014. That's up from 46% in 2012 ... Meanwhile, only 2% of employers are considering terminating their healthcare coverage as a result of the healthcare reform law[.]" (HealthLeaders Media)

How Will The 'Unbanked' Buy Insurance On The Exchanges?
"One in five households in the United States, or about 51 million adults, [has] only a tenuous relationship with a traditional bank ... The new federal health law which requires most Americans to carry health insurance starting in January presents a particular problem for those households, since most health plans accept a credit card for the first month's premium payment and then require customers to pay monthly with a check or an electronic funds transfer from a checking account." (Kaiser Health News)

[Opinion] Obamacare Could Result in Reduced Employee Health Benefits
"[E]mployers and employee-benefits consultants have found, and federal regulators now confirm, that the law actually requires most employers to offer no more than very flimsy coverage. Many employers are now exploring the option of offering limited-benefit health plans that cover preventive services and maybe '$100 a day for a hospital visit' but 'wouldn't cover surgery, X-rays or prenatal care.' Indeed, the law could push many employers to reduce the amount of coverage workers receive on the job.... The Law of Unintended Consequences strikes again." (Cato Institute)

[Opinion] Health Insurance Exchanges -- The Top Ten Terribles (PDF)
"Higher Premiums ... Limited Choice of Providers ... Privacy Intrusions ... No private insurance ... IRS Enforcement ... Conscientious Objections Dismissed ... Federal Application ... Limited Choice of Coverage ... State Control Board ... Employer Penalties [and] Medicaid for Employees." (Citizens' Council for Health Freedom)

Considering the Spousal Surcharge
"One of the ways employers are looking to contain healthcare costs is by levying surcharges on spouses who opt for coverage through their partners' insurance policies. This strategy may be effective, but HR must carefully communicate the reasons for these changes and prepare for employee pushback." (Human Resource Executive Online)

Health Spending Slowdown Shows Signs It Will Stick
"Insurance benefit design changes, slower introduction of new drugs and technology, and improved physician efficiency are among the factors that researchers cited to explain the recent slowdown in the growth of health spending in the United States. Although spending rates historically have shot back up after such slow periods, some studies suggested that flatline growth might continue even as the nation's economy keeps recovering." (American Medical News)

With High Deductible Health Plans, It Pays To Shop Around For Care
"Proponents of high-deductible plans say consumers will make more cost-conscious health care choices if they have to spend more of their own money. According to [one] analysis ... consumers in such plans cut their medical spending by between 5 and 14 percent. But results were mixed on whether they cut back only on unnecessary care or on treatment that was needed." (Kaiser Health News)

Michigan Employers Report Cost of Providing Health Care Growing at 4%, Lowest Rate in Ten Years (PDF)
"For the second consecutive year, 25% of participants report no cost increase at all.... Compared to 12% of employers nationally, 30% of Michigan employers require a surcharge or exclude spouses who are eligible for coverage from other sources. Wellness plans continue to evolve with 36% of employers tying incentives to achievement of a health goal[.]" (McGraw Wentworth)

Trends in Medigap Coverage and Enrollment, 2012
"In 2012, most Medicare beneficiaries with a standardized Medigap policy had Plan F (53 percent). Plan C, the second most popular plan, had 13 percent of the Medigap standardized plan market. Plans F and C cover 100 percent of the deductibles and coinsurance not covered by Medicare.... Enrollment in Plan N, which includes cost-sharing of up to $20 for physician office visits and up to $50 for certain emergency room visits (waived in certain circumstances), grew by 35 percent between December 2011 and December 2012, and was the most popular of the newer standardized plans." (America's Health Insurance Plans)

Broker Breached Fiduciary Duty by Failing to Explain Interaction of Stop-Loss and Self-Funded Health Plan Coverage
"Apart from providing benefit consulting services to the Employer, the Broker had a long-standing and close relationship with the Employer as its agent for various other types of insurance coverage.... A federal district court in Alabama held that (i) the Broker was a fiduciary of the Employer based on the long-standing, close advisory relationship between the two parties; and (ii) the Broker breached its fiduciary duty by failing to adequately explain to the Employer how the stop-loss coverage interfaced with the Plan's lifetime maximum and the means by which the Employer could cap its total liability." [Express Oil Change, LLC v. ANB Insurance Services, Inc., No. CV-10-BE-0263-KOB (N.D. Ala. Mar. 27, 2013)] (Haynes and Boone, LLP)

How Much Big Insurance Paid a Small-Business Group to Fight a Premium Tax
"The nation's leading health insurance industry group gave $850,000 to a top small-business trade association as part of a campaign to repeal a key provision of President Obama's health care law ... America's Health Insurance Plans cut the six-figure check to the National Federation of Independent Business as part of a partnership aimed at blocking a tax on health care premiums that goes into effect next year and will cost insurers roughly $100 billion over the next decade." (NationalJournal)

Posting of Proposed Premiums May Push Competition
"Proposed prices for Bronze-level individual coverage [in Oregon] ranged from $169 to $422, prompting at least one carrier to seek permission to go back to the drawing board ... [C]arriers will be allowed to resubmit bids as long as they can demonstrate a change is justified. Any additional information provided by the carrier won't supersede or replace information contained in the filing, and the division will not accept revised filing exhibits, such as rate tables or actuarial memoranda ... Carriers that propose low rates have likely made a strategic decision to grab market share early in the game, and might opt to adjust prices upward in the second year[.]" (AISHealth.com)

Health Law's Cadillac Tax Bite on Companies Drops by $57 Billion
"The U.S. health-care law's projected tax bite on businesses with more generous health benefits is dropping as medical spending slows and employers look to rein in the cost of coverage. The [ACA's] so-called Cadillac tax on high-premium health plans was initially projected [by the CBO] to bring in $137 billion over the next decade. That estimate has now been trimmed to about $80 billion, a $57 billion decrease[.]" (Bloomberg)

[Opinion] The Cruel Things Obama Is Doing to the Labor Market
"[E]mployers are already reacting to ObamaCare. In fact, there was a huge shift to part-time employment in the fast-food industry beginning in January. The reason: ... in deciding whether a worker is full-time or part-time next January (when the mandate becomes effective) the government will look at the average weekly hours worked in the previous year. One fast-food restaurant owner ... (owning 100 franchises) [reported] that the average workweek for their employees has been reduced to 25 hours this year -- compared with 38 last year." (John Goodman, via Forbes)

Wellness: Not Just About Health
"The simple truth of the matter is that healthier employees cost less. Employees with chronic health conditions often cost the bulk of healthcare costs. In reality, companies that have effectively developed a wellness culture also realize cost savings in reference to retention, recruitment, reputation, and employee engagement." (Healthcare Reform Magazine)

Job-Based Health Coverage and the ACA: Why the Law Won't Cause Employers to Drop Coverage (PDF)
"Ninety-eight percent of businesses with 200 or more workers and 94 percent of businesses with 50 to 199 workers offered insurance to their employees in 2012. Employers have overwhelmingly said that they are unlikely to change their policy of offering coverage for their employees under the [ACA]. A recent study found that 82 percent of employers with 100 to 199 workers and 95 percent of employers with 1,000 to 2,499 workers do not anticipate dropping health insurance in the next one to three years." (Families USA)

Fourth Circuit Court to Hear Challenge to Healthcare Reform's Employer Mandate
"The parties will address whether the Anti-Injunction Act applies to the employer mandate (after the Supreme Court's decision that it did not apply to the dispute involving the individual mandate), whether the employer mandate exceeds Congress' powers under the Commerce, Necessary and Proper, and Taxing and Spending clauses of the Constitution, and the impact of the Equal Protection, Free Exercise of Religion, and Establishment Clauses on the employer mandate and other insurance mandates, such as the requirement to cover preventative care, including contraceptive drugs. Importantly, Liberty University's claims regarding Congress' power to enact the employer mandate under the Commerce, Necessary and Proper and/or Taxing and Spending clauses of the Constitution apply to all employers -- both secular and religious." (Healthcare Reform Digest)

[Opinion] The 'Burden' of High Deductibles
"The folks at Harvard really, really hate cost sharing (i.e., deductibles, coinsurance and co-pays) in health care. They are much less concerned about high premiums or taxes.... The authors are remarkably unconcerned about what it would have cost these unsubsidized families to avoid such burdens. But they include a table that provides a hint -- if you compare the difference in annual premium to the annual deductible ... Gold plans have zero deductibles." (John Goodman's Health Policy Blog)

[Opinion] Testimony Before the Health Committee of the District of Columbia Council, Supporting Mandatory Use of Exchange for Purchase of Individual or Small Business Health Insurance
"Designing the best exchange for the District has been challenging because DC's health insurance market is small and highly concentrated. There are only four carriers one of which one controls more than three quarters of the individual and small group markets.... In a small market with a dominant insurer, it is essential that the exchange risk pool be as inclusive as possible, both to stabilize the exchange -- which is the only source of federal subsidies for District residents with modest incomes -- and to maximize transparency and competition." (Brookings)

[Guidance Overview] IRS Proposed Regs Address Minimum Value, Affordability, Wellness
"Recently issued proposed regulations provide important clarifications on how employers determine minimum value, and how those determinations impact their compliance with the Act. The proposed rule also clarifies the relationships among minimum value and affordability, on the one hand, and wellness programs, Health Reimbursement Accounts and Health Savings Accounts, on the other.... [A] table summarizes the rules governing wellness programs, HSAs and HRAs[.]" (Mintz Levin)

IFEBP Survey Finds Confidence in Continued Employer-Sponsored Health Care
"[T]he vast majority of employers (90 percent) have moved beyond a 'wait and see mode' and are actively developing tactics and taking steps to deal with new rules and regulations stemming from the new health care reform law.... 69 percent of employers stated they will definitely continue to provide employer-sponsored health care when health exchanges come online in 2014 -- a 23 point increase from 2012 (46 percent). Another quarter of respondents (25 percent) stated they are very likely to continue their employer-sponsored health care offering." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

[Opinion] Wal-Mart Could Transform Health Care -- But Does It Want To?
"Back in 2007, Princeton University's Uwe Reinhardt suggested to NPR that Wal-Mart could be 'taking aim at the entire health care system' by expanding its new discount drug program.... And in subsequent years, Wal-Mart did grow its health care footprint, from launching retail clinics based within its stores to advocating for national health reform. Considering its history -- as recently as 2005, Wal-Mart had little involvement in the health care market and was being pilloried for skimping on its own employees' benefits -- it's been a significant turnaround for the firm, and has positioned Wal-Mart as one of the leading disruptive innovators in health care." (The Health Care Blog)

Employer Roundtable Discussion: The Future of Health Care Benefits
"[A]bsent some needed guidance about nondiscrimination rules, it is difficult for [employers] to move forward, and options for replacing employer-sponsored coverage and paying penalties are still too immature for most employers to seriously consider for their active employee population.... Most roundtable participants had not yet considered potentially leveraging public exchanges and paying a penalty to enable employees more affordable options, but were intrigued with the idea." (PricewaterhouseCoopers)

California Counties Still Not Prepared to Offer Expanded Mental Health Care
"When the final phase of the new federal health care law starts in January of next year, more California residents than ever before will be able to seek help for problems ranging from depression, anxiety, and addiction to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. But mental health providers in the state's Central Valley are unprepared for an influx of thousands of patients. State and county officials remain in the planning phases, even though new patients will be able to access these services in less than nine months." (HealthyCal)

[Opinion] Obamacare Is Not About Health Care -- It's About Power
"Obamacare's heavy reliance on the IRS seems somehow fitting, as the entire law relies on a scheme of government controls and regulations to work its will on the health care system. The law imposes price controls on insurance companies and extends a system of price controls for pharmaceutical companies. Obamacare also places a board of unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats at the center of its plans to control health care costs." (The Heritage Foundation)

Reducing Retiree Medical Costs with an Indirect Employer Group Waiver Plan with Wrap Arrangement (PDF)
"[T]he Indirect Employer Group Waiver (EGWP) with Wrap arrangement, using a Standard Medicare Part D plan design and a second plan that wraps around the EGWP [can produce] annual savings [of] as much as $600 per person greater than under the Retiree Drug Subsidy. However, effective communication with participating retirees is essential for its success." (Gabriel, Roeder, Smith & Company)

[Opinion] More Analysis of the Oregon Medicaid Experiment
"[B]ased on statistically insignificant effects of coverage from the Oregon Experiment: (1) The effects that are closest to statistical significance are that coverage would increase the rate of smoking and damage the cardiovascular prognosis of sick people; (2) the best estimated net effect on total population cardiovascular health is extraordinarily tiny; (3) this effect would be achieved by making the sick sicker, while very slightly improving the health of already healthy people; and (4) this effect is almost certainly unattractive on a risk-adjusted basis." (John Goodman's Health Policy Blog)

[Opinion] Smoking Determined to be 'Preexisting Condition' by D.C. Regulators
"[In the District of Columbia,] henceforth insurers shall be forbidden by law to charge smokers higher rates than non-smokers. Smoking, as it turns out, 'is a preexisting medical condition,' according to Dr. Mohammad Akhter, the chairman of the D.C. Health Exchange Board. Two liberal states, California and Connecticut, have decided likewise, while Colorado and Alaska have rejected the idea. As expected, the definition of 'preexisting condition' is proving infinitely malleable, with behaviors born again as conditions." (National Review)

California Health Insurance Exchange Announces Grants
"Covered California, the state's health insurance exchange, announced $37 million in grants Tuesday to begin the massive task of educating millions of Californians about the new healthcare law. The grants will go to 48 organizations, including universities, nonprofit groups, health foundations and unions. They will help state officials explain the new benefits, show people how to access insurance, and encourage small businesses to enroll." (Los Angeles Times)

[Guidance Overview] Minnesota Employers Affected by Same-Sex Marriage
"Generally, self-funded medical plans and retirement plans are not required, but can offer, coverage or survivor benefits, respectively, to an employee's same-sex spouse. For insured plans, new and renewed contracts underwritten in Minnesota will likely be required to cover a spouse of a same-sex marriage, but there should be future guidance on this and other interpretation issues." (Faegre Baker Daniels LLP)

New Obamacare Rules on Wellness Programs Deal Blow to Employers
"Employers' hopes about the majority of their wellness program incentives helping their health plans meet minimum-value and affordability requirements have effectively been crushed by the feds. Many experts in the benefits community aren't happy with the distinction the feds made between wellness programs and feel the moves adds more confusion to complying with Obamacare's many regs." (HRBenefits Alert)

[Opinion] Why Health Care Should Bring Back the House Call
"If we hope to rein in health care costs and improve quality, we need, in effect, to bring back the house call.... As the older demographic expands, so, too, does the number of people who live with chronic diseases ... That's why an estimated, 49% of our health care costs go toward 5% of Medicare beneficiaries.... [H]ome care is doing exactly what's most needed -- increasing quality and driving down costs." (Harvard Business Review; free registration required)

The State and Local Government Workforce: 2013 Trends
"Twenty-two percent of retirement-eligible employees accelerated their retirement date in 2013, the same as 2012. The number of governments making changes to health and retirement benefits remains high, with 56 percent modifying health benefits in 2013 and 44 percent making changes to retirement plans. The change most often cited was to shift more health care costs from the employer to employee (reported 52 percent of governments that made changes). Twenty-eight percent of governments that made changes created wellness programs." (Center for State & Local Government Excellence)

Two Million Fewer U.S. Uninsured to Gain Health Coverage
"[A new CBO report] said 25 million people who currently lack insurance will obtain coverage through subsidized marketplaces or an expanded Medicaid program over the coming decade, down from a February CBO estimate of 27 million people. The office attributed the drop to a change in administration policy that will exempt 500,000 to 1 million more people from the law's individual mandate[.]" (The Baltimore Sun)

Patterns of Health Insurance Changes
"A number of industries can expect big changes in employee health insurance in the next year or two, while others will continue with business as usual.... [W]e can readily predict the industries that will retain employer insurance and predict those that will drop whatever health benefits they currently have." (Casey B. Mulligan in The New York Times)

[Opinion] Why 'Medicare-For-All' Is Not the Answer
"The argument for universal Medicare basically comes down to three key claims: (1) Medicare gets lower prices; (2) Medicare's administrative costs are lower; and (3) greater spending does not mean better health. Each of these deserves closer attention." (Dana Goldman and Adam Leive in Health Affairs)

[Opinion] Study of Massachusetts Health Reform Does Not Adequately Examine Obamacare
"[A recent] study of Massachusetts's experience with health care reform [has led to claims] that under Obamacare most employers will not reduce or eliminate the health coverage they currently offer. However, there are at least three aspects the study did not directly address, all of which suggest that employers will, in fact, scale back their health insurance offerings: 1) Obamacare is a federal program, not confined to one state.... 2) Obamacare contains fewer restrictions for employers who want to drop coverage.... 3) Obamacare subsidizes more individuals than the Massachusetts plan." (The Heritage Foundation)

Minnesota Employers Affected by Same-Sex Marriage
"Based on the rules of construction in Minnesota's civil marriage law, it is likely that Minnesota group health insurance contracts will extend coverage to a same-sex spouse if a 'spouse' must be eligible for coverage. However, Minnesota insurance law cannot regulate the terms of the employer's plan, such as the portion of the premium paid by the employer for such coverage.... [E]mployers can design retirement plans to treat same-sex spouses similar to opposite-sex spouses. For example, a retirement plan can name a spouse, regardless of sex, as the default beneficiary, but employers are not required to do so." (Faegre Baker Daniels LLP)

Even After Overhaul, Gaps In Coverage Remain for Young and for Pregnant Women
"[Young adults] can now stay on their parents' health plans until they turn 26.... [T]he Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 requires that companies with 15 or more workers that provide health insurance for employees and their spouses.... However, the law doesn't require maternity coverage for dependent children and ... roughly 70 percent that pay their workers' claims directly don't provide it." (National Public Radio)

ML Strategies Health Care Reform Update, May 13, 2013 (PDF)
Update on developments in federal and state health care reform legislation and regulations, including summaries of recent announcements and regulatory activity by HHS, CCIIO, IRS and CMS. (ML Strategies, LLC)

Obamacare Brings New, Expensive Contractor Misclassification Penalty
"[W]hen classifying workers, follow the IRS' three-point checklist for determining a worker's classification: Behavioral control... .Financial control.... Type of relationship." (HRBenefits Alert)

US Airways v. McCutchen Health Plan Reimbursement Case: When Silence Is Not Golden
"[T]he Court noted that if the plan sponsor ... had wished to depart from application of equitable doctrines, it was free to draft its plan to say so. In other words, if a plan sponsor does have an intent inconsistent with certain commonplace equitable doctrines, it can avoid application of those doctrines by expressly drafting around the issue in the plan itself." (Jones Day)

Important word about authorship:
BenefitsLink® (BenefitsLink.com) provides this page for you, containing selected hypertext links to pages on the web that our editors think will be useful or interesting to you. But BenefitsLink is not the author or publisher of those linked pages (except as expressly indicated). You should contact directly the author of any such linked pages for copyright or other information about their contents.