Reporter Questions

Please see questions from a reporter that I have worked with for years. Please see questions below. I would also be interested in knowing even if you wouldn’t talk to a reporter



Scott Hauge

President

Small Business California

2311 Taraval Street

San Francisco, CA 94116

shauge@cal-insure.com

415-680-2188




Hi Scott,

Here are some questions:



The ACA includes a provision that would extend nondiscrimination rules “similar” to those that apply to self-insured employer plans to employers who buy fully insured coverage from carriers. The IRS rules say that employers can’t discriminate in favor of highly compensated employees in terms of access to coverage or generosity of benefits. So, currently, some fully insured employers, for example, might allow the CEO or other executives free or lower cost coverage than other employees. Some might offer them PPOs, while other employees are in an HMO. It’s not clear yet -- because final regulations are not out – exactly whether examples like that in the future will be considered discriminatory. The provision won’t go into effect until the final regs are issued. I’m hoping to chat with some firms that may have benefit packages like currently.



1) Are you fully insured?

2) Do your higher paid employees – even just the CEO – get different benefits or face different eligibility standards for coverage than other employees? My addition do you provide HMO for employees but take a more expensive PPO and pay for it from your company? Do you cover employees employee coverage only for your employees but cover your dependent and pay for it through your company?

3) If so, what changes are you contemplating in light of the ACA provision? My addition. You probably are not aware of this as very few people are. My question would be are you concerned about how ACA may rule on this?



If anyone is willing to chat today, that would be great. They (or you) could shoot me an email with their contact phone number and I will call.

Best,

Julie





Julie Appleby, MPH

Senior Correspondent, Kaiser Health News

202 654-1343

Who are we? Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan health policy research and communication organization not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente. Our stories appear in media outlets nationwide, including USA Today, the Washington Post and NBC.com, and on our website, www.kaiserhealthnews.org.

My KHN stories can be found here: http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/Reporters/ApplebyJ.aspx

Stories from my 10 years covering health policy for USA Today can be found here: http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/USAToday/results.html?st=advanced&QryTxt=&sortby=REVERSE_CHRON&datetype=0&frommonth=04&fromday=01&fromyear=1987&tomonth=02&today=28&toyear=2013&By=appleby&Title=&Sect=ALL