The U.S. House of Representatives this week passed the Protecting Affordable Coverage for Employees Act (H.R. 1624), a bill Rep. Leonard Lance (R-N.J.) hailed as “common-sense reform.”
H.R. 1624 “will keep the rules the same for small employers and allow their employees to keep the health care plans and doctors they know and like,” Lance, who serves on the House Energy and Commerce (E&C) Committee said.
The bill, introduced by U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-KY), would amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) – also commonly known as ObamaCare — and the Public Health Service Act to include employers with 51 to 100 employees as large employers for purposes of health insurance markets. States would have the option to treat these employers as small employers under the bill.
Currently under the PPACA, employers with 51 to 100 employees are small employers, but before Jan. 1, 2016, states have the option to treat them as large employers. Under PPACA, health insurance offered in the small group market must meet certain requirements that do not apply to the large group market, including the requirement to cover the essential health benefits.
On Jan. 1, when the definition of the small group market under ObamaCare is set to change, Lance said “millions of employees will see dramatic changes to their insurance coverage.”
“In January, new ObamaCare regulations kick-in and millions of employees of small businesses could see canceled plans and rising premiums due to unnecessary rule changes on small businesses,” Lance said.
Employers with 51 to 100 employees, he added, “will suddenly be thrust into a new insurance category with dramatically different mandates and benefit requirements, and would not be able to continue to offer their current plans.”
Additionally, “hard-working employees no longer [would] be able to keep their current coverage, but the new plans they would be offered would likely be significantly more expensive,” Lance said.
H.R. 1624 would protect employees from the potential of canceled health plans and rising health care premiums, and also would authorize $205 million for the Medicare Improvement Fund, which was cut by ObamaCare.
By making a deposit in this Medicare fund, Lance said, the bill would expand on “landmark House-passed reforms to stabilize the health care system many senior citizens depend on.”
The bill is now being considered by the U.S. Senate.