October 2, 2002 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - America's Choice
Healthplans, Inc. and CareGain, Inc. will join forces in
order to offer HealthAssets, a portable consumer-directed
healthcare benefit plan.
According to an announcement from the companies, the
partnership combines America’s Choice health plan
administrative experience with CareGain’s prior work
online.
The companies contended that a company offering
HealthAssets might well save money by giving employees a
vested interest in managing their own health care benefit
plan.
America’s Choice will make HealthAssets available for the
2003 open enrollment period. HealthAssets will be
available as a complete replacement plan or alongside
other plan options for all companies with more than 50
employees, the announcement said.
September 14, 2001 (PLANSPONSOR.com) -A Senate panel
hearing on legislation that would require contraceptives to
be covered under private health plans has brought the bill is
one step closer to becoming law.
The Equity in Prescription Insurance and Contraceptive
Coverage Act would require health plans that cover
prescription drugs to include the same level of coverage
for prescription contraceptives that are approved by the
Food and Drug Administration.
After failing to become law following its introduction
in 1997, the bill was re-introduced this year by Senators
Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Harry Reid (D-Nevada).
Proponents hope the bill will move forward before the close
of 2001.
A number of states have passed their own laws requiring
employers to provide contraceptive coverage, but the bill’s
advocates take the view that federal legislation is
necessary.
For and Against
Advocates of the bill see prescription contraceptives as
crucial to women?s health and say the costs for employers
will be minimal, arguing that since federal workers’ health
plans began covering contraceptives in 1999, there has been
no increase in health insurance premiums.
Opponents of the bill, such as the US Chamber of
Commerce argued that the legislation would raise employers’
costs by mandating contraceptive coverage.
Picking up Steam
The issue came to the fore in June after a federal ruled
that employers could not exclude prescription
contraceptives from a woman’s health insurance coverage if
they covered other prescription drugs.
The federal judge found that pharmacy chain Bartell Drug
Company had discriminated against female employees by not
providing birth control as part of its health coverage and
ordered Bartell to cover all forms of prescription
contraception.