Obama announces contraception compromise
Posted on February 11, 2012 |
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On Friday, President Obama announced that the administration would compromise on the preventive services final rule. The final rule, an update to the interim final rule released in August, would have required religiously affiliated entities to cover contraceptive care without any cost-sharing requirements. The new final rules mandate that nonprofit organizations affiliated with religious institutions that do not cover contraception based on their beliefs will not have to include it in their coverage. However, health insurers that provide the policies used by those nonprofit religious affiliates, which include educational institutions, hospitals, and charities, are required to offer separate insurance policy “riders” that cover contraceptive care at no additional cost. The announcement came after many Catholic organizations and Republicans had strongly objected to the original final rule that the Department of Health and Human Services had announced on January 20th.
April 20, 2012
This update to our March 2012 implementation brief reviews recent implementation efforts by the Administration in connection with coverage of contraceptives as a required element of required preventive services for all individual and (non-grandfathered) group health plans under the Affordable Care Act. The earlier brief reviewed the Administration’s final rules defining the scope of contraception coverage, as well as the scope of the religious exemption that would apply to employers that seek an exemption from this coverage requirement. Reflecting prior law on this matter, the final rule preserved...
March 2, 2012
Recent federal regulations requiring insurance coverage of contraception have generated controversy, especially as applied to religious employers. The requirement stems from an ACA provision requiring insurance coverage of preventive services. Section 2713 of the Public Health Service Act, as added by Section 1001 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), requires group health plans and health insurance issuers offering group or individual health insurance coverage to provide coverage without cost-sharing for certain preventive services, including preventive treatments and services for women recommended by The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) in guidelines. The preventive services provisions of the Act...
May 17, 2010
The health reform law establishes a dedicated “Prevention and Public Health Fund” to provide for “expanded and sustained national investment in prevention and public health programs.”
January 20, 2012
US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that religious non-profit employers who do not currently offer contraceptive coverage to their employees will have an additional year to comply with the preventive services requirement set forth in an earlier Interim Final Rule (IFR). The earlier rule requires, that as of August 1, 2012, all employers except for churches must include contraception among the free preventive services covered in the insurance plans they offer to employees. The new announcement allows those employers who have religious objections an additional year to comply with the requirement.
For more information on preventive services, click here.
August 1, 2011
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued an amended version of the previous Interim Final Rule on the coverage of preventive services by group health plans and health insurance issuers under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The amended rule reflects recent recommendations by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) regarding particular preventive services for women that should be covered at no cost by insurance companies. Services include screening and counseling for certain sexually transmitted infections, screening for gestational diabetes, and among others, counseling and contraception to prevent unintended pregnancies. The Internal Revenue Service has also issued an amended rule that reflects the coverage of these preventive services.
*** On August 3, 2011, HHS issued an amendment to the amended IFR, further clarifying the expemption of religious organizations from the contraception coverage requirement.
For more information on prevention, click here.
February 10, 2011
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced $750 million in funding for prevention and public health in the United States. Funded through the Prevention and Public Health Fund, this allocation contains $250 million of new money to strengthen clinical and community prevention efforts and public health infrastructure around the country. “This investment is going to build on the prevention work already under way to help make sure that we are working effectively across the federal government as well as with private groups and state and local governments to help Americans live longer, healthier lives,” Sebelius said.
July 14, 2010
The Department of Health and Human Services has released interim final rules and recommendations requiring that health insurance plans issued on or after September 23, 2010 offer certain preventive services without cost-sharing to patients.
November 16, 2011
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) created the Prevention and Public Health Fund, a 10-year, $15 billion commitment to support programs, medical screenings, and research related to public health and prevention. This national commitment to investment in preventing disease before it occurs is in line with evidence from a variety of recent reports and studies indicating that strategic investments in proven, community-based prevention programs could result in significant U.S. health care cost savings and overall economic cost savings. The Robert Wood Johnson Brief, "Return Investments in Public Health: A Summary of Groundbreaking Research Studies," summarizes the findings and recommendations from four major studies released between 2008 and 2011.
July 20, 2011
The Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the National Academy of Sciences has released a new report that recommends 8 preventive services for women, including birth control, be covered by insurance companies with no cost-sharing, including copayment. Services include screening and counseling for certain sexually transmitted infections, screening for gestational diabetes, and among others, counseling and contraception to prevent unintended pregnancies. The report, "Clinical Preventive Services for Women: Closing the Gaps," was produced by the IOM at the request of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Serivces (HHS), who will have final say on which of the 8 services are included in the final regulation.
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