Inside Health Policy reported on CAHC President Joel White testifying before House Education & the Workforce subcommittee hearing focused on ways to reduce health care costs for working Americans and their families.
But the bill’s supporters said Corlette’s worries are misplaced. Teaser rates are not allowed, Walberg said. The bill would require that certified actuaries develop “actuarially fair” premiums for older and younger individuals in the group, White told IHP.
The bill also addresses critics’ concerns by barring premium variations based on an individual’s health status, he said.
“In short, the bill enables a group or association sponsoring an AHP to act just like a large employer does. Just like the federal government when offering FEHBP. Just like a State government offering State employee benefits,” White said.
According to White, level-funded plans, which allow firms to pay a fixed price for the costs of claims, plan administration and stop-loss coverage, reduce the risks for small businesses and allow them to take advocate of self-funded arrangements.
However, since some states have sought to limit small business’ access to stop-loss by making the sale of the coverage to those firms illegal or limiting the sale of stop-loss, that has low attachment points, White said. The bill would ensure that stop-loss coverage cannot be limited by federal or state rules.