Health Care Reform

On Friday, the high court ruled that consumers will have full access to the abortion pill mifepristone as a lawsuit works its way through the lower federal courts.

With health care spending expected to increase 10% in the next three years, the case for reference-based pricing is growing, while employers with at least 100 employees should also be looking at self-funding.

For benefits professionals, administering employer sponsored health plans and providing employee participants with access to affordable, quality health care is one of the greatest economic challenges of today — and the foreseeable future.

The final rule requires that issuers on state and federal ACA marketplaces offer standardized qualified health plans at every tier level and that agents and brokers document consumers' consent information.

Taking more of a holistic wellness approach – giving employees access to core health, behavior health, voluntary and even financial services – is key to addressing mental wellness, as well as linking them to needed resources.

The rule would require prior authorization decisions within 72 hours for expedited, urgent requests and seven calendar days for standard, non-urgent requests – and denials would be required to include a specific reason.