The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act mandated that health plans provide a minimal level of coverage. Some Tennessee health insurance plans were granted a temporary waiver because they didn’t live up to health care reform. The waiver was just for one year, though.
Tennessee health insurance plans will not be required to incorporate the same level of benefits that will be mandated in all but three other states. However, these waivers are only good for one year. All states will have to work toward compliance and more of the health care reform law will be in full force by 2014.
Along with Florida, New Jersey and Ohio, Tennessee health insurance will not have to offer a minimum of $750,000 for care from doctors and hospitals or prescription drugs. That means your health plan could still have much lower annual limits on benefits and coverage.
How Many TN Health Insurance Plans Are Exempt?
The director of the federal Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight said the waiver applied to more than 900 health insurance plans held by 2.4 million people.
How did this happen? Complying with the new health care reform law would have resulted in increased premiums or less access to coverage for some Tennessee residents. A temporary waiver was issued to protect their access to current coverage levels.Unfortunately, limited health care benefit plans are the only alternative offered to some workers in Tennessee and without this option employees could have been left with no coverage at all. Hundreds of thousands could have seen their benefits reduced or could have lost coverage entirely.
What’s The Future For Health Insurance In Tennessee?
While plans with limited benefits are still seen as insufficient, the waivers are part of the concessions to move to more comprehensive modifications that are scheduled for 2014. At that time, the small number of TN health insurance plans that limit yearly benefits will no longer be allowed.
In 2014, Tennessee, like all states, will be required to provide an “insurance exchange” that’s offered to individuals and businesses that have up to 100 employees working more than 30 hours a week. Such state exchanges are expected to help 24 million people with health insurance coverage. These exchanges will offer five various benefit levels to increase selection.
Will TN Health Insurance Options Be More Affordable In 2014?
Employers will be expected to offer “free choice vouchers” to certain employees. If employees are required to contribute from 8 to 9.8 percent of their taxable annual income for minimum coverage, they will be eligible for a voucher.
In addition, in households where the income is below 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level, vouchers will help fund minimum Tennessee health insurance coverage. Employees who do not join an employer-sponsored health plan will also have access to these vouchers.
Vouchers are not the only help available, though. The Premium Assistance Tax Credit can help those in households where the income is from 100 percent to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level pay for health plans offered through Tennessee’s exchange.
Tennessee has already started preparing for a Tennessee health insurance exchange and has obtained federal funding for this.