Thanksgiving Feast of Benefits Regulations Issued

On Tuesday, November 20, 2012 over 300 pages of proposed regulations were issued on the following key benefits topics: (1)  the definitions of “essential health benefits” and “actuarial value” applied to insurance products offered on the health exchanges; (2) nondiscriminatory incentives for wellness programs; and (3) a bundle of ACA insurance market reforms including guaranteed availability, restrictions on insurance premium rating differences, risk pools and catastrophic plans.

I will be reading and digesting these new regulations in the coming days and will have updates for you soon after, so stay tuned.

It is likely that the current guidance has been ready to go for some time but was held back to avoid any potential controversy prior to the November 6 presidential election. However, employers and advisers should ready themselves for a steady stream of ACA regulations and other guidance to be issued through the end of the year and throughout 2013.