Skip to main content
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Digital Health
    • Transformation
    • ESG
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Blogs
    • AI
    • Deals
    • Layoff Tracker
    • HIMSS 2023
  • Opinion
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - AI and Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Sponsored Video Series - Checking In with Dan Peres
  • Data & Insights
    • Data & Insights Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • Newsletters
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Government
July 17, 2014 12:00 AM

Firms that cut birth-control coverage must notify workers, White House says

Joe Carlson
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    If closely held companies want to nix their employees' insurance coverage of contraceptives, they can't do so in secret.

    The U.S. Labor Department announced Thursday that in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores (PDF), employers must formally notify workers if they remove birth-control methods from their lists of covered prescriptions or procedures. The change comes as Congress appears deadlocked on a bill to restore no-cost insurance coverage in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

    “We support Congressional efforts to address this issue,” a senior Obama administration official said. “In the meantime, we are making clear that if a corporation like Hobby Lobby drops coverage of contraceptive services from its health plan, it must do so in the light of day by letting its workers and their families know.”

    Related Content

    Hobby Lobby ruling may impact employer coverage

    Democrats scramble in wake of Hobby Lobby decision

    The Labor Department rule says companies have up to 60 days to tell employees after making such a change.

    The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 on June 30 that family-run companies and other “closely held” corporations can exercise religious beliefs. That meant the Affordable Care Act cannot force those companies to violate those beliefs by compelling the health plans they sponsor to provide all forms of Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptives with no out-of-pocket costs for members.

    The court's decision was cheered by some observers as a victory for religious freedom, but it left many unanswered questions, including what a closely held company is and whether cuts to birth-control services would have to be announced to employees.

    “You don't want anyone going to fill a prescription and then finding out at the pharmacy counter that this is no longer covered under the plan,” said Amy Gordon, a partner in benefits law at McDermott Will and Emery in Chicago.

    Gordon said she has already been approached by companies that decided they fit the definition of a “closely held” company and want to cancel coverage for some or all of the 20 forms of birth control approved for use by the FDA. The Labor Department posting confirmed her suspicion that such changes would be considered “material reductions in covered services,” which must be disclosed.

    The Hobby Lobby case targeted only four forms of birth control, but lawsuits challenging requirements to cover all forms of birth control are still pending in court. A separate spate of lawsuits from not-for-profit organizations is challenging the adequacy of a federal accommodation to the policy for religious objections, which allows an outside entity to provide contraceptive coverage.

    Meanwhile, at least 28 states have laws on the books that require health plans to cover the full range of contraceptive drugs and devices if they offer prescription drugs in their plans, according to an analysis by the Guttmacher Institute (PDF). Those laws appear to remain in place, attorneys say, because the Hobby Lobby decision applied only to the federal regulation.

    But it's not clear that companies with religious objections will follow them. On Monday, Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal wrote a letter to Hobby Lobby's owners (PDF) requesting that the company comply with his state's law requiring coverage of contraceptives.

    “Given our history of respect for individual rights and Connecticut's strong and clear public policy protecting access to all legally approved contraceptives as well as pending congressional legislation, I urge you to ensure that any health insurance offered by Hobby Lobby to Connecticut employees comply with our state mandate,” Blumenthal wrote.

    Company officials have not responded publicly to the letter.

    New York is another state that requires insurance coverage of contraceptives. But that didn't stop state officials there from unveiling a new bill on Thursday called the Reproductive Rights Disclosure Act, which would require employers to provide 90 days' prior notice before canceling birth-control coverage.

    Asked why state officials would pass a law regulating something that is illegal in the state, an official with the state attorney general's office said the existing law requiring coverage may eventually be challenged in court. If the coverage requirement is struck down, he said, the new law's requirement for prior notice would be important to have in place.

    Follow Joe Carlson on Twitter: @_JoeCarlson

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    congress prescription drugs
    PBMs, Big Pharma face off in House hearing
    Biden COVID copy_i_i.jpg
    Biden administration asks employers to help more workers who lose Medicaid
    Most Popular
    1
    CMS tries luring providers to revamped Medicare ACOs
    2
    Oregon joins other states in setting ratios for nurse staffing
    3
    Blue Shield CA taps Amazon, Mark Cuban, CVS for new PBM model
    4
    A health innovation hub grows in Lake Nona Medical City
    5
    Hospital-at-home providers push for Medicaid coverage
    Sponsored Content
    Modern Healthcare Alert: Sign up for this breaking news email to be kept in the loop as urgent healthcare business news unfolds.
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Help Center
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Digital Health
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • ESG
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Blogs
      • AI
      • Deals
      • Layoff Tracker
      • HIMSS 2023
    • Opinion
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - AI and Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
      • Sponsored Video Series - Checking In with Dan Peres
    • Data & Insights
      • Data & Insights Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • Newsletters
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing