Healthcare Freedom and Fairness Act
Sponsored By: Representative Van Duyne, Beth [R-TX-24]
Introduced
Summary
This bill would treat health marketplace pools as employers for the purpose of offering group health plans and group health insurance. It would allow those pools to offer plans that include prescription or nonprescription drugs, including over-the-counter drugs, as the sole benefit.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Who can join and enroll
If enacted, people connected to a qualifying health marketplace pool would be able to enroll in the pool's group health plan. You or your employer could sign you and your dependents up. Eligible people would include members of an entity that joins the pool, employees of those members, and employees of entities controlled by those members. The pool could set enrollment and reenrollment rules, but those rules must be the same for all members and not based on health status.
Pools can offer drug-only plans
If enacted, an entity that meets the bill's pool requirements would be treated as an "employer" only for offering a group health plan or group health insurance coverage. That would let qualifying pools (or their insurer partners) offer plans or products at pool-established rates. The pool's coverage could include prescription and over-the-counter drug coverage as the only benefit, or include drugs along with other benefits.
Less employer and fiduciary risk
If enacted, joining or helping run a qualifying health marketplace pool would not, by itself, make you an employer for other legal purposes. It would not create a joint employer relationship for other laws. Also, mere membership in a qualifying pool would not automatically make a member a fiduciary for the pool's plan or coverage.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Van Duyne, Beth [R-TX-24]
TX • R
Cosponsors
There are no cosponsors for this bill.
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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