Panelists To Businesses: Start Preparing For ACA
MATT VOLPINI
Patrick Farrell (from left), Peter J. Martin, Jean Yang and Jack Myers discuss the future of health care in Massachusetts as the ACA goes into effect.
Are businesses in for a bumpy ride on the road to health care reform? Or, will the provisions of the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA) be easier to implement than many anticipate?
Regardless, employers received a clear message this morning at the Central Massachusetts Health Care Forum, hosted by the Worcester Business Journal: Start preparing.
The keynote speaker, Glen Shor, the state’s secretary of administration and finance, called the ACA “a positive for Massachusetts,” largely because the state’s 6-year-old health care reform law preceded the federal mandate. But he cautioned, “Positive does not mean perfect.”
Shor, who headed the state’s Health Connector Authority before moving to his current role in January, told the more than 200 in attendance at Worcester’s Coral Seafood restaurant that the ACA breaks down barriers to health care, while allowing the commonwealth to pick up extra federal Medicaid reimbursement money for helping to cover low-income and uninsured patients.
“That’s a great benefit from being an early starter on the path to health (care) reform,” he said.
Yet, Shor noted, the ACA does plug gaps left by the state’s reform efforts, such as broadening eligibility for low-income households and providing savings on prescription drugs for senior citizens. He said the Patrick administration will work with the business sector “as closely as we can” to integrate and interpret the parts of the ACA that are challenging.
Following Shor’s 40-minute keynote, a panel discussion of health care experts addressed various aspects of health care reform, from tax credits to small-business eligibility to employee wellness. On the latter, Jean Yang, who succeeded Shor at the Health Connector, said the state needs to invest in what she called “small business wellness,” or incenting smaller employers to help keep their employees well, which improves their health as well as their productivity, a benefit for both employee and employer. One possible incentive, she said, is a 15-percent rebate for employers on health insurance premiums. The intent, she emphasized, “is not premium relief,” but the right thing for the long term for both the employee and the overall population.
Although the Obama administration has delayed by one year a key ACA provision in which employers with at least 50 full-time employees must provide insurance or be subject to a penalty, other panelists said it’s critical that business owners follow what’s happening with the law. Jack Myers, vice president and benefits consultant for Benefit Development Group, of Worcester, told business executives to look at what others are paying for insurance, especially within their own industries.
Myers also delivered some potentially good news on insurance premiums. He said early indicators show premium price increases for next year are in the neighborhood of 6 percent.
“I think that’s encouraging,” he said.
Myers also said businesses should also keep their company culture in mind when making health insurance selections. What types of benefits best fit a company culture and “how you want to treat your employers?”
Another panelist, attorney Peter Martin of Bowditch & Dewey, said Massachusetts has “a relatively easy path ahead of us” because it preceded the rest of the U.S. in health care reform.
The fourth panelist was Patrick Farrell, regulatory affairs director of Fallon Community Health Plan, which was the presenting sponsor for the event. He agreed the ACA provision delay saying, "We'll all need time to come to grips with that."
Read more
White House Calls Time Out On Key Health Reform Provision
Connector Embarks On Costly Obamacare Transition
Weighing In On ACA Delay, Repeal Of Fair Share Contribution In Mass.
AIM Argues HHS Has Authority To Grant ACA Waiver
Mass. Continues To Face Doctor Shortage
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments