Lawmakers Consider Health Benefit Mandate Review Reforms

The General Assembly’s Insurance and Real Estate Committee is considering reforms to the health benefit mandate review process that will increase transparency and stakeholder input.

HB 6895 requires that the committee review all mandated health benefits that receive a public hearing and compile a list of mandates for the Insurance Department to conduct a cost-benefit analysis.

Following receipt of this report, the committee can hold an informational hearing where members of the public can pose questions about its findings.

Connecticut is in the top three states for state-mandated healthcare benefits, which drive up the cost of insurance for employers because with each new requirement, insurers must expand coverage.

Mandated benefits add more than $2,000 annually to the cost of health insurance premiums in Connecticut.

Managing Healthcare Costs

CBIA’s Grace Brangwynne expressed strong support for the bill during the committee’s Feb. 11 public hearing.

“If there’s any singular message the committee should be taking away from my testimony, it’s that health benefit mandates drive up the cost of premiums, which are then passed to employees,” she said.

“Benefit reviews allow lawmakers to consider the impact of health benefit mandates before they are implemented.”

HB 6895’s key elements include:

• Annual reviews: The Insurance Commissioner and the Commissioner of Health Strategy will be required to conduct annual reviews of mandated health benefits.
• Cost and quality evaluation: The reviews evaluate both the quality and cost impacts of these mandates, including their effects on small employers.
• Public hearing: The Insurance Committee may solicit public input based on the results of the cost-benefit analysis of each requested mandate.

The bill represents a significant step towards ensuring that health benefit mandates are thoroughly reviewed before adoption.

This will help protect employees and employers—particularly small businesses—from the added financial burden of unexpected healthcare cost increases.

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For more information, contact CBIA’s Grace Brangwynne (860.244.1163).