Health Plans Must Cover COVID-19 Testing At No Charge |
On March 18, 2020,
the U.S. Congress passed its second coronavirus relief measure – the Families First Coronavirus
Response Act (Act).
President Trump is expected to sign the bill into law. The Act requires
group health plans and health insurance issuers to cover COVID-19 testing
without imposing any cost sharing (such as deductibles, copayments or
coinsurance) or prior authorization or other medical management requirements.
This coverage mandate applies to the following health plans and issuers,
regardless of grandfathered status under the Affordable Care Act (ACA): ·
All fully insured
group health plans ·
All self-insured
group health plans ·
Health insurance
issuers offering group or individual coverage This coverage mandate
does NOT require health plans and issuers to cover COVID-19 treatment at no
charge. Exact coverage details for COVID-19 treatment, including any
cost-sharing amounts, will vary by plan. |
Members Encouraged to Pay Attention to DOL Guidelines |
Because guidelines
continue to change, we encourage you to pay attention to the Department of
Labor for your state. Below is a letter that went out recently from The
Payroll Gal for the state of Georgia. The Georgia
Department of Labor (GDOL) has adopted an emergency Rule 300-2-4-0.5 Partial Claims, effective March 16,
2020. The rule mandates all Georgia employers to file partial claims online
on behalf of their employees for any week during which an employee
(full-time/part-time) works less than full-time due to a partial or total
company shutdown caused by the COVID-19 public health emergency. Any employer
found to be in violation of this rule will be required to reimburse GDOL for
the full amount of unemployment insurance benefits paid to the employee.
Download the How Employers File Partial
Claims Desk-Aid found
on the GDOL Alert Page and follow the step-by-step instructions. Filing partial
claims results in your employees receiving unemployment insurance (UI)
benefit payments faster, usually within 48 hours for claims filed
electronically. Employees for whom you file a partial claim are NOT required
to report to a Georgia Department of Labor career center, register for
employment services, or look for other work. Please continue to
monitor our website at gdol.ga.gov for any updates to these guidelines. If you have
questions surrounding this mandate or others that require an HR expert,
TSG-HR Help Desk has opened their 800-hotline to all businesses through
April 3, 2020 for FREE. Please call 800-961-3053, option 1. Open
8-5 EST. This hotline has SHRM certified generalists taking calls, so
you will be in good hands. |