Final HIPAA Portability Rules Require Agents' Attention
Your clients may feel like they had enough of HIPAA compliance. Perhaps they have their
HIPAA Portability responsibilities covered, put their HIPAA Privacy program into place
and thought they would get a breather until they had to deal with HIPAA Security deadlines
in 2005 or 2006.
But that lull in HIPAA action just wasn't meant to be. On December 30, 2004, three federal
agencies, the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Internal Revenue Service
and the Employee Benefits Security Administration, jointly posted final rules and proposed
regulations that clarify existing portability rules and add new provisions.
The 81 pages of final regulations and 26 pages of proposed regulations contain a lot of important
information--from changed and additional definitions to clarifications. Two of the most significant
issues plan administrators must be aware of are checking for pre-existing condition exclusions or
limitations under their group health plan and then including them in their plan documents and summary
plan description (SPD) so there is no contradiction. The Certificate of Group Health Plan Coverage
(Model Certificate) has additional required information. Employers should no longer use the previous
Department of Labor Model Certificate. The regulations include a sample certificate that could be used
which illustrates the additional required information.
The effective date for the rules is February 28, 2005. They become applicable for plan years beginning
on or after July 1, 2005.
A high level overview on points of interest were presented in the February 2005 issue of the LR, which
is now available online.
In addition, Infinisource will be holding two webinars on the new regulations. Agents are encouraged to
attend so they are prepared to help clients deal with changes in the regulations.
Dates: Thursday, March 3, 2005 AND Thursday, March 10, 2005
Time: 1:30 p.m. (ET)
Location: Anywhere you have Internet access
Cost: $99 per attendee
Subject Matter Expert: Ashley Gillihan, a partner in the Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
Group of the national law firm Alston & Bird, LLP
Why choose an Infinisource Webinar?
Because nearly 20 years of experience in educating employers and agents on benefits administration and compliance
means we bring the information you need in a format that promotes learning and results. Infinisource has been, and
will always be, on top of the latest trends and regulations as they develop and change in the health care industry.
About Alston & Bird
Alston & Bird is a large nationally recognized law firm with offices in Atlanta, New York, Washington, D.C., Raleigh
and Charlotte. Among the nearly 700 lawyers nationwide, 55 of the firm's lawyers are listed in The Best Lawyers in America.
Ashley Gillihan is a member of the firm's Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Group. Mr. Gillihan's practice focuses
exclusively on health and welfare benefit plan matters. He advises clients on various issues including but not limited to,
ERISA matters such as fiduciary duty, reporting and disclosure, COBRA matters, tax qualification matters related to fringe
benefit programs and VEBAs, benefit matters arising under the ADA and ADEA, and HIPAA portable and privacy issues.
Mr. Gillihan lectures frequently and has published a number of articles on health and welfare benefit plan compliance topics.
He is also on the Advisory Board of Editors of Benefits Compensation Law Alert.
Mr. Gillihan is a member of the state bars of Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama. He is a 1996 graduate of Samford University's
Cumberland School of Law.
To register or learn more about the HIPAA Portability webinar, please call 800-300-3838 or visit our seminar web page.
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