Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act – March 23, 2010

On Sunday, March 21, the US House passed the Senate version of health care reform, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and The Health Care and Affordable Education Reconciliation Act, a 153 page document of "fixes" to the Senate bill.

 

On Tuesday, March 23, President Obama signed PPACA into law while the Senate took up debate on the Reconciliation bill, which they hope to pass before an upcoming recess on March 29. Assuming the Reconciliation bill passes by a simple 51 vote majority and the President signs that Act, a landmark change in health care and health insurance is about to happen.

 

Many of the provisions of these bills do not go into effect for many years, potentially as far out as 2018. Some provisions will go into effect over the next 6 months. Like many other organizations, Bostonian Group has reviewed the current PPACA and Reconciliation bills to understand the potential effect on your organization, and we will be communicating frequently over the coming weeks, months and years to help guide you through the requirements of this legislation. We also need to wait while the IRS, DOL, CMS and other governing agencies interpret the law, provide guidance and establish procedures to implement the law. This will not happen overnight. We recommend patience for now as these agencies work through the logistics of implementation.

 

For our clients in Massachusetts, the good news is that you will recognize much of what we have been experiencing here over the last few years with Massachusetts Health Care reform in the new law. For our clients outside of Massachusetts, we have learned much about health care reform and how to navigate its complexities, so we believe that we can provide invaluable insight based on lessons learned.

 

To learn more about key provisions and what employers must do now, click here.  As always, if you have any further questions or concerns please feel free to contact your consultant.