Agencies to Allow Groups to Change Fully-Insured Carriers

Late this afternoon Federal agencies issued an amendment to the interim rule released during the summer that dealt with grandfathering status. In that proposed rule, regulators stated that changing fully-insured health insurance carriers would cause groups to lose their grandfathered status. Today's amendment to that rule reversed that provision to now allow groups to change their fully-insured carrier under certain circumstances and not lose their grandfathered status.

Groups may enter into a new policy, certificate or statement of insurance if the core elements of the new plan mirror those of the old plan. The same restrictions on certain plan changes would apply to groups who move carriers (i.e. the new plan may not reduce benefits covered by the former plan). Groups must also document aspects of the plan of the former carrier that can then be compared to those of the plan under the new carrier.