by The primary federal COVID-19 emergency orders relating to employer healthcare plans end on May 11, 2023. On March 29, 2023, the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of the Treasury issued guidance for employers on how the ending of emergency orders will affect healthcare plan compliance requirements.
Key issues addressed in the guidance include:
- Diagnostic Testing: Employer health plans may choose to require their usual healthcare management requirements for coverage of COVID-19 diagnostic testing, including employee cost-sharing and prior authorization. The guidance details what notice the employer would need to provide to employees if it makes changes.
- Vaccinations: Out-of-network coverage for COVID-19 vaccines may be cut, but employers will need to cover vaccines or other preventive services without cost-sharing in-network.
- COBRA: The FAQs detail how health plans can transition from the special COVID-19 driven exceptions to COBRA administrative deadlines to the regular processes and deadlines under COBRA.
The complete set of agency FAQs can be found at https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/Fact-Sheets-and-FAQs/Downloads/FAQs-Part-58.pdf.
