HHS Accepts More Employers Into Program Subsidizing Retiree Health Benefits.

 

CQ HealthBeat (10/5, Reichard, subscription required) reports, "Almost 3,000 employers and unions have been accepted by the program created by the healthcare overhaul law to help pay the medical costs of early retirees," HHS "announced Monday." This represents an increase of 1,000 since "August, when the first round of acceptances were announced for applications to the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program." HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius stated in a press release, "I am incredibly pleased to see so many employers embrace this important new program to maintain coverage for people who often have a difficult time finding affordable coverage."

        The AP (10/5) notes, "More than 40 more Michigan employers and unions will get help providing health coverage to early retirees and their families. They're among nearly 1,000 additional employers and unions approved nationwide to participate in the $5 billion Affordable Care Act's Early Retiree Reinsurance Program." To date, "there are...142 participants from Michigan in the program."

        The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (10/5, Fabregas) reports that "Sebelius yesterday used a visit to Mine Safety Appliances Co. to shore up support for the much debated federal healthcare law. During a stop at the company's Cranberry headquarters, Sebelius touted a program that aims to help employers pay for health insurance coverage for early retirees." Sebelius said about retiree health coverage, "It's often difficult to get and impossible to afford." Notably, "about 29 percent of large firms provided workers with retiree health coverage in 2009, down from 66 percent in 1988." Modern Healthcare (10/5, Vesely, subscription required) also covers the story.