Hospitality Industry Health Insurance: Law Firms Advise Hotel Ownership And Management To Prepare For Implementation Of Health Care Reform With "Wellness Programs" And State-Run "Insurance Exchanges" On The Way

Given the legal challenges to the proposed reform of the United States health care industry, there might be a temptation on the part of hoteliers to take a laid-back attitude toward preparing for the changes. That line of thinking, however, would be a mistake, said Scott Sinder, a partner in the Steptoe & Johnson law firm government affairs and public policy practice.

• One of the biggest issues hotel companies will have to wrestle with will be whether to retain grandfather status, which refers to plans in place prior to 23 March 2010
• Grandfathered plans, for example, can allow for changes to the network of providers but cannot impose new or decreased annual spending limits
• The potential introduction of a wellness provision that provides funding for employers to establish wellness programs…will be the biggest key to keeping health-care costs down
• The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that just 38% of the employees in the hospitality sector had access to health care as of March 2010 compared with 71% across all industries
• Every state will eventually have an Insurance Exchange as most state lawsuits against health care reform will be settled before Presidential Election

For more:  http://www.hotelnewsnow.com/Articles.aspx/5314/Hoteliers-should-assume-health-care-changes