2023-01981: Coverage of Certain Preventive Services Under the Affordable Care Act

Summary

These proposed rules would amend regulations regarding coverage of certain preventive services under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which requires non-grandfathered group health plans and non-grandfathered group or individual health insurance coverage to cover certain contraceptive services without cost sharing. Current regulations include exemptions and optional accommodations for entities and individuals with religious or moral objections to coverage of contraceptive services. These rules propose rescinding the moral exemption rule. These proposed rules also would establish a new individual contraceptive arrangement that individuals enrolled in plans or coverage sponsored, arranged, or provided by objecting entities may use to obtain contraceptive services at no cost directly from a provider or facility that furnishes contraceptive services. Contraceptive services would be available through the proposed individual contraceptive arrangement without any involvement on the part of an objecting entity. Under these proposed rules, a provider or facility that furnishes contraceptive services in accordance with the individual contraceptive arrangement for eligible individuals would be able to be reimbursed for its costs by entering into an arrangement with an issuer on a Federally-facilitated Exchange or State Exchange on the Federal platform, which in turn may seek a user fee adjustment.

The agency’s own summary, as published.

What this changes

Amends 4 parts of the Code of Federal Regulations — the standing rules this notice rewrites.

• 26 CFR 54 Pension Excise Taxes
• 29 CFR 2590 Rules and Regulations for Group Health Plans
• 45 CFR 147 Health Insurance Reform Requirements for the Group and Individual Health Insurance Markets
• 45 CFR 156 Health Insurance Issuer Standards Under the Affordable Care Act, Including Standards Related to Exchanges