George Breen, Chair of the firm's National Health Care and Life Sciences Practice Steering Committee, in the Washington, DC office, was quoted in an article titled "Supreme Court to Hear Arguments Over Contraception Mandate."
Following is an excerpt:
The Supreme Court's decision in late November to hear arguments in two cases challenging the federal government's contraceptive mandate should provide clarity as health insurers work to comply with the Affordable Care Act (ACA), according to a lawyer who advises managed care organizations.
George B. Breen, a partner in the Washington, D.C., law firm of Epstein Becker Green, says conflicting decisions in more than 80 pending lawsuits challenging the mandate's constitutionality have rendered a Supreme Court decision imperative. ACA rules require health plans to offer members coverage for FDA-approved contraceptives with no cost-sharing. ?...
A high-court decision either for or against the ACA mandate will impact claims adjudication, financial management, customer service, medical policy and more, Breen says.
"There are a number of potential repercussions that come into play in the event there is a decision made that it's unconstitutional or whether there's provision that there are certain types of contraceptive services somehow permitted to not be subject to the requirement. It creates further confusion in the industry at a number of levels," he says. ?...
"The law, as it stands now, says this is an essential health benefit that cannot have any cost-sharing on the part of the member," Breen says. "How do costs get accounted for if you now have a change in the law?"
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