Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
For First Time, IRS Will Crack Down On Employers Not Offering Insurance To Workers
As Republicans and the Trump administration continue trying to chip away at the Affordable Care Act, the Internal Revenue Service has begun, for the first time, to enforce one of the law鈥檚 most polarizing provisions: the employer mandate. Thousands of businesses 鈥 many of them small or midsize 鈥 will soon receive a letter saying that they owe the government money because they failed to offer their workers qualifying health insurance. (Cowley, 11/16)
In other news on employers and health care聽鈥
A relatively small number of companies offer generous benefits for infertility treatment to employees, while most have minimal or no coverage, a new report found. It鈥檚 a case of 鈥渉aves and have-nots,鈥 said Jake Anderson, a founder of FertilityIQ, the start-up that wrote the report. (Carrns, 11/15)
Kaiser Health News: For Millions of Insured Americans, State Health Laws Don鈥檛 Apply
Let鈥檚 say you have health insurance through your employer and live in one of 21 states with laws protecting consumers against surprise medical bills from out-of-network providers. Should one of those unwanted bills land in your mailbox, you can turn to your state law and regulators for help, right? Not necessarily. (Bazar, 11/16)