Sens. Franken, Kirk Introduce New Bipartisan Bill to Keep Costs Down for Employers & Workers

Senators Introduce Bill to Help Make “Reinsurance” Program More Fair

U.S. Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) are proposing a bipartisan plan to provide relief to employers and workers and keep costs down for businesses throughout the country. 

The health reform law created a temporary “reinsurance” program to steady the cost of health care premiums by requiring that insurance companies pool together funds to cover people with very high medical bills. Unfortunately, right now businesses that are self-insured, and multi-employer health plans, are also required to pay the reinsurance fee for each person they cover, regardless of whether or not they will benefit from the program.  

In response to that problem, the two lawmakers have introduced a new piece of legislation, the Health Care Fairness and Stability Act of 2014, to give employers and other health plan sponsors more flexibility and time to comply with the program. Their bill would delay by three years the collection of reinsurance payments from businesses and health plan sponsors, and in addition, it would make the program more efficient and therefore work to reduce the total cost of the program.

“My number one concern is to make sure the Affordable Care Act works for the people of Minnesota. We need to keep moving forward and fix the things that aren’t working,” said Sen. Franken. “Businesses and workers all over Minnesota are concerned about this. Our bipartisan bill would provide relief to employers and workers, and it helps keep costs down for businesses across the country.”

"This fee amounts to an additional tax in the Affordable Care Act that unfairly burdens employers without any health benefit to hard–working Americans," said Sen. Kirk. "Illinois businesses cannot afford another burdensome regulation and cost associated with the Affordable Care Act – and this bipartisan legislation will ensure that a commonsense solution is found." 

You can read more about the Health Care Fairness and Stability Act here. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) is also a cosponsor of the bill.