FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact: (202) 225-3943
September 11, 1997
No. HL-15
Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA), Chairman, Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing on implementation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, (Public Law 104-191). The hearing will take place on Thursday, September 25, 1997, in 1310 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 11:00 a.m.
In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
BACKGROUND:
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) contains several provisions designed to make health coverage more accessible, affordable, and portable. The key tax provisions of HIPAA, including medical savings accounts for small businesses and the self-employed, and increased health insurance deductions for the self-employed and deductions for the cost of long-term care coverage, became effective on January 1, 1997.
In July of this year, additional reforms became effective. Among other things, these provisions: (1) limit the use of preexisting condition exclusions; (2) guarantee access to health insurance for small employers; (3) guarantee renewability of health insurance coverage for groups and individuals; (4) prohibit health plans from discriminating against people based on their health status; (5) effectively end job lock by making health coverage portable; (6) improve COBRA continuation coverage for disabled individuals and newborns; and (7) help people who lose their job, or leave their job to start their own businesses, obtain health coverage in the individual insurance market.
Three Federal agencies-- the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor, and the Department of the Treasury-- are charged with overseeing the implementation and enforcement of HIPAA. While the States are given responsibility to enforce HIPAA's small group and individual market insurance reforms, the legislation provides them with considerable flexibility in meeting these requirements.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Thomas stated: "After years of wrangling, Congress finally delivered common-sense, market-based health insurance reform to the American people. As the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act should be fully phased-in by the end of this year, this is an excellent opportunity to examine how the law is working, how it is being implemented, and whether any modifications should be made."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The hearing will focus on implementation of the access, portability, preexisting condition, and long-term care provisions of HIPAA. The Subcommittee will examine the response of the States and the private market to HIPAA, and performance of the three Federal agencies charged with drafting regulations and overseeing HIPAA.
DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:
Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit at least six (6) single-space legal-size copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in ASCII DOS Text or WordPerfect 5.1 format only, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, October 9, 1997, to A.L. Singleton, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Subcommittee on Health office, room 1136 Longworth House Office Building, at least one hour before the hearing begins.
FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:
Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be typed in single space on legal-size paper and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. At the same time written statements are submitted to the Committee, witnesses are now requested to submit their statements on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in ASCII DOS Text or WordPerfect 5.1 format. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.
2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.
4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, full address, a telephone number where the witness or the designated representative may be reached and a topical outline or summary of the comments and recommendations in the full statement. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.
The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.
The
Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with
disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please
call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event
(four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to
special accommodation needs in general (including availability of
Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the
Committee as noted above.