HHS has now issued more than 1,000 temporary waivers for specific insurers that delay implementation this year of coverage limits under the healthcare reform law, according to a report by The Hill.
The addition of 126 new waivers on Friday raised the total to 1,040. HHS said the total number covers 2.6 million people, less than 2 percent of all privately insured people.
The agency said the waivers avert disruption of the health insurance market by giving companies time to revamp coverage. But Republicans in Congress have said the waivers show the new law isn’t working and should be repealed.
Many of the waivers have gone to “mini-med” plans offering limited annual coverage below the reform law’s new annual coverage minimum of $750,000 for 2011. An HHS spokeswoman said a few dozen waivers were denied because insurers did not show the new limit would “significantly increase premiums or decrease access to benefits.”
Read The Hill report on healthcare reform.
Read more coverage on granting waivers from reform requirements:
– 30 Insurance Plans Receiving 1-Year Waivers From Reform Law
– Four States Exempted From Reform Law’s Coverage Minimum
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