The government has revised the CHIP Notice as of July 31, 2012. As you are likely preparing and updating your open enrollment materials, if you are required to send the CHIP notice, please be sure to use the attached revised notice.
The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 (“CHIPRA” or the “Act”), signed into law in 2009, extends the State Children’s Health Insurance Program established under the Social Security Act (“CHIP”).
CHIPRA allows states to subsidize premiums for employer-provided group health coverage for eligible children and families. Under the Act, states may elect to provide a premium assistance subsidy (the “Subsidy”) to low-income employees who want to change their single coverage to family coverage in order to cover a CHIP or Medicaid eligible dependent. Pursuant to the Act, a state may elect to offer the Subsidy for “qualified employer-sponsored coverage”.
Michigan currently does not offer such subsidy, but if you have any employees living in another State which does, you must provide the attached CHIPRA notice to those employees. [The attached notice sets forth those States which do offer the subsidies].
Under the Act, group health plans will have to notify each employee of potential Subsidy opportunities currently available in the state in which the employee resides. Where there is a state Subsidy in place, each employer that maintains a group health plan will be required to give notice to participants about the Subsidy. Under the Act, group health plans may distribute notices concurrently with the group health plan enrollment materials, open enrollment materials, or the SPD.
This is an ANNUAL notice which must be provided free of charge to employees living in affected States before the start of each plan year (i.e., for calendar year plans, prior to each January 1st).
If you would like further information regarding the above matters, health care reform, or employee benefits in general, please feel free to contact our office. You can reach attorney Elizabeth Latchana at elatc@fraserlawfirm.com or 517-377-0826.