By the time this article goes to print, it is likely that COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration will be underway in the United States. In late October, the Trump Administration released an interim final regulation (IFR) that, among other things, provided rules from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Department of Labor (DOL), and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that apply directly to employer health plans and govern coverage of the COVID-19 vaccine under employer health plans. While employers can reasonably expect that group health plan insurers and third-party administrators will bear the lion’s share of getting employer health plans ready to cover the vaccine, employers should still be aware of the key provisions of the IFR that are relevant to employer health plan sponsors. Those looking for extra credit can find the full text of the IFR here.
The special rules described above will expire when the federal government declares an end to the COVID-19 public health emergency. This does not mean that employer health plans will no longer have to cover the COVID-19 vaccine at the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency (the “Emergency”); rather, it means the special exception to the routine use rule, 15-day accelerated coverage time frame, and the requirement to cover vaccines administered by an out-of-network provider will expire. While we wouldn’t dare to predict when the Emergency will end, considering its wide-spread significance in the employer plan arena (see our article here), we are confident that the end of that period and the resulting impact to employer plans will be big news.
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