Senate Committee Approves Health Plans for Small Businesses

On March 15, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved, 11-9, a bill (S. 1955) aimed at making health care more affordable for small businesses. The committee began its mark-up on March 8 (see The Source, 3/10/06). The House approved a similar bill (H.R. 525) on July 25 (see The Source, 7/29/05).

During consideration of the bill, the committee rejected the following amendments:

• an amendment by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) that would have required Small Business Health Plans (SBHPs) to provide coverage for mammography services, as well as for minimum hospital stays and secondary consultations for women who undergo mastectomies and lymph node dissections for breast cancer treatment, 10-10;
• an amendment by Sen. Murray that would have prohibited the preemption of state laws relating to coverage for victims of domestic violence, 10-10;
• an amendment by Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-CT) that would have prohibited the preemption of state laws relating to coverage of newborns and children’s health, including well-baby and immunization mandates, 10-10;
• an amendment by Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) that would have required SBHPs to offer individuals the option of receiving a prescription drug benefit through Medicare, 9-11;
• an amendment by Sen. Kennedy that would have allowed states to opt out of the SBHP program, 9-11;
• an amendment by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) that would have clarified that any state or local law not specifically preempted in the underlying bill would not be construed to be preempted, 9-11;
• an amendment by Sen. Reed that would have created a benefit review panel to determine which core benefits SBHPs should offer, 9-11;
• an amendment by Sen. Dodd that would have prohibited the preemption of state laws relating to the coverage of care and treatment for autism, 10-10;
• an amendment by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) that would have required the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study workplace wellness programs and determine which programs have the greatest impact on sustaining behavioral change in employees, 10-10;
• an amendment by Sen. Harkin that would have required SBHPs to provide coverage for obesity screenings and intensive behavioral interventions, 9-11;
• an amendment by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) that would have required insurance companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans to create a program to subsidize health insurance for small businesses and the uninsured, 9-11; and
• an amendment by Sen. Clinton that would have prohibited the preemption of state laws relating to coverage of women’s health services, including bone density screening, cervical cancer screening, mammography, maternity care, and direct access to gynecologic care, 10-10.