How Many Mandates is Too Many?
October 4 , 2005
by Dylan Skriloff

Health Insurance mandates cost New York’s businesses and employees over $1,000 a year for a typical family health plan, more than 12% of the total premium cost.

New York requires close to 40 health insurance mandates in an employer’s health plan, one of the highest numbers in the country. This is one reason New Yorkers pay 26% more for health insurance than the national average and that the average annual increase in premiums has increased at two to three times the rate of inflation.

Donna Novak of NovaRest Consulting is a critic of the state’s handling of mandates. She says that in many instances the legislature is trying to shift costs to private insurers, in order to save money in the budget, or they are catering to a special interest lobby that wants mandatory coverage.

She also points out in a 2003 report that the constant increases in health insurance premiums cause more companies to drop coverage altogether, leaving more uninsured. Over 60% of the state’s 3+ million uninsured work in full time jobs.

In New York State, the first mandate was passed by the New York State Legislature in 1971 and over 100 new ones are proposed every year. Among the over 100 new mandates proposed in the Legislature this year are provisions for the required coverage of "philosopher practitioners," acupuncture treatment, hearing aids, adoption costs, infertility treatment, massage therapy, travel expenses and wigs.

In 1997 the Legislature authored a new mandate requiring all employers to provide coverage for chiropractic services. The mandate raised premiums a full 2.5% at which point some employers decided they’d had enough and formed the Employer Alliance for Affordable Health Care. That organization now represents 1,200 businesses with 90,000 employees.

The Alliance is pushing New York lawmakers to join 22 other states in creating a process to establish medical efficacy and costs of proposed mandates. They also hope to contain mandate costs to 10% of the total premium.

Novak’s report said that another problem with mandates is they create the impression that health insurance is not a commodity offered in the free market. In fact, most people can afford to purchase their own special needs (e.g. - chiropractic) healthcare. The report also says the increase in health insurance mandates encourages large companies to self-insure. In the end, small and medium sized businesses end up bearing the brunt of the increased mandates.

If you are interested in joining or learning more about the Employer’s Alliance visit their website at www.employeralliance.com.

PO Box 1412 Albany, NY 12201-1412
Telephone: (315) 363-9657
Fax: (315) 363-9659
CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE!
www.employeralliance.com

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