More Lawmakers Question Health-Care Waivers
By Angus Loten
March 24, 2011

Lawmakers on the House Small Business Committee want to know if smaller firms were among more than 1,000 entities granted health-care reform waivers last year by the Department of Health and Human Services.

The one-year waivers provide exemptions from strict insurance compliance standards set out in the Affordable Care Act for employers who can’t meet the annual coverage floor of $750,000. They were put in place as a stopgap measure until 2014, when new state-run health insurance exchanges are expected to bring down costs.

In a letter this week to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, committee chair Sam Graves (R., Mo.) said he wanted to “ensure that all entities, particularly small businesses, have been treated fairly and equitably in the waiver process.”

The letter went on to ask 13 questions about the exemption process, including the number of small-business owners requesting waivers and the reasons for approving or denying their requests. The committee also wanted to know what efforts were being made to alert smaller firms of the opportunity to apply for an exemption.

In recent months, both the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform have also questioned the exemption process, saying it lacks transparency.

Graves requested a response within two weeks.