On January 30, the Biden administration announced their intent to end both the COVID-19 National Emergency and the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on May 11, 2023. Both of these emergency periods have been in effect since 2020. The end of these emergency periods will trigger an end to the free COVID-19 testing and vaccine/preventive care mandates on May 11, and 60 days later on July 10 will end certain temporary reliefs impacting employee health plan coverage and plan administration.
During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, employer-sponsored group health plans are required to cover COVID-19 testing expenses without any cost sharing. The requirement applies to diagnostic testing and includes provider costs, urgent care center costs and emergency room costs for such testing. In addition, certain preventive services and vaccines are covered with no cost sharing. With the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency on May 11, these services will no longer be required to be provided without cost.
During the COVID National Emergency, employer-sponsored health plan deadlines are suspended for the period starting March 1, 2020 until 60 days after the end of the National Emergency (termed the “Outbreak Period”). With the May 11, 2023, expiration date set for the National Emergency, this 60-day period will end July 10, 2023. Extended deadlines for employers to furnish required notices, disclosures and other documents to participants and beneficiaries pursuant to ERISA requirements (e.g., COBRA notices, Summary Plan Descriptions, Summary Annual Reports, etc.) will end. In addition, this will end the extended plan participant and beneficiary deadlines for requesting enrollment under HIPAA special enrollment rights, electing COBRA continuation and making COBRA premium payments and filing benefit claims, appealing claims or requesting an external claims review.
This article only provides a brief summary of the impact of the end of the COVID-19 National Emergency and COVID-19 Public Health Emergency. TASC will continue to monitor the ending of these emergency periods and will provide further details when these are officially declared to have ended, as well as the impact on employer-sponsored group health plans as addressed above.
