What does the official end of the national health emergency mean to employers?
The Biden Administration announced an official end to the COVID-19 national health emergency effective May 11, 2023. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that the public health emergency will end the same day. For most employers, the biggest impact will be on their health plan. With the end of the national/public health emergency, employers may want to rethink whether they will continue to offer Covid testing and related diagnostic services at zero cost to employees. The zero cost diagnostic services were mandated by the emergency. If health plans choose to implement cost sharing, co-pays, prior authorization or the like for the services, they will likely need to notify employees and perhaps amend plan documents. Insured plans should check with their insurers to decide how this will be handled. Self-funded plans, should work closely with their TPAs on this issue.