Waiting on the Supreme Court's contraceptive mandate decision

Jun 28 2014

The Fiscal Times examines the issues before the Supreme Court on a contraceptive mandate case. Other outlets look at how the health law marketplaces interact with private insurance sales and also at a decision by Sodexo to restore health benefits to thousands of college cafeteria workers after initially blaming the health law for dropping them.

The Fiscal Times: Obamacare Contraception Mandate Hangs On SCOTUS Ruling
Republicans have tried for years to carve away at the president's health care law, but on Monday, a ruling expected by the Supreme Court might do their work for them. In perhaps the most-closely watched case of the term, the Court will rule on the constitutionality of Obamacare's contraception mandate -- requiring companies to cover contraceptives for their employees as part of their health plans. Churches and strictly religious organizations are exempt from the law (Ehley, 6/26).

Modern Healthcare: Rivalry Surfaces Over Variety Of Insurance Marketplaces
The idea that it would be good to shop for your insurance plan is a popular one, so much so that a variety of options has emerged to cater to that need along with the marketplaces established under Obamacare. They include private exchanges providing employer-sponsored benefits, as well as Web brokers that allow individual consumers to shop for plans across all of the health plans in a particular market. The emerging landscape raises questions about how the public and private entities will cooperate and compete. They include private exchanges providing employer-sponsored benefits, as well as Web brokers that allow individual consumers to shop for plans across all of the health plans in a particular market. The emerging landscape raises questions about how the public and private entities will cooperate and compete (Tahir, 6/26).

Associated Press: Sodexo Cafeteria Workers To Regain Health Benefits
Many employees who already have health insurance worry they'll pay a price for President Barack Obama's overhaul. But for workers at one major company those fears appear to be easing. Food service giant Sodexo unexpectedly reversed course Thursday after bumping thousands of college cafeteria workers from its health plan earlier this year and casting blame on the health care law ... Economists say it may be getting harder for employers to cut benefits. "We are in an environment now with falling unemployment rates," said Paul Fronstin of the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (Alonso-Zaldivar, 6/27).

Kaiser Health News: A Reader Asks: Can New Employees Be Forced To Wait 90 Days For Coverage?
Kaiser Health News' consumer columnist Michelle Andrews says a 90-day delay is allowed by the health law but employees have other options to get through that time (Andrews, 6/27).