H-3639.1 _______________________________________________
HOUSE BILL 2861
_______________________________________________
State of Washington 53rd Legislature 1994 Regular Session
By Representatives Dyer, Horn, Van Luven, Casada, Long, Talcott, Brough, McMorris, L. Thomas, Wood, Brumsickle, Silver and Schoesler
Read first time 01/26/94. Referred to Committee on Health Care.
AN ACT Relating to employer participation in the health care services act; and amending RCW 43.72.220.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 43.72.220 and 1993 c 494 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The legislature recognizes that small businesses play an essential and increasingly important role in the state's economy. The legislature further recognizes that many of the state's small business owners provide health insurance to their employees through small group policies at a cost that directly affects their profitability. Other small business owners are prevented from providing health benefits to their employees by the lack of access to affordable health insurance coverage. The legislature intends that the provisions of chapter 492, Laws of 1993 make health insurance more available and affordable to small businesses in Washington state through strong cost control mechanisms and the option to purchase health benefits through the basic health plan, the Washington state group purchasing association, and health insurance purchasing cooperatives.
(2) On July 1, 1995, every employer employing more than five hundred qualified employees shall:
(a) Offer a choice of the uniform benefits package as provided by at least three available certified health plans, one of which shall be the lowest cost available package within their geographic region, and for employers who have established a registered employer health plan, one of which may be its own registered employer health plan, to all qualified employees. The employer shall be required to pay no less than fifty percent of the premium cost of the lowest cost available package within their geographic region. On July 1, 1996, all dependents of qualified employees of these firms shall be offered a choice of packages as provided in this section with the employer paying no less than fifty percent of the premium of the lowest cost package within their geographic region.
(b) For employees who work fewer than thirty hours during a week or one hundred twenty hours during a calendar month, three hundred sixty hours during a calendar quarter or one thousand four hundred forty hours during a calendar year, and their dependents, pay, for the period of time adopted by the employer under this subsection, the amount resulting from application of the following formula: The number of hours worked by the employee in a month is multiplied by the amount of a qualified employee's premium, and that amount is then divided by one hundred twenty.
(c) If an employee under (b) of this subsection is the dependent of a qualified employee, and is therefore covered as a dependent by the qualified employee's employer, then the employer of the employee under (b) of this subsection shall not be required to participate in the cost of the uniform benefits package for that employee.
(d) If an employee working on a seasonal basis is a qualified employee of another employer, and therefore has uniform benefits package coverage through that primary employer, then the seasonal employer of the employee shall not be required to participate in the cost of the uniform benefits package for that employee.
(3) By July 1, 1996, every employer employing more than one hundred qualified employees shall:
(a) Offer a choice of the uniform benefits package as provided by at least three available certified health plans, one of which shall be the lowest cost available package within their geographic region, to all qualified employees. The employer shall be required to pay no less than fifty percent of the premium cost of the lowest cost available package within their geographic region. On July 1, 1997, all dependents of qualified employees in these firms shall be offered a choice of packages as provided in this section with the employer paying no less than fifty percent of the premium of the lowest cost package within their geographic region.
(b) For employees who work fewer than thirty hours during a week or one hundred twenty hours during a calendar month, three hundred sixty hours during a calendar quarter or one thousand four hundred forty hours during a calendar year, and their dependents, pay, for the period of time adopted by the employer under this subsection, the amount resulting from application of the following formula: The number of hours worked by the employee in a month is multiplied by the amount of a qualified employee's premium, and that amount is then divided by one hundred twenty.
(c) If an employee under (b) of this subsection is the dependent of a qualified employee, and is therefore covered as a dependent by the qualified employee's employer, then the employer of the employee under (b) of this subsection shall not be required to participate in the cost of the uniform benefits package for that employee.
(d) If an employee working on a seasonal basis is a qualified employee of another employer, and therefore has uniform benefits package coverage through that primary employer, then the seasonal employer of the employee shall not be required to participate in the cost of the uniform benefits package for that employee.
(4) By July 1, 1997, every employer shall:
(a) Offer a choice of the uniform benefits package as provided by at least three available certified health plans, one of which shall be the lowest cost available package within their geographic region, to all qualified employees. The employer shall be required to pay no less than fifty percent of the premium cost of the lowest cost available package within their geographic region. On July 1, 1999, all dependents of qualified employees in all firms shall be offered a choice of packages as provided in this section with the employer paying no less than fifty percent of the premium of the lowest cost package within their geographic region.
(b) For employees who work fewer than thirty hours during a week or one hundred twenty hours during a calendar month, three hundred sixty hours during a calendar quarter or one thousand four hundred forty hours during a calendar year, and their dependents, pay, for the period of time adopted by the employer under this subsection, the amount resulting from application of the following formula: The number of hours worked by the employee in a month is multiplied by the amount of a qualified employee's premium, and that amount is then divided by one hundred twenty.
(c) If an employee under (b) of this subsection is the dependent of a qualified employee, and is therefore covered as a dependent by the qualified employee's employer, then the employer of the employee under (b) of this subsection shall not be required to participate in the cost of the uniform benefits package for that employee.
(d) If an employee working on a seasonal basis is a qualified employee of another employer, and therefore has uniform benefits package coverage through that primary employer, then the seasonal employer of the employee shall not be required to participate in the cost of the uniform benefits package for that employee.
(5) Employers with ten or fewer qualified employees are exempt from the requirements of this section.
(6) This employer participation requirement shall be waived if imposition of the requirement would constitute a violation of the freedom of religion provisions of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution or Article I, section 11, of the state Constitution. In such case the employer shall, pursuant to commission rules, set aside an amount equal to the applicable employer contribution level in a manner that would permit his or her employee to fully comply with the requirements of this chapter.
(((6))) (7)
In lieu of offering the uniform benefits package to employees and their
dependents through direct contracts with certified health plans, an employer
may combine the employer contribution with that of the employee's contribution
and enroll in the basic health plan as provided in chapter 70.47 RCW or a
health insurance purchasing cooperative established under RCW 43.72.080 and
48.43.160. Any subsidy that may be provided according to the provisions of
chapter 70.47 RCW shall not lessen the employer's obligation to pay a minimum
of fifty percent of the premium and the full amount of the direct subsidy shall
be for the benefit of the employee or the dependent.
(((7))) (8)
For purposes of determining the financial obligation of an employer who enrolls
employees or employees and their adult dependents in the basic health plan, the
premium shall be the per adult, per month, cost of coverage in the plan,
including administration.
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