Some insurers on fast track to cover adult dependents [Ventura County Star, Calif.]

May 31--When Jessyca Ramonette learned about the new federal health insurance regulation that allows parents as soon as this summer to cover their kids until the age of 26, she took the logical next step.

She called her mom.

"I left a message," said the part-time Ventura College student who was rolled off her parents' policy more than a year ago when she turned 19. Getting that coverage back would mean security and, more importantly, might ease the pain from the herniated disk in her lower back.

"I would definitely utilize services," she said. "Life would be a lot easier."

The new rule could push about 2.4 million young adults onto their parents' coverage, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Many of them were pushed off family policies when they turned 19 or finished college.

The new rule wedges open a door not just for students but also for other young adults with limited, if any, coverage options. That means twentysomethings who are married or live on their own and can't be claimed as dependents will qualify for coverage on their parent's plans.

The confusion comes in figuring out when people will be eligible.

The dependent coverage rule is one of the first phases of federal reform, becoming law on Sept. 23. Many insurance companies have announced they are on a fast track to cover college graduates or others who would hit age limits and become uninsured before September.

The new policy begins Tuesday for some insurance providers though Kaiser Permanente opened the door to people on individual policies in May.

The fast track won't help many of the people covered through their employers. Companies aren't required to implement the change until their current insurance year ends and the new one begins. That's Jan. 1 for many companies.

"None of the employers I've talked to have said they're going to adopt it early," said Steve Wojcik, vice president of public policy for the National Business Group on Health, which represents about 300 of the nation's largest firms.

Wojcik said companies worry about the cost and logistics of changing their plans and adjusting premiums in midstream. They also fear discrimination lawsuits that could stem from offering coverage to young adults about to lose their coverage but not to people the same age who are already uninsured.

At the Patagonia outdoor clothing and gear company in Ventura, employees will wait until January, said spokeswoman Jen Rapp. Adults who lose coverage before then have the option of coverage through the federally mandated COBRA program.

"We negotiated our contract through the first of the year and we're sticking to it," she said.

At the Baxter biotechnology company's sites in Thousand Oaks and Westlake Village, employees won't be able to extend their coverage until April because that's when the company's new plan year begins, said spokeswoman Deborah Spak. People who graduate or hit age limits are already covered until March 31 under the current plan.

Insurance company representatives say they're working with employers to make it easier to extend coverage this summer to people in danger of becoming uninsured. It will happen automatically and without increased premiums for companies that contract with Anthem Blue Cross unless the company chooses to opt out, said Kristin Binns, spokeswoman for Anthem's parent company, WellPoint.

Ventura County officials have been asked by carriers to extend policies to adult children who lose coverage in June or later, said Harold Pierce, the county's deputy executive officer of benefits. It's on the table, but county leaders want to make sure people who graduated in May and lost their coverage will also be covered.

"We're looking at it," Pierce said. "We just want to understand the limitations."

Adult children added to policies can't be charged more than people in similar circumstances who are already covered.

People with pre-existing conditions can't be barred from health plans. But insurance companies can refuse to cover illnesses or treatment connected to certain conditions for 12 months if the person has been uninsured for 63 days or more, said Karyn Schwartz, senior policy analyst for the Kaiser Family Foundation.

And while people can't be penalized with extra fees, premiums for everyone covered by group policies will probably rise slightly each of the next three years because of the new dependent coverage policy, according to a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimate. A policy that costs about $3,380 in annual premiums in 2011 will likely cost $3,690 in 2013.

The new rule is designed to help young adults who can't get care now. It will also mean parents won't worry quite as much about losing their home because of a heart-stopping hospital bill.

But it's not hard to find people who won't be helped. Earlier this month, Christine Paz stood outside the Ventura College gymnasium in her graduation cap and gown, hopefully headed for a bachelor's degree in music and psychology and maybe even a spot on "American Idol."

Ask about the dependent coverage plan, she explained she's uninsured and can't be folded into her parents' policy for one simple reason.

"They don't have health insurance."

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Copyright (c) 2010, Ventura County Star, Calif.

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