While the United States awaits the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson, which may overturn Roe v. Wade and eliminate the federal standard for abortion access, some states are considering setting their own standards that would ban or protect the medical procedure. This state-by-state rulemaking will cause some difficulty for employer plans.
Some employers are concerned that their employees may not be able to access abortion services where they live; because of this, employers have taken action to support abortion access for their workers or dependents who live in states that ban these services. In addition to the cost of abortion care, individuals may be faced with travel expenses, which could present a sizeable financial barrier, particularly for lower-wage workers. Accordingly, employers are adding travel costs for medical services if such services are legally prohibited in the jurisdiction where the individual resides. Note this could also cover transgender surgeries or any other services a state may ban in the future.
Apple, Citigroup, Mastercard, Starbucks and Microsoft are among the growing number of large companies that have publicly announced coverage of travel costs for abortions.
Most employers who offer this benefit will do so through their existing employee medical plan. Including this benefit as part of the medical plan might help mitigate worker privacy concerns since health plans are subject to the Health Insurance Portability and...
KENINGAU: A pensioner was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment and fined RM73,600 after being found guilty of submitting a false claim related to the supply of food for media personnel worth RM14,7...