teleharmonium
12-04-2008, 08:26 PM
My employer has a new policy which I find outrageous and I was wondering if it is entirely legal. Any informed opinions would be appreciated as to relevant laws.
As part of their 2009 benefits package, the company announced various changes including a generalized push toward "prevention", new rates, and a fundamental shift to being "self funded" rather than actual insurance, using a well known insurer as a partner for administrative purposes; basically this reduces the profit taking by the insurer but adds risk to the company in the event that claims exceed their expectations. I don't necessarily have a problem with that.
However, they also announced that they have created a "health risk appraisal" group within the company. I have materials which describe this group as being isolated from the rest of the company as far as private health information; supposedly they will have totally separate servers and personnel, etc. as a "firewall", and the purpose is some sort of vague "management of long term costs" in which they want to gather medical information about everyone covered in the plan and study it in order to "identify our unique risks" and "suggest treatment paths based on the data".
Also there are new requirements in order to be eligible for health care benefits. These are not a condition of employment, but they are a condition of the entire health care benefits program.
the first is that "employees who enroll in the (company name) health insurance as well as any covered spouse are required to complete the companys' health risk appraisal survey no later than (a date in January) or within the first month of employment.
the second is that those employees are required to sign an authorization form relating to the release of that data, and future health claims data to the company for the purpose of "predictive health modeling and care management".
While I don't actually have any health issues and am a relatively young and healthy person, I find these requirements completely outrageous, and I would love to know if I have a legal basis to challenge them as a requirement for eligibility for my benefits due to the multiple conflicts of interest and what amounts to a huge sanction for not agreeing to disclose private health information.
As part of their 2009 benefits package, the company announced various changes including a generalized push toward "prevention", new rates, and a fundamental shift to being "self funded" rather than actual insurance, using a well known insurer as a partner for administrative purposes; basically this reduces the profit taking by the insurer but adds risk to the company in the event that claims exceed their expectations. I don't necessarily have a problem with that.
However, they also announced that they have created a "health risk appraisal" group within the company. I have materials which describe this group as being isolated from the rest of the company as far as private health information; supposedly they will have totally separate servers and personnel, etc. as a "firewall", and the purpose is some sort of vague "management of long term costs" in which they want to gather medical information about everyone covered in the plan and study it in order to "identify our unique risks" and "suggest treatment paths based on the data".
Also there are new requirements in order to be eligible for health care benefits. These are not a condition of employment, but they are a condition of the entire health care benefits program.
the first is that "employees who enroll in the (company name) health insurance as well as any covered spouse are required to complete the companys' health risk appraisal survey no later than (a date in January) or within the first month of employment.
the second is that those employees are required to sign an authorization form relating to the release of that data, and future health claims data to the company for the purpose of "predictive health modeling and care management".
While I don't actually have any health issues and am a relatively young and healthy person, I find these requirements completely outrageous, and I would love to know if I have a legal basis to challenge them as a requirement for eligibility for my benefits due to the multiple conflicts of interest and what amounts to a huge sanction for not agreeing to disclose private health information.