Coventry Health Plans – Federal Healthcare Reform Compliance

Coventry health plans, like all plans offered in the United States, are required to meet the new federal guidelines for healthcare reform. These reforms change benefits, exclusions, and limitations for all healthcare plans offered in the US with few exceptions. Such reforms include coverage for dependents until age 26 under certain criteria, changes in preventative care coverage, as well as changes to medical spending accounts like health savings and flexible spending accounts. Likewise, the new federal reforms have also created changes to Medicare including Advantage Plans and Part D Plans, as well as changes to other health insurance plans, terms, and coverage amounts.

Unlike many insurance companies, those participating in Coventry health plans have access to simple explanations of the changes to their plans. Rather than simply creating an additional page on their website, Coventry has produced downloadable PDF files that explain the changes to specific policies and healthcare plans. These informative fact sheets are categorized by healthcare plan type, then further categorized based on specific areas of health care. This makes finding the specific information consumers need easier and less time consuming. Insured customers can easily find the area of ​​most interest to them in terms of the federally-mandated changes and how those changes will impact their particular policy.

The new federal regulations regarding healthcare reform were passed into law in the Spring of 2010. September 2010 saw the first of these reforms beginning to take effect. Coventry health plans along with hundreds of other health insurance policies and plans must now conform to these new insurance industry standards which are intended to better protect consumers. For example, annual and lifetime benefit limitations will gradually come to an end. Additionally, preventative care takes on a more important role as federal regulations put an end to cost sharing. That means insurance companies must now pay for preventative healthcare without charging co-pays or in some cases, meeting deductible requirements.

One thing to note with the new federal healthcare reform laws, they do not mean instant changes to your Coventry health plans or any other health insurance policy currently in effect. Rather, the reforms apply to new policies taken out after the law was passed. Old policies and healthcare plans must meet these new regulatory requirements as they are renewed. Therefore, if you have a healthcare plan that was in place prior to September 2010 (or later, as more regulations begin to take effect) you may have to wait until your plan renews before you can enjoy the increased benefits.