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| Giving your clients greater control over benefit decisions Guardian’s Approach to Dental & Vision Dependent Age Extension As previously communicated in our Legislative Update, and recently confirmed by the Department of Health and Human Services, dental and vision coverages are exempt from the near-term provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), including the requirement to offer coverage to dependents up to age 26. However, the extension of dependent medical coverage to age 26, as well as its impact on non-medical coverages, is generating a lot of discussion in the marketplace. Covering more dependents for an extended period of time will ultimately increase the claims paid under the plan, and that added claims expense will eventually be passed on to the planholder, whether the plan is fully insured or self-funded. Many employers have expressed concern over these increased costs. In fact, three recent surveys from Mercer, Hewitt Associates and the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans found that at least two-thirds of employers will delay extending the age limit on their medical plans as long as possible (ie. the first renewal after 9/23/10). Click here to see how Guardian is addressing this concern.
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