OK, this is kind of beating a dead horse since the Alexander-Collins bill is dead anyway, but just for completeness sake:
Last week I pointed out that aside from everything else that's problematic about the abortion restriction language included in the A-C bill, it would also have run into a big legal problem because three states (California, New York and Oregon) legally mandate that major medical healthcare policys cover abortion, in direct opposition to the A-C provision which would deny federal subsidies, CSR assistance or reinsurance funds to...any healthcare policy which covers abortion.
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Gov. Jay Inslee has signed a measure that requires Washington insurers offering maternity care to also cover elective abortions and contraception.
The Bipartisan Health Care Stabilization Act of 2018 (BHCSA) would make several changes to health care laws. It would:
Change the state innovation waiver process established by the Affordable Care Act (ACA),
Appropriate a total of $30.5 billion for reinsurance programs or invisible high-risk pools in the nongroup insurance market,
Appropriate funds for the direct payment for cost-sharing reductions (CSRs) through 2021,
Allow any enrollee in the nongroup market to purchase a catastrophic plan, and
Require some existing funding for operations in the health insurance marketplaces to be used specifically for outreach and enrollment activities in 2019 and 2020.
