High-Risk Pool Fairness Act

High-Risk Pool Fairness Act - Amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to allow otherwise qualified individuals to enroll in a state's high risk health insurance pool if such an individual's maximum length of COBRA coverage (health insurance continuation benefits) has expired in the six months before applying for coverage in such pool or will expire within 30 days of applying for coverage in such pool. (Currently, only individuals without creditable coverage for six months are eligible for such pools.)

[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 5664 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5664

 To amend title I of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to 
permit certain individuals losing their COBRA continuation coverage to 
have access to the high-risk health insurance pool program established 
                           under such title.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 1, 2010

  Mr. Ellsworth (for himself and Mr. Doyle) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title I of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to 
permit certain individuals losing their COBRA continuation coverage to 
have access to the high-risk health insurance pool program established 
                           under such title.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``High-Risk Pool Fairness Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPANDING ACCESS TO HIGH-RISK HEALTH INSURANCE POOL PROGRAM TO 
              CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS LOSING THEIR COBRA CONTINUATION 
              COVERAGE.

    Section 1101(d)(2) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care 
Act (Public Law 111-148) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(2) has'' and inserting ``(2)(A) has'';
            (2) by striking at the end of subparagraph (A), as 
        designated by paragraph (1) of this section, ``and'' and 
        inserting ``or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
            ``(B) is a qualified beneficiary for purposes of COBRA 
        continuation coverage (as defined in subparagraph (B) of 
        section 3001(a)(10)(B) of division B of the American Recovery 
        and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)) who has 
        elected such coverage and with respect to whom the date of the 
        expiration of the maximum period of such coverage required 
        under the applicable COBRA continuation coverage provision (as 
        defined in subparagraph (C) of such section)--
                    ``(i) occurred during the 6-month period prior to 
                the date on which such individual is applying for 
                coverage through the high risk pool; or
                    ``(ii) will occur during the 30-day period 
                following the date described in clause (i); and''.
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