ANTI-SUBROGATION BILL PASSED IN NEW YORK
The bill will eliminate subrogation and reimbursement rights for fully-insured health insurance plans in New York. The actual ramifications of this new legislation will not ne known until it has been tested in trial and appellate courts have had a chance to interpret the new law and its implications.
It appears that the only area of subrogation that will be drastically affected will be health insurance subrogation involving plans which are not self-funded ERISA plans.
None of the bill’s harsh anti-subrogation provisions seemingly apply to cases where there is a statutory right of subrogation. Therefore, Medicare and Medicaid, and other such areas of statutory subrogation have survived. It appears that ERISA-covered self-funded health plans should still be able to avoid the harsh effects of this new bill thanks to ERISA’s preemption provisions, which also have become the target of anti-subrogation efforts.
This is an example of what little our industry is doing regarding lobbying or grass roots efforts against any of this. We need to start NOW!!!
The debate between insurance regulation and self-funded arrangements goes on.