For more than 50 years, self-insured employer-sponsored healthcare (a popular healthcare structure for Maryland employers, local governments, schools, and unions) has been governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). This federal preemption provided uniform regulations and protections for employees and employers sponsoring their healthcare.
HB 357/SB 898 strips away ERISA protections and benefits that have allowed employers to provide healthcare and prescription drug benefits at affordable prices for thousands of hard-working Marylanders for generations. HB 357/SB898 will increase costs throughout the healthcare industry and its employees and public servants who will pay for it.
