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Senate approves "swing-out" employer health-insurance choice after floor debate
Summary
After extended debate and an added disclosure amendment, the Senate passed the third substitute of Senate Bill 66 to allow employees to "swing out" of employer health plans and pay the difference for alternative coverage; supporters called it a patient-choice measure, opponents warned of possible cost-shifting and contract interference.
The Utah Senate passed the third substitute of Senate Bill 66 on the floor after a prolonged debate over insurance choice, provider conflicts of interest and cost impacts. Sponsor Senator Wadhams said the bill lets employees choose health plans outside an employer's primary contract and pay the difference rather than be limited to the employer-selected plan. "This is a patient-choice bill," Wadhams said, framing the measure as restoring continuity of care and personal choice for employees who help pay insurance costs.
The bill sets a measurement mechanism tied to insurer payments: in the sponsor's example, if a service is billed at $100 and the…
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