How Private Health Coverage Works: A Primer – 2008 Update

How Private Health Coverage Works: A Primer— 2008 Update

This primer explains the role and operations of private health coverage in the United States. Private health coverage is provided under a variety of different arrangements, including health insuring organizations regulated under state law and health plans sponsored by employers and employee organizations that operate under the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

The primer discusses the fundamental aims of private health coverage and sorts out the complicated web of state and federal regulations that govern it.

Issue Brief (.pdf)