The Early Retiree Reinsurance Program will cease to be operational in short order. The $5 billion program was created in July of 2010 to help offset employer costs associated with providing health coverage benefits to early retirees and their eligible spouses, surviving spouses, and dependents.
From the get-go, experts predicted that the program would exhaust its funding quickly, and that is exactly what occurred. With the reinsurance funds depleted, it is expected that the Dec. 13 edition of the Federal Register will include an announcement that HHS will not accept claims incurred after Dec. 31, 2011.
