Today, Monday, March 26, 2012 marks the beginning of the Supreme Court hearings regarding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Over the next three days, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on four specific topics related to PPACA. Ultimately, the court will need to rule on the constitutionality of the 2010 health care law. The court will begin Monday by hearing arguments as to whether or not the Anti-Injunction Act is applicable to PPACA. Tuesday, will bring arguments relating to the constitutionality of the individual mandate requirement. The hearings will wrap-up on Wednesday with the court presiding over arguments relating to the severability clause and the constitutionality of the expansion of the Medicaid program.

Resources to track the hearings:
Coverage of the Supreme Court Hearings (c-span.org)

Interactive Guide to the Supreme Court Challenges (New York Times)

Proceedings and Orders Leading to the Supreme Court Arguments (SupremeCourt.gov)

Questions Presented to the Supreme Court (SupremeCourt.gov)

Details on Audio Coverage (Associated Press)

There has been a lot of communication from Washington lately on the implementation of new regulations relating to health care reform. At times it can seem a bit overwhelming to keep up with the latest news. As always, NAHU continues to be a tremendous resource for education on these new requirements. Below is information on a free member webinar conducted by NAHU to provide guidance on implementing the latest requirements. Registration is limited, so act quickly.

NAHU will be hosting a free, one-hour, member-exclusive webinar on New Guidance on Summary Plan Benefits and Other Recent Regulations on Thursday, March 1, at 1:00 p.m. EST.

The Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor and Treasury continue to issue guidance implementing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that will affect health plans and your business.

Learn about recently issued guidance on the new summary of benefits requirements, auto-enrollment, 90-day wait period, treatment of newly hired employees, annual and lifetime limits and other important issues.

Click here to register for the webinar. Space is limited to the first 1,000 registrants.