Employers and other group health plan sponsors are left with much to consider following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which  overruled the Supreme Court’s prior landmark decisions in Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.  Those cases solidified a federal constitutional right to obtain an abortion and prohibited state regulation placing an “undue burden” on that right.

Without Roe and Casey, approximately half of all U.S. states now (or likely will soon) ban or significantly limit reproductive health services, including abortion, and some state laws threaten to impose liability on those who assist an individual in obtaining an abortion. As a result, employers and other benefit plan sponsors are left wondering about the future of health plan coverage for reproductive healthcare, the permissibility of travel reimbursements to assist employees in traveling to jurisdictions where abortion remains legal, and other related issues.

In this complex legal environment, different questions arise depending on whether a group health plan is insured or self-insured, the jurisdictions in which the plan operates, and a variety of other factors.  Our guidebook answers common questions facing employers and other plan sponsors working through the impact of Dobbs and can be downloaded here.

Proskauer’s Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Benefits is assisting employers and multiemployer health plans as they begin to navigate the legal and practical environment in the post-Dobbs world.  Future updates will be posted on our blog, www.erisapracticecenter.com, to which you can subscribe here.

Photo of Roberta Chevlowe Roberta Chevlowe

Roberta K. Chevlowe provides advice to employers and boards of trustees of multiemployer benefit plans on a broad range of issues relating to their retirement, health and other employee benefit plans. With three decades of experience practicing in this area, Roberta employs a…

Roberta K. Chevlowe provides advice to employers and boards of trustees of multiemployer benefit plans on a broad range of issues relating to their retirement, health and other employee benefit plans. With three decades of experience practicing in this area, Roberta employs a practical, business-minded approach to helping her clients comply with the various requirements imposed by ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code, COBRA, the Affordable Care Act and other federal and state laws affecting employee benefit programs. Roberta’s practice also includes advising clients in connection with benefit claim appeals, lawsuits and government audits; drafting plan documents, policies and employee communications materials; and negotiating with plan service providers.

Roberta is best known for her work in the area of COBRA compliance and for advising employers in connection with the benefits they provide to employees’ domestic partners and same-sex spouses. She is a co-author of The COBRA Handbook and lectures and publishes articles on a variety of employee benefits topics. In addition, Ms. Chevlowe is a leader of Proskauer’s Task Force on Reproductive Health Care Benefits.

Photo of Jennifer Rigterink Jennifer Rigterink

Jennifer Rigterink is senior counsel in the Labor Department and a member of the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group.

Jennifer focuses on a diverse array of tax and ERISA issues impacting employee benefits.  Her wide-ranging practice encompasses qualified retirement plans and non-qualified…

Jennifer Rigterink is senior counsel in the Labor Department and a member of the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group.

Jennifer focuses on a diverse array of tax and ERISA issues impacting employee benefits.  Her wide-ranging practice encompasses qualified retirement plans and non-qualified arrangements, health and welfare benefits, and fringe benefit programs.  She counsels single-employer and multiemployer clients on matters pertaining to plan administration, design and qualification, as well as regulatory, legislative and legal compliance.

In recent years, Jennifer has advised employers and plan sponsors with fiduciary and governance matters applicable to defined benefit plans and pension de-risking activities, including lump sum window programs, annuity purchases, and pension plan terminations.

Jennifer frequently counsels clients on health and welfare arrangements, with a particular focus on all matters relating to family building and reproductive health care benefits.  Her experience also includes working with employers and plan sponsors on mental health parity compliance issues.

Prior to joining Proskauer, Jennifer clerked for Judge Jacques L. Wiener, Jr., in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Judge Yvette Kane in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.