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Interim regulations proposed by the Internal
Revenue Service, the Department of Labor, and
the Department of Health and Human Services, which
slightly alter the Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), recently
became final, as the period for comment expired
on April 9, 2001. These regulations do not change
the provision of HIPAA that states that no insurance
coverage can be denied based on a person's involvement
in recreational activities, such as horseback
riding, skiing, and motorcycling. However, they
do allow insurers to include "source-of-injury"
restrictions for injuries suffered while engaging
in those recreational activities. This effectively
means that, while a person cannot be denied insurance
coverage based on his/her involvement in horseback
riding, the insurers can refuse to pay for the
injuries if that person is hurt while riding.
The new regulations do not apply to health plans
already in effect. These apply to group health
plans beginning in the future. Therefore, if horseback
riding is currently covered in an insurance plan,
it will continue to be covered for the duration
of that plan. These regulations do not prohibit
employers or insurance companies from providing
coverage for activities such as horseback riding,
but it is the sole responsibility of the employers
and health insurers to negotiation such terms.
Since camps are most likely to currently have
insurance, these regulations would not apply.
The American Horse Council (AHC), along with
the American Motorcycle Association, is heavily
involved in an effort to explore the possibility
of gaining Congressional support to change the
regulations. It is not certain, however, that
these regulations would even significantly affect
camps. According to the AHC, the regulations probably
would not affect camp operator's insurance and
may, at most, result in parents not allowing their
children to ride at camp.
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