II 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1617 

To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to ensure that 

individuals can keep their health insurance coverage. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

OCTOBER 30, 2013 

Mr. JOHNSON of Wisconsin (for himself, Ms. AYOTTE, Mr. BARRASSO, Mr. 

BLUNT, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. CHAMBLISS, Mr. CHIESA, Mr. COBURN, Mr. 

COCHRAN, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. CRAPO, Mr. ENZI, Mrs. 

FISCHER, Mr. FLAKE, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. HATCH, Mr. HOEVEN, Mr. 

INHOFE, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. JOHANNS, Mr. KIRK, Mr. MCCAIN, Mr. 

MCCONNELL, Mr. MORAN, Mr. PAUL, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. RISCH, Mr. 

ROBERTS, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. SCOTT, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. THUNE, Mr. 

TOOMEY, Mr. VITTER, Mr. WICKER, Mr. GRAHAM, and Mr. CORKER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 

to ensure that individuals can keep their health insurance 

coverage. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘If You Like Your 

5 Health Plan, You Can Keep it Act’’. 


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•S 1617 IS

1 SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE PATIENT PROTECTION AND 

2 AFFORDABLE CARE ACT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part 2 of subtitle C of title I of 

4 the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 

5 U.S.C. 18011 et seq.) is amended by striking section 1251 

6 and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 1251. FREEDOM TO MAINTAIN EXISTING COVERAGE. 

8 ‘‘(a) NO CHANGES TO EXISTING COVERAGE.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this Act (or an 

10 amendment made by this Act) shall be construed to 

11 require that an individual terminate coverage under 

12 a group health plan or health insurance coverage in 

13 which such individual was enrolled during any part 

14 of the period beginning on the date of enactment of 

15 this Act and ending on December 31, 2013. 

16 ‘‘(2) CONTINUATION OF COVERAGE.—With re17 spect to a group health plan or health insurance cov18 erage in which an individual was enrolled during any 

19 part of the period beginning on the date of enact20 ment of this Act and ending on December 31, 2013, 

21 this subtitle and subtitle A (and the amendments 

22 made by such subtitles) shall not apply to such plan 

23 or coverage, regardless of whether the individual re24 news such coverage. 

25 ‘‘(b) ALLOWANCE FOR FAMILY MEMBERS TO JOIN

26 CURRENT COVERAGE.—With respect to a group health 


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•S 1617 IS

1 plan or health insurance coverage in which an individual 

2 was enrolled during any part of the period beginning on 

3 the date of enactment of this Act and ending on December 

4 31, 2013, and which is renewed, family members of such 

5 individual shall be permitted to enroll in such plan or cov6 erage if such enrollment is permitted under the terms of 

7 the plan in effect as of such date of enrollment. 

8 ‘‘(c) ALLOWANCE FOR NEW EMPLOYEES TO JOIN

9 CURRENT PLAN.—A group health plan that provides cov10 erage during any part of the period beginning on the date 

11 of enactment of this Act and ending on December 31, 

12 2013, may provide for the enrolling of new employees (and 

13 their families) in such plan, and this subtitle and subtitle 

14 A (and the amendments made by such subtitles) shall not 

15 apply with respect to such plan and such new employees 

16 (and their families). 

17 ‘‘(d) EFFECT ON COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE18 MENTS.—In the case of health insurance coverage main19 tained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining 

20 agreements between employee representatives and one or 

21 more employers that was ratified before December 31, 

22 2013, the provisions of this subtitle and subtitle A (and 

23 the amendments made by such subtitles) shall not apply 

24 until the date on which the last of the collective bargaining 

25 agreements relating to the coverage terminates. Any covVerDate Mar 15 2010 23:36 Nov 01, 2013 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1617.IS S1617

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1 erage amendment made pursuant to a collective bar2 gaining agreement relating to the coverage which amends 

3 the coverage solely to conform to any requirement added 

4 by this subtitle or subtitle A (or amendments) shall not 

5 be treated as a termination of such collective bargaining 

6 agreement. 

7 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—In this title, the term ‘grand8 fathered health plan’ means any group health plan or 

9 health insurance coverage to which this section applies.’’. 

10 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

11 subsection (a) shall take effect as if included in the Pa12 tient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 

13 111–148). 

Æ 


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