I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3784
To provide health benefits for workers and their families.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 30, 1998
Mr. PALLONE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Commit-
tee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees
on Commerce, Ways and Means, Government Reform and Oversight, and
National Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within
the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To provide health benefits for workers and their families.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Health Care for Work-
ing Families Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) every industrialized country in the world ex-
cept the United States guarantees the fundamental
right to health care to all its citizens;
(2) 41,000,000 Americans are without health
insurance coverage;
(3) the number of uninsured Americans is
growing every year;
(4) the vast majority of uninsured Americans
are workers or dependents of workers;
(5) for more than half a century, Congress has
enacted laws to ensure that work is appropriately re-
warded, including laws establishing a minimum wage
and a 40 hour work week, laws ensuring safe and
healthy working conditions, and laws requiring em-
ployers to contribute to the cost of retirement secu-
rity through Social Security and Medicare; and
(6) as the United States approaches the 21st
century, it is time to enact requirements guarantee-
ing that jobs carry with them affordable, adequate
health insurance benefits.
SEC. 3. HEALTH BENEFITS FOR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR
FAMILIES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Fair Labor Standards Act of
1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) is amended by adding at
the end thereof the following new title:
‘‘TITLE 
II—HEALTH 
BENEFITS
FOR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR
FAMILIES
‘‘SEC. 201. HEALTH BENEFITS.
‘‘(a) OFFER TO ENROLL.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each large employer, in ac-
cordance with this title, shall offer to each of its em-
ployees the opportunity to enroll in a qualifying
health benefit plan that provides coverage for the
employee and the family of the employee.
‘‘(2) QUALIFYING
HEALTH
BENEFIT
PLAN.—
For purposes of this title, the term ‘qualifying
health benefit plan’ means a plan that provides ben-
efits for health care items and services that are
actuarily equivalent or greater in value than the ben-
efits offered as of January 1, 1998 under the Blue
Cross/Blue Shield Standard Plan provided under the
Federal Employees Health Benefit Program under
chapter 89 of title 5, United States Code, and that
meets the requirements of title XXVII of the Public
Health Service Act applicable to the plan.
‘‘(b) CONTRIBUTION AND WITHHOLDING.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each large employer, in ac-
cordance with this title, shall—
‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—No employer contribution
shall be required under this subsection with respect
to an employee who works less than 10 hours per
week.
‘‘(c) EMPLOYEE OBLIGATION UNDER CERTAIN PRO-
GRAMS.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—With respect to an em-
ployee covered under a Federal health insurance pro-
gram (as defined in paragraph (3)), such employee
shall accept an offer of health insurance coverage
under subsection (a) and agree to the appropriate
payroll withholdings under subsection (b)(1)(B) for
such coverage or provide for the payment of the em-
ployee share of premiums under paragraph (2), ex-
cept that this subsection shall not apply—
‘‘(A) with respect to an employee who is
otherwise covered under an employment-based
qualified health benefit plan; or
‘‘(B) with respect to the coverage of a fam-
ily member of an employee if the employee does
not elect coverage for such family member and
the family member is otherwise covered under
an employment-based qualified health benefit
plan.
‘‘(2) PAYMENT OF PREMIUMS.—At the request
of an employee to which paragraph (1) applies, the
relevant Federal administrator of the Federal health
insurance program involved shall provide for the
payment of the employee share of the premium as-
sessed for coverage under the qualifying health bene-
fit plan involved. For purposes of title XIX of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.), the re-
quirement of this paragraph shall be deemed to be
a requirement under the appropriate State plan
under such title XIX.
‘‘(3) FEDERAL
HEALTH
INSURANCE
PRO-
GRAM.—As used in this subsection, the term ‘Fed-
eral health insurance program’ means—
‘‘(A) the medicare or medicaid program
under title XVIII or XIX of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 or 1396 et seq.);
‘‘(B) the Federal employee health benefit
program under chapter 89 of title V, United
States Code; or
‘‘(C) the Civilian Health and Medical Pro-
gram of the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS),
as defined in section 1073(4) of title 10, United
States Code.
‘‘(d) LARGE EMPLOYERS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The provisions of this title
shall only apply to large employers.
‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As used in paragraph
(1), the term ‘large employer’ means, with re-
spect to a calendar year and plan year, an em-
ployer that employed an average of at least 50
full-time employees on business days during the
preceding calendar year and who employs not
less than 50 employees on the first day of the
plan year.
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The provisions of this
title shall apply with respect to an employer
that is not a large employer under subpara-
graph (A) if the majority of the services per-
formed by such employer consist of services per-
formed on behalf of a single large employer.
‘‘(3) CONTRACT
WORKERS.—For purposes of
this title, a contract worker of an employer shall be
considered to be an employee of the employer.
‘‘SEC. 202. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO TIMING OF COV-
ERAGE AND WITHHOLDING.
‘‘(a) DATE OF INITIAL COVERAGE.—In the case of
an employee enrolled under a qualifying health benefit
plan provided by a large employer, the coverage under the
plan must begin not later than 30 days after the day on
which the employee first performs an hour of service as
an employee of that employer.
‘‘(b) WITHHOLDING PERMITTED.—No provision of
State law shall prevent an employer of an employee en-
rolled under a qualifying health benefit plan established
under this title from withholding the amount of any pre-
mium due by the employee from the payroll of the em-
ployee.
‘‘SEC. 203. ENFORCEMENT.
‘‘(a) CIVIL MONEY PENALTY AGAINST PRIVATE EM-
PLOYERS.—The provisions of section 502—
‘‘(1) relating to the commencement of civil ac-
tions by the Secretary under subsection (a) of such
section;
‘‘(2) relating to civil money penalties under sub-
section (c)(2) of such section; and
‘‘(3) relating to the procedures for assessing,
collecting and the judicial review of such civil money
penalties;
shall apply with respect to any large employer that does
not comply with this title.
‘‘(b) INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—The provisions of section
17 shall apply with respect to violations of this title.
‘‘SEC. 204. PREEMPTION.
‘‘Nothing in this title shall be construed to prevent
a State from establishing, implementing, or continuing in
effect standards and requirements relating to employer
provided health insurance coverage unless such standards
and requirements prevent the application of the require-
ments of this title.
‘‘SEC. 205. DEFINITION AND EFFECTIVE DATE.
‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this title the terms ‘family’
and ‘family member’ mean, with respect to an employee,
the spouse and children (including adopted children) of
the employee.
‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), this title shall apply with respect to em-
ployers on January 1, 1999.
‘‘(2) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS.—
This title shall apply with respect to employees cov-
ered under a collective bargaining agreement on the
first day of the first plan year beginning after the
date of enactment of this Act, or January 1, 1999,
whichever occurs later.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—
(1) The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is
amended by striking out the first section and insert-
ing in lieu thereof the following:
‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
‘‘This Act may be cited as the ‘Fair Labor Standards
Act of 1938’.
‘‘TITLE I—WAGES AND HOURS’’.
(2) The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is
amended by striking out ‘‘this Act’’ each place it oc-
curs and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘this title’’.
(3) Section 17 of the Fair Labor Standards Act
of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 217) is amended by inserting
‘‘or violations of title II’’ before the period.
SEC. 4. AMENDMENT TO PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE ACT.
Title II of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
202 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing:
‘‘SEC. 247. REQUIREMENT FOR HEALTH INSURANCE COV-
ERAGE.
‘‘A health insurance issuer (as defined in section
2791(a)) that offers health insurance coverage (as defined
in section 2791(a)) to an employer on behalf of the em-
ployees of such employer shall ensure that such coverage
complies with the requirements of title II of the Fair
Labor Standards Act of 1938.’’.
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