General News
Published September 16, 2021
In 2020, the Washington State Legislature passed a bill that directed the Health Care Authority (HCA) to collect a fee, or assessment, based on covered lives from Washington health plans in order to keep Partnership Access Lines (PAL) services up and running. Briefly, these programs administered by Seattle Childrens and the University of Washington, assist providers with managing patient psychiatric needs and helps connect adults and children to care.
Beginning July 1, 2021, no later than the end of the 45 calendar days after the end of each quarter, an assessed entity must submit the total number of Washington resident covered lives for each calendar month of the prior quarter. Plans will be charged a percentage of the costs for the PAL services in proportion to lives covered. The HCA has chosen KidsVax®, LLC to act as the third-party administrator to calculate and administer the assessments. Invoices will then be issued upon filing the covered
lives report.
The assessment applies to both self-insured and fully insured health plans. This includes health carriers, self-funded multiple employer welfare arrangements, and employers or other entities that provide health care in this state, including self-funding entities or employee welfare benefit plans.
As the assessed entity, Premera will report and pay the assessment as required for insured membership. Premera has also made the decision to handle reporting and assessment for Premera covered lives on behalf of its self-funded employer groups. Amounts paid on behalf of these groups will be included on a future invoice or GER (group end reporting).
Premera has already submitted required baseline reporting to KidsVax®, which was due on August 31, 2021.
Additional information on the new requirement is available from the HCA and at www.wapalfund.org. Contact your Account Manager with questions.