The Early Retiree Reinsurance Program (ERRP) announced on February 17, 2012, that it has received requests for reimbursement that exceed the $5 billion in funding appropriated for the program under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). These requests will be held in the order in which they were received, pending funds that may become available if ERRP recoups overpayments (for example, from adjustments to initial claim amounts). HHS will continue to pay reimbursement requests in the order received until funds are exhausted. According to HHS, plan sponsors should use ERRP reimbursement funds as soon as possible, and no later than December 31, 2014.

HHS also released a reimbursement update identifying all payments made to plan sponsors under ERRP through January 19, 2012. In a related status update, HHS noted that ERRP has provided $4.73 billion in payments to more than 2,800 employers and other retiree plan sponsors to date, with an average cumulative reimbursement per plan sponsor of roughly $189,700. Of the 19.1 million plan participants covered by plan sponsors that have received funding, 13 million have already directly or indirectly benefited from ERRP.

This latest ERRP announcement signals the beginning of the end for the program. Employers with reimbursement requests placed on hold pending the availability of funds:

For more information on ERRP, see Practice Note, Early Retiree Reinsurance Program (ERRP).