Judy Kamens Compliance Specialist View Bio

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) added a new disclosure requirement for group health plans and health insurance issuers—the summary of benefits and coverage (SBC). The SBC is a short document providing simple and consistent information about a health plan’s benefits and coverage. It must be provided free of charge at certain times, such as at open enrollment.

The SBC must follow strict formatting requirements. The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury (Departments) have provided templates and related materials, including instructions and a uniform glossary of coverage terms, for use by plans and issuers.

On April 6, 2016, the Departments released a revised template and related materials for use beginning on or after April 1, 2017. The specific effective date for each plan will depend on whether it has an open enrollment period.

To read the entire document, download this PDF: Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC)