In my article this week I am going to focus my attention on the confusion surrounding the

C.L.A.S.S. Act. This legislation was jammed into the ObamaCare legislation (H.R. 3590, pages 710 to 729).Ms. Pelosi was correct when she said, "pass the bill, then you will find out what's in it." Recently, I attended a Tea Party event in the Reading area. There was a lot of discussion about the new Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act, also known as the

C.L.A.S.S. Act. Many of the items discussed I had heard before but I never verified the facts. I believed that the statements I heard were true and even repeated a few of my own.According to the discussions, if one did not opt-out of the

C.L.A.S.S. Act by Dec. 31, 2010, one would be automatically enrolled and subject to the terms and conditions of the Act. Also mentioned was that the opt-out could only occur once in a lifetime so that if you change jobs or lost your job, at your new position you would automatically be opted in. Companies that do not permit automated enrollment would be subject to a tax.According to the discussions, there is no provision for self-employed people to be covered by the Act. Also, one must be 100 percent disabled to receive any of the stated benefits.I decided to research the Act to get the facts straight. The

C.L.A.S.S. Act is a national voluntary insurance program to provide assistance and support for those who are disabled. This includes nursing home care, in-home care, and other living assistance services. For those who do not opt-out, there is a premium to be hefty paid and there is premium assistance for those below the poverty line or in difficult situations.Once a person has paid into the plan for five years they will be eligible for assistance. The amount of coverage is minimal, stated in the Act at $50 a day but can be increased in the future.There is no lifetime limit for benefit, a limitation that often plagues those with long-term disabilities and employer-provided disability plans. If one is institutionalized under most corporate plans, there is 100 percent of the cost of their care. The

C.L.A.S.S. Act does not have such limitations. Insurance policies usually do not cover pre-existing conditions. This Act covers all conditions whether pre-existing or infirmities that develop after enrollment. There is a five-year waiting period before benefits can be paid.Before I explain the misunderstandings relating to this legislation, let me first say that I am not a lawyer, nor am I or will I ever be a lawmaker. I spent three days researching the

C.L.A.S.S. Act attempting to validate the items I heard at the Tea Party event. Let's start with the opt-out deadline of Dec. 31, 2010. I could not find any reference to this date or to a one-time-only opt-out procedure.I did discover that if you fail to opt-out during the enrollment period you will be included in the plan. Therefore opting out is important but a failure to do so is not irreversible. The Act specifies that an individual can dis-enroll [opt-out] only during the annual disenrollment period established by the Secretary. If, after waiving enrollment, one wishes to change their mind and enroll, they can do so during the open enrollment period that will occur not more than once every two years.You can opt-out and you can re-opt in however there these have to be done within predetermined windows. At the current time these constraints have not been established.Let's move on to the 100 percent disability issue in order to qualify for benefits. In the Act, benefits will be paid to recipients who are unable to perform two or three daily living activities. These activities include, eating, dressing and several others. One can also receive benefits if they are cognitively impaired. Payments can be scaled based on the level of disability however the initial payment is set at $50 per day.As for automatic enrollment when changing jobs, I see nothing to prevent one from opting out as part of the new employment process. It is a good thing to bring up the

C.L.A.S.S. Act during your pre-employment interviews. You may need to ask specific questions of the Human Resources or Human Capital Department at your potential employer prior to accepting the position.With regards to those who are self-employed, there will be alternate enrollment procedures for them. A person whose employer does not elect to participate in automatic enrollment or a person who has more than one employer will still be able to enroll through the alternate employment procedure. The procedures for this have not been developed as yet so self-employment will remain an issue until the alternate enrollment procedures are created, approved and implemented.Now that I have completed my research, I feel that the

C.L.A.S.S. Act is not the demon that has been presented at some of the events I attended. That said, I do not believe that coverage in this plan is appropriate for my wife or myself. We will be opting out. If you work for a company that does not provide long-term disability it may be to your benefit to opt into this program or at least fail to opt-out if there is automatic enrollment.What does concern me about this Act is that it is a means to collect money [taxes] and place it into a fund called the Class Independence Fund. There will board of trustees overseeing this fund but I expect that the fund will be robbed periodically by Congress to pay for their budgetary excesses. This fund will be drained just as the Social Security Trust Fund was. IOUs from the federal government would replace the actual money or investments that the fund held.In conclusion many of the rumors surrounding the

C.L.A.S.S. Act are unfounded. In my opinion it is just another means for government to collect money now and promise to pay benefits to those who qualify at a future date. I am concerned about the quiet enrollment in that you are enrolled if you do not take specific actions to opt-out. Human Resources or Human Capital departments at major corporations are not familiar with this Act.During your annual benefits enrollment, that normally occurs in October or November, make sure that you question your HR representatives on the

C.L.A.S.S. Act and whether or not your firm has selected automatic enrollment. If they have and you do not believe this plan is for you then I suggest you opt-out. Make sure that you keep a signed copy of the form in your records in case there is a dispute down the road.© 2010 - Gordon Smith - All Rights Reserved