Now that U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, the implications of that action will be felt by employee benefit plans and the companies that offer them. Among those implications are the logistics of how to offer coverage for employees who must travel out of state to obtain a legal abortion.

The Reed Smith Reproductive Health Working Group has generated a series of “unanswered questions” client updates to reflect the issues that a Roe reversal may have for the health care industry. Earlier posts on this blog shared the first three parts of that series that focused on pharmacies, health care providers, and fertility practices, respectively.

In Part IV of the series, Allison Warden Sizemore considers the implications of the reversal on employee benefits plans. Specifically she highlights issues arising from an employer’s offer to cover travel costs for employees who travel for an abortion.

All of the client updates are available here:

Unanswered Questions Part I: Pharmacies

Unanswered Questions Part II: Health Care Providers

Unanswered Questions Part III: Fertility

Unanswered Questions Part IV: Employee Benefit Plans

Reed Smith will continue to monitor any state or federal responses to this decision. If you have any questions about this topic or how the Court’s opinion will affect your organization legally, please reach out to the health care lawyers at Reed Smith.