Shah Quoted on Employers Offering Abortion-Related Travel Policies

Mamta explained three major risks: law enforcement could ask employers to disclose travel-related information about employees; the information could be leaked and used against an employee; or the individual handling the information – whether at the company or through a third party vendor – could use the information to enforce state abortion bans, such as in Texas where a private citizen is promised a minimum of $10,000 in damages from each lawsuit they file against someone who performs or aids an abortion.

She added that employers using a third-party company to administer benefits may not have any material information of interest to state officials or law enforcement.

“An employer who maintains a self-insured health plan that is administered by a third party—and where the employer has no transparency into what services covered individuals are utilizing under the health plan and has no involvement in any claims determinations under the plan—would not have any information that state officials could necessarily go after,” she said.

But for employers that choose to administer travel benefits in-house, Mamta said a significant consideration is how much information they request from employees to substantiate reimbursements or for information about the medical services obtained.

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