School District No. 1 Health and Welfare Trust believes the medical plans it offers to the PAT participants constitute "grandfathered health plans" under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the Affordable Care Act). If this status changes in the future, you will receive a notice of the change. As permitted by the Affordable Care Act, a grandfathered health plan can preserve certain basic health coverage that was already in effect when that law was enacted. Being a grandfathered health plan means that your plan may not include certain consumer protections of the Affordable Care Act that apply to other plans; for example, the requirement for the provisions of preventive health services without any cost sharing. However, grandfathered health plans must comply with certain other consumer protections in the Affordable Care Act; for example, the elimination of lifetime limits on benefits.

Questions regarding which protections apply and which protections do not apply to a grandfathered health plan and what might cause a plan to change from grandfathered health plan status can be directed to the Trust Office. You may also contact the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services at www.healthreform.gov.