House version of "Pension Reform" trumps state law -allowing Ins Co Health

payouts to be recovered from the money workers are awarded in personal injury suits.

The provision in the House version of the pending pension reform legislation will make it easier for health care insurers and employers to recover some of the money workers are awarded in personal injury suits. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Senate version does not contain the provision that could trump state law and some federal court precedents which have restricted to some degree an insurer's right to recover some of the health care costs paid out to
injured employees. According to the Journal, even though most health plans can recover the cost of medical care from worker settlements, some rulings and laws have put caps on just how much of the settlement can go to the insurer or employer.