FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE SEPTEMBER 18, 1998

CONTACT: IVONNE CUÑARRO (202) 606-1800 iccunarr@opm.gov

OPM DIRECTOR LACHANCE SAYS IMPLEMENTATION OF PATIENTS BILL OF RIGHTS COSTS 25 CENTS ANNUALLY

KEENE, New Hampshire, Sept. 18 -- In response to Vice President Al Gores announcement that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) will be implementing the protections underlined in President Clintons Patients Bill of Rights, OPM Director Janice R. Lachance today said that these protections are available at a cost of less than 25 cents annually per enrollee.

Lachance joined the Vice President during an event to announce health care initiatives, at Keene State College, in New Hampshire.

The protections, which are now part of the services provided by the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program, will ensure that more than nine million participants have better access to specialists, womens health care providers, emergency care, and vital information on medically necessary treatment, said Director Lachance.

We believe that the protections highlighted in the Patients Bill of Rights are critical to our enrollees and their family members, and we are happy to announce that we can offer them at virtually no added cost, Lachance added.

Since the cost is less than a quarter, it is hard to understand why Congess cant make this a reality for all Americans, Lachance added.

OPM is the human resources agency of the federal government. The agency manages FEHBP, the nations largest employer-sponsored health insurance program. For more information on the health care benefits covered under FEHBP, please access our web site: www.opm.gov/insure.

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