A Life In Employee Benefits

A timeline of Sen. Edward Kennedy’s involvement in employee benefits legislation

1978: Is a driving force behind passage of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which requires group health care plans to provide the same coverage for maternity care as for other medical conditions.

1983: Begins the drive in Congress to require employers to reduce pension plan vesting requirements by introducing legislation to let employees vest after five years of service.

1987: Introduces legislation to require employers to offer health care plans meeting minimum federal standards.

1996: Works with Senate Republicans to broker deal leading to passage of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, curbing preexisting medical condition exclusions in group health care plans.

1997: Teams with Sen. Orrin Hatch to win passage of legislation creating the State Children’s Health Insurance Program to provide coverage for millions of children in lowerincome families.

2008: Congress passes mental health care benefits parity legislation, a longtime objective of Sen. Kennedy. Passage largely due to his effort to bring interest groups together to hammer out a compromise bill.

2009: Introduces sweeping health care reform legislation to move the United States closer to universal coverage.