The U.S. Health and Human Services Department (HHS) will defer to the states on one of the most important mandates in the healthcare reform law.

Defining “essential health benefits” is among the most important steps in implementing the Affordable Care Act. The law lists 10 broad categories of benefits that every plan sold to individuals and small businesses will have to cover, beginning in 2014. They are:

• ambulatory patient services
• emergency services
• hospitalization
• maternity and newborn care
• mental health and substance abuse disorder services, including behavioral health treatment
• prescription drugs
• rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices
• laboratory services
• preventive and wellness services and chronic disease management
• pediatric services, including oral and vision care