And because it applies only to self-insured plans, actually leaves more than 120 million patients without all these guarantees.

CNN: Transcript: Clinton speaks on 'patients' bill of rights'

With the transition from fully-insured health benefits to employer-sponsored self-funded health benefit plans, employers now seek to find ways to transfer their employees from healthcare quality and manpower shortage areas to providers offering measurable higher quality, better customer service, and better outcomes.

FORBES: Domestic Medical Tourism-A Prescription for Savings?

The same kinds of defined contribution plans, they figured, could work at larger self-insured employers, even though these big companies and their employees would not get quite the same tax advantages.

FORBES: Give Them A Stake

For small businesses, being self-insured would let them avoid new requirements under the law that call for traditional small group plans to include richer benefits, such as mental-health and maternity care.

WSJ: One Strategy for Health-Law Costs: Self Insure