play or pay

Hospital staffing A plan in which physicians choose either to provide coverage for their department in a hospital (play) or contribute to a fund for providing coverage (pay)
Managed care A universal health care coverage plan proposed by President Clinton in which an employer would either provide his workers with a basic health benefits package (‘play’), or pay into a government-managed insurance pool

play or pay

Managed care A universal health care coverage plan proposed by Presidents Bill & Hillary Clinton where an employer would either provide his workers with a basic health benefits package–'play', or pay into a government-managed insurance pool. See Clinton plan Hospital staffingA plan in California in which physicians choose either to provide coverage to a department–play, or contribute to a fund for the coverage–pay.

References in periodicals archive ?

Several major corporations - including Chrysler, Bethlehem Steel, Dayton-Hudson, Westinghouse Electric and Xerox - are backing "play or pay" legislation, which would require employers to provide medical insurance to their employees or pay a new tax to fund a public program.

Meanwhile, the other government-heavy approach, play or pay, enjoys considerable business support.

The play or pay option would allow companies to pay a fixed tax (now a proposed 7 percent of payroll) instead of increasingly costly health insurance.