The first set of rules under the new health care law kicked in last week.

The guidelines mean expanded coverage for about 1 million Americans by next year, but they also come with an average 6 percent increase in health insurance costs to employers.

Though many Americans won't be affected by the provisions until they renew their plans on Jan. 1, the White House marked the occasion by rolling out a new website.

It offers personalized information on what health plans are available based on a person's age, health and family status.

"Healthcare.gov will take some of the mystery out of shopping for health insurance," Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said.

But the site is lacking a few key details, the Christian Science Monitor reports.

It doesn't offer any prices to help consumers pick out the insurance plan that suits them. Though officials have promised more detailed information on health plans by October, insurance companies have expressed concerns about publishing detailed price information so publicly.

Most of the provisions in the health care law, including the statewide exchanges that will allow consumers to compare insurance plans, don't take effect until 2014.

But the benefits that are part of this initial rollout could insure hundreds of thousands of Americans who previously could not get coverage.

The Associated Press lists the main provisions:

* Young invincibles. Young adults can stay on their parents' plans until they turn 26, a move that's expected to provide coverage to about 650,000 individuals who would otherwise have been uninsured.

* Pre-existing conditions. Another 200,000 to 400,000 people who were previously denied health insurance could get it under the new mandate.

* No lifetime limits. Insurance companies will no longer be able to set lifetime limits on coverage. The law also limits annual limits on insurance plans.

* Children. About 140,000 children are expected to gain coverage as insurance companies are prohibited from excluding them for having medical problems.

Employers could push more changes as they grapple with rising costs.

Office wellness programs appear to be on the rise, McClatchy reports, calling into question how much say your workplace can have in your health.

"It's not clear where the line is or should be between personal responsibility and employer involvement," a health director at the University of Pennsylvania told the news service.

Corporate wellness programs can reduce the overall cost of health insurance by encouraging people to take preventative measures to avoid getting sick. Insurance companies offer rebates and reduced premiums to companies that participate.

But they can also raise privacy concerns.

Whole Foods announced earlier this year that workers would get a discount on health insurance based on their body mass indexes. The policy could favor employees who are naturally skinny, critics said.

More controversy could be on the way if the health law changes access to contraceptives.

Some advocacy groups are pushing to get birth control listed under the preventative health services that insurers will be required to provide for free.

They argue that the costs of birth control can add up over the years and that some women avoid more effective contraceptive methods simply because they are unaffordable.

It should be no surprise that the proposal has its vocal critics. During the health care debate, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops lobbied against the bill because it could have provided state funds for abortions.

"Preventative care should be about preventing disease. Fertility is not a disease to be cured," a spokeswoman for the group told the Washington Post about the contraceptives proposal.

So far, it's unclear whether the pills will be covered. But the debate could affect public perception of the health care law, which appears to be tilting in its favor for now.

Some conservatives have praised the administration's handling of health care, even if they disagree with the law itself.

"I give them an A for effort. But there are land mines down the road because the law is fundamentally flawed," a scholar with the conservative Heritage Foundation told the New York Times .

The newspaper reported that more people see the law in a favorable light.

But few Americans will feel the effects of the law before November, when they will decide whether to support the lawmakers who passed it.

-- Ambreen Ali, Congress.org