In a previous post, we reported on the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization which reversed Roe v. Wade, and renders a woman’s right to make decisions regarding, and seek medical treatment...more
7/14/2022
/ Abortion ,
Affordable Care Act ,
COBRA ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HRA ,
ICHRA ,
MHPAEA ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) ,
Roe v Wade ,
SCOTUS ,
Travel ,
Travel Reimbursements
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the “Act”) adopted a series of transparency requirements that apply to employer-sponsored group health plans. These transparency rules impose a series of new and complex obligations...more
3/8/2022
/ 401k ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Mental Health ,
MHPAEA ,
Public Health Service Act ,
Surprise Medical Bills ,
Third-Party ,
Transparency
Section 108, Division BB of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 requires the Departments of Labor, Health & Human Services and the Treasury (the “Departments”) to issue regulations under Section 2706(a) of the Public...more
The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (the “Departments”) recently issued a set of Frequently Asked Questions—FAQs About Affordable Act Implementation, Part 50, Health Insurance Portability and...more
10/13/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Title VI ,
Title VII ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Vaccinations
In a previous post, we reported on an announcement by Delta Airlines that it would impose a premium surcharge on employees covered under its group health plan who failed to get vaccinated for COVID-19. This follow-on post...more
Imposing Group Health Plan Monthly Surcharges on the Unvaccinated -
Calling it “a more-punitive approach toward getting its workforce vaccinated against Covid-19,” the Wall Street Journal recently reported that Delta...more
9/16/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Surcharges ,
Title VII ,
Vaccinations ,
Wellness Programs
As COVID-19 vaccines become more available, employment-based programs requiring or incentivizing employee vaccination will become more commonplace. In a previous post, we covered recent employer guidance from the CDC, with a...more
2/24/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
As we previously reported, on June 13, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and the Treasury (collectively, the “Departments”) issued a coordinated set of final regulations (“final rules”) permitting employers...more
11/11/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
HRA ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Health Service Act ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) ,
Safe Harbors ,
Shared Responsibility Rule ,
U.S. Treasury
On June 13, 2019, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of the Treasury (Treasury Department) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (collectively, the “Departments”)...more
7/11/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
COBRA ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Final Rules ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
HRA ,
IRS ,
Medicare ,
Public Health Service Act ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) ,
TRICARE ,
U.S. Treasury
Health Reimbursement Arrangements (or “HRAs”) are employer-funded, account-based group health plans, which are used to reimburse certain medical expenses incurred by eligible employees, their spouses, and their dependents....more
12/13/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HRA ,
IRS ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs)
In the last post in this series, we examined the regulatory response by certain states to the final regulations governing association health plans, which were issued by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) in June 2018. As we...more
In a summary of the recently issued Association Health Plan (AHP) final regulations, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) rightly observed that AHPs are a species of multi-employer welfare arrangements, or MEWAs, that are...more
10/3/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Association Health Plans ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Independent Contractors ,
MEWAs ,
Preemption ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Savings Clause ,
Supremacy Clause ,
Trump Administration
This is the first post in a blog series exploring the U.S. Department of Labor’s recently issued final regulation governing Association Health Plans (AHPs). While AHPs can be either fully-insured or self-funded, the final...more
7/24/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Association Health Plans ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Executive Orders ,
Final Rules ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Reform ,
MEWAs ,
Trump Administration
The Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) has begun assessing Employer Medical Assistance Contribution (EMAC) supplemental payments for the first quarter. This post proposes a grounds for appealing DUA...more
In advance of issuing the Executive Order that culminated in the promulgation by the Department of Labor of proposed regulations expanding the availability of Association Health Plans, President Trump announced that one of...more
Recently proposed Department of Labor (Department) regulations governing Association Health Plans (AHPs) would, if made final, permit small employers to be regulated under more favorable, large group rules. The proposed...more
In last week’s post we explained the changes made by a newly proposed Department of Labor regulation, the purpose of which is make it easier for small employers to band together to form “association health plans” (“AHPs”). In...more
1/22/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Association Health Plans ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Executive Orders ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Reform ,
MEWAs ,
NAIC ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration
Massachusetts employers with 6 or more employees will soon be required to prepare and file a new health care reporting form referred to as the “healthcare coverage form.” While reminiscent of the now repealed “Health...more
1/17/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Mandates ,
Fair Share Contribution ,
Governor Baker ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Local Ordinance ,
Popular ,
Reporting Requirements
On January 3, 2018, the Department of Labor issued proposed regulations that will make it easier for small employers to band together to form “association health plans” (“AHPs”), thereby providing access to more liberal...more
1/11/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Association Health Plans ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Executive Orders ,
Health Insurance ,
MEWAs ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Trump Administration
As we reported in a previous post, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker in August 2017 signed into law H. 3822, “An Act Further Regulating Employer Contributions to Health Care” (the “Act”). Among other things, the law...more
1/10/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Covered Employees ,
Employer Contributions ,
Fair Share Contribution ,
Governor Baker ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
PHI ,
Proposed Rules ,
State Health Plans ,
Unemployment Insurance
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act makes some notable, though targeted, changes to the employee benefits landscape. We summarize some of the more significant changes in the Question and Answers set out below....more
1/4/2018
/ 401k ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Employee Benefits ,
Fringe Benefits ,
Individual Mandate ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Natural Disasters ,
Reimbursements ,
Retirement Plan ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Reform ,
Wage and Hour
In a November 20, 2017 post, we reported on Massachusetts’ passage of H. 3822, “An Act Further Regulating Employer Contributions to Health Care,” (the “Act”), the purpose of which is to shore up the finances of the...more
12/14/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Covered Employees ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Contributions ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Medicaid ,
Shared Responsibility Rule ,
Tax Penalties ,
Unemployment Insurance
In an earlier post, we reported on the passage of H. 3822, “An Act Further Regulating Employer Contributions to Health Care,” (the “Act”), the purpose of which is to shore up the finances of the Commonwealth’s Medicaid...more
The Internal Revenue Service has for some time made available a comprehensive set of Questions & Answers covering the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer shared responsibility rules. (These are the rules that are codified in...more
On October 13th, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing various federal agencies to consider how to achieve three administration health reform objectives: (1) expand access to Association Health Plans (AHPs); (2)...more
10/25/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Association Health Plans ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Executive Orders ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Medical Reimbursement ,
MEWAs ,
New Guidance ,
Secretary of Labor ,
Trump Administration