Once again, the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury have issued guidance on the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) required coverage of contraception without cost sharing, clarifying the permitted...more
3/7/2024
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Compliance ,
Contraceptive Coverage Mandate ,
Contraceptives ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Insurance ,
HRSA ,
New Guidance ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
U.S. Treasury
Beginning January 1, 2024, employers will be required to allow Long-term, part-time (LTPT) employees to make deferral contributions to qualified retirement plans that contain cash or deferred arrangements. Deferrals for LTPT...more
On November 1, 2023, the 2024 calendar year cost-of-living adjustments to the contribution and compensation limits for tax-qualified retirement plans were released by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in Notice 2023-75....more
11/6/2023
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
457(b) Plans ,
Contribution Limits ,
Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
ESOP ,
IRS ,
Qualified Benefit Plans ,
Qualified Retirement Plans ,
Retirement Plan ,
Small Employer Plans (SEPs)
On September 14, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Employee Retention Credit (ERC) guidance placing a moratorium on processing new ERC claims due to a surge in questionable claim submissions. Claims already...more
9/26/2023
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Retention ,
Final Rules ,
IRS ,
Moratorium ,
New Guidance ,
Relief Measures ,
Scams ,
Tax Credits
Employers, at least for now, may have some relief from some of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirements to cover preventive care services without cost sharing under a nationwide injunction issued March 30, 2023, by a...more
4/20/2023
/ ACIP ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Appointments Clause ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
HRSA ,
HSA ,
Injunctions ,
Preventive Health Care ,
Screening Procedures
There is a growing trend of using participant data to cross-sell financial products unrelated to plan recordkeeping by large recordkeepers and asset custodians of employer-sponsored retirement plans. In light of the fact that...more
Holiday season and the end of the year are both quickly approaching, and with the turning of the calendar from 2021 to 2022 come several employee benefit plan amendment deadlines and implementation requirements. Some of these...more
On February 26, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor, along with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of the Treasury, issued answers to new frequently asked questions (FAQs) interpreting...more
3/18/2021
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Assistance Programs ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employment Policies ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Incentives ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
As COVID-19 vaccines become available to greater swaths of the population, many employers are considering ways to incentivize employees to get vaccinated. Incentives can take many forms, including extra pay, paid time off,...more
2/16/2021
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
GINA ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Incentives ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Last year, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Congress and the Puerto Rico Department of Treasury (Hacienda) granted favorable tax treatment to coronavirus-related distributions (CRDs) and participant...more
2/1/2021
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
CARES Act ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Distribution Rules ,
Hardship Distributions ,
IRS ,
Puerto Rico ,
Qualified Disaster Relief Payments ,
Retirement Account Loans ,
Retirement Plan ,
Tax Relief
On December 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law Congress’s spending bill, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), 2021, which included the Additional Coronavirus Response and Relief (ACRR) provisions that modified...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently released two notices that provide additional guidance for retirement plan administrators and qualified individuals about the special distribution, plan loan, and required minimum...more
As cash flow and decreased revenue concerns rise, many employers are looking for ways to cut costs. This article generally identifies the circumstances that allow a safe harbor 401(k) plan sponsor to suspend safe harbor...more
On May 4, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued informal guidance regarding the coronavirus-related distributions (CRD) and loan options provided for retirement plans and participants under Section 2202 of the...more