We are pleased to present our annual End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” Lists. This year, we present our “To Do” Lists in four separate Employee Benefits Updates. This Part 1 covers year-end health and welfare plan issues....more
10/12/2023
/ Abortion ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Birth Control ,
Cafeteria Plans ,
CARES Act ,
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
COBRA ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
Drug Pricing ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Health Plan Sponsors ,
IRS ,
MHPAEA ,
Non-Discrimination Rules ,
NQTLs ,
Out of Network Provider ,
Penalties ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Popular ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
Student Loans ,
Surprise Medical Bills ,
Title VII ,
Transparency ,
Travel Time ,
Wellness Programs
We are pleased to present our annual End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” Lists. This year, we present our “To Do” Lists in four separate Employee Benefits Updates. This Part 1 covers year-end health and welfare plan issues....more
10/19/2022
/ Abortion ,
COBRA ,
Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HRSA ,
IRS ,
MHPAEA ,
No Surprises Act (NSA) ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Popular ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
Roe v Wade ,
Self-Funded Health Plans
Summer has come and gone, but there was no summer vacation for employee benefits legislation and guidance. In case you have been too busy to check out our blogs lately, here are some key items to help you stay organized and...more
10/13/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equity Compensation ,
Health Plan Sponsors ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Preventive Health Care ,
Startups
Year-end is always a scramble for health plan sponsors as they go through renewal and open enrollment. This year was looking to be worse than normal given the impending deadlines for complying with the transparency in...more
On November 30, Moderna announced that it is seeking FDA authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine. In addition, on November 17 the FDA issued an emergency use authorization for the first COVID-19 diagnostic test for...more
12/3/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Insurance ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Preventive Health Care ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
On July 23, 2020, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS") issued another 90-day extension regarding free COVID-19 testing. The free COVID-19 testing requirement was set to expire on July 25, but...more
7/30/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
ICHRA ,
Plan Participants ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
On June 15, 2020, the United States Supreme Court issued a landmark opinion in Bostock v. Clayton County Georgia. At issue in Bostock was whether an employer could fire an employee for being gay or transgender without...more
6/24/2020
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Fringe Benefits ,
Hiring & Firing ,
LGBTQ ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 1557 ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Title VII ,
Transgender
With the COVID-19 pandemic putting pressure on employers and employees alike, the Department of Labor (“DOL”), Treasury (“Treasury”), and Health and Human Services (“HHS”) (collectively, the “Departments”) continue to issue...more
As reported in our November 7, 2018 SW Benefits Blog Zombie Benefits – Are Health Reimbursement Arrangements (“HRAs”) Back From the Dead?, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury (the “Agencies”)...more
9/11/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Code Sections 4980H ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Contributions ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Final Rules ,
HRA ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs)
As reported in our “2018 End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” List (Part 1) Health & Welfare,” the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act repealed the individual mandate, which spawned a lawsuit challenging the whole of the Affordable Care Act...more
12/19/2018
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Code Sections 4980H ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare ,
Individual Mandate ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Section 6055 ,
Section 6056 ,
Shared Responsibility Rule ,
Trump Administration ,
Unconstitutional Condition
The Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) has not been kind to health reimbursement arrangements (“HRAs”). Many employers got rid of HRAs, or integrated them with a major medical plan, in order to avoid significant penalties under the...more
As 2017 comes to an end, we are pleased to present our traditional End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” Lists. This year, we are presenting our “To Do” Lists in four separate Employee Benefits Updates. This Part 1 will cover...more
10/18/2017
/ 21st Century Cures Act ,
AARP ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Breach Notification Rule ,
Cadillac Tax ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) ,
COBRA ,
Code Sections 4980H ,
Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disability Benefits ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Employee Assistance Programs ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Poverty Line ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Form 5500 ,
Form 720 ,
Full-Time Employees ,
Health Insurance Exchanges ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Information Letters ,
IRS ,
MHPAEA ,
Minimum Essential Coverage ,
Non-Grandfathered Health Plans ,
Open Enrollment ,
PCORI ,
Preventive Health Care ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) ,
Religious Exemption ,
SBC ,
Section 1557 ,
Section 6055 ,
Section 6056 ,
Shared Responsibility Rule ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Penalties ,
Telemedicine ,
Title VII ,
Trump Administration ,
Wellness Programs
The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Treasury (collectively, the “Departments”) during the first half of the year issued guidance in the form of Frequently Asked Questions (the “FAQs”) on certain...more
7/10/2013
/ Clinical Trials ,
Deductibles ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Discrimination ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employer Mandates ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Non-Grandfathered Health Plans ,
Out-of-Pocket Expenses ,
Preventive Health Care ,
U.S. Treasury