On April 17, 2025, the Supreme Court resolved a circuit split on the appropriate pleading standard for a specific type of prohibited transaction claim under ERISA. While that decision may sound dry and technical, the...more
4/22/2025
/ 403(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Cunningham v Cornell University ,
Employee Benefits ,
ERISA Litigation ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Pleading Standards ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Retirement Plan ,
SCOTUS ,
Split of Authority
The DOL recently updated the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP). The VFCP encourages employers to voluntarily correct certain violations of ERISA to avoid DOL civil enforcement penalties....more
Laws enacted at the end of 2024 made important changes to the ACA reporting requirements. The laws codified an alternative option for furnishing certain forms to individuals and authorized the IRS to issue new guidance on the...more
3/3/2025
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Employee Benefits ,
Filing Requirements ,
Form 1095 ,
Health Insurance ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
New Guidance ,
Posting Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Tax Forms
March 1 brings two annual deadlines for employers that sponsor a group health plan for their employees....more
This alert describes upcoming reporting deadlines under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and under state laws that require similar reporting. Generally, reporting that relates to health coverage in one calendar year is due early...more
President Biden recently signed into law the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act and the Employer Reporting Improvement Act. These new laws make important changes to the Affordable Care Act (ACA)....more
Next year, President-elect Donald Trump's administration will begin implementing its agenda. The new administration's priorities and positions on certain benefits-related issues are expected to take a dramatic shift from...more
12/23/2024
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Biden Administration ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration
The end of 2024 brings important deadlines and dates for employers that sponsor 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, governmental 457(b) plans, and group health plans....more
12/3/2024
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
457(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Filing Deadlines ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Retirement Plan ,
Year-End Planning
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced 2025 dollar limits on benefits, contributions, and compensation. The Internal Revenue Code (Code) affords tax benefits for employers that sponsor qualified plans and for...more
11/6/2024
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Contribution Limits ,
Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Savings Accounts ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Qualified Retirement Plans ,
Retirement Plan ,
Social Security Administration (SSA)
The government recently issued final rules on the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA). The rules require most employers—including most nonprofits—to take action by January 1, 2025....more
The government recently issued final rules on the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA). The rules implement requirements for plans to conduct a comparative analysis of their nonquantitative treatment...more
10/16/2024
/ Effective Date ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Fiduciary ,
Final Rules ,
Health Insurance ,
Mental Health ,
Mental Health Parity Rule ,
MHPAEA ,
NQTLs ,
Self-Funded Health Plans ,
Substance Abuse
Does your company's health plan provide prescription drug coverage? If so, you have until October 15, 2024 to send a notice to individuals who are enrolled in Medicare Part A or Part B and are eligible for the company's...more
9/27/2024
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Deadlines ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part A ,
Medicare Part B ,
Notice Requirements ,
Prescription Drug Coverage ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Required Forms
The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 made significant design changes to Medicare Part D effective January 1, 2025. The changes will cause an increase in the actuarial value of Medicare Part D coverage, which will impact...more
By July 31, employers that sponsor self-funded medical plans must report and pay their PCORI fee. By July 31, employers that sponsor calendar-year employee benefit plans that are subject to ERISA must file a Form 5500 (unless...more
Employer group health plans must make an annual disclosure of the plan's prescription drug and healthcare spending to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The disclosure, called the Prescription Drug Data...more
February 29 brings two annual deadlines for employers that sponsor a group health plan for their employees.
Medicare Part D—Creditable Coverage Disclosure to CMS -
An employer with a group health plan that provides...more
This alert describes upcoming reporting deadlines under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and under state laws that require similar reporting. Generally, reporting that relates to health coverage in one calendar year is due early...more
The end of 2023 brings important deadlines for employers that sponsor 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, and group health plans....more
Beginning in 2024, almost all employers will need to file their Affordable Care Act (ACA) forms electronically. Previously, employers were required to file electronically only if they were filing 250 or more of a specific...more
Does your company's health plan provide prescription drug coverage? If so, you have until October 15, 2023 to send a notice to individuals who are enrolled in Medicare Part A or Part B and are eligible for the company's...more
10/4/2023
/ Deadlines ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part A ,
Medicare Part B ,
Medicare Part D ,
Notice Requirements ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Required Forms ,
Time Extensions
On August 25, 2023, the IRS issued guidance delaying until January 1, 2026 the SECURE 2.0 requirement that any age 50 catch-up contributions by an employee with prior-year compensation over $145,000 be made on a Roth basis,...more
By July 31, employers that sponsor self-funded medical plans must report and pay their PCORI fee. By July 31, employers that sponsor calendar-year employee benefit plans that are subject to ERISA must file a Form 5500 (unless...more
March 1 brings two annual deadlines for employers that sponsor a group health plan for their employees.
Medicare Part D—Creditable Coverage Disclosure to CMS -
An employer with a group health plan that provides...more
Earlier this week, President Biden announced his intent to end both the COVID-19 National Emergency and the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) on May 11, 2023. Once these emergencies end, group health plans will shed some...more
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023. This legislation includes the highly anticipated SECURE 2.0 Act, which expands and supplements the original SECURE Act of 2019....more
1/19/2023
/ 401k ,
403(b) Plans ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Contribution Limits ,
Employee Benefits ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Natural Disasters ,
Relief Measures ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Roth IRA ,
Safe Harbors ,
SECURE Act ,
Student Loans