Affordable Care Act, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), Employer Group Health Plans

Fifty Years of ERISA

Lathrop GPM on 9/5/2024

On Labor Day fifty years ago, September 2, 1974, President Ford signed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) into law. It is a combination of tax and labor law incorporating trust law like fiduciary...more

Group Medical Captives, Level Funding and US Healthcare Policy

McDermott Will & Emery on 6/19/2024

In a recent article in Managed Healthcare Executive, Peter Wehrwein examines the trend of self-funding of group health benefits by smaller employers who used to depend mainly or entirely on fully insured programs....more

Year-End Health Benefits Roundup 2023

Alston & Bird on 12/7/2023

It was a lively year for health benefits. Our Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group unpacks 2023, from the end of the COVID-19 emergencies to the much-anticipated Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act...more

2023 End-of-Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” Lists (Part 1) Health and Welfare

Snell & Wilmer on 10/12/2023

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

Compliance Alert: CAA, 2023 Eliminates MHPAEA Exemption for Self-Funded Non-Federal Governmental Health Plans

Woodruff Sawyer on 1/13/2023

On December 29, 2022, the President signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (“CAA, 2023”), into law. The CAA, 2023, which is largely a bipartisan spending bill, sunsets provisions of the Public Health Service Act...more

When Will the Pandemic End for Employer-Sponsored Health Plans?

Laner Muchin, Ltd. on 8/29/2022

While many in the U.S. have attempted to resume a sense of normalcy despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, for employer-sponsored health plans, special “emergency” pandemic rules and extensions remain in effect. As previously...more

Abortion as an Employee Health Benefit – How to Protect against Potential Liability Post-Dobbs

Pillsbury - Policyholder Pulse blog on 8/1/2022

Amazon. Bank of America. Citigroup. Dick’s Sporting Goods. JP Morgan. Kroger. Meta. Microsoft. Procter & Gamble. Target. Walt Disney Company. These are just a few of what is a growing list of companies that have offered to...more

Employer Provided Travel Benefits in Response to Dobbs and State Prohibitions on Abortion

Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt PC on 7/22/2022

The implications of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that overturned Roe v. Wade’s constitutional right to abortion have had sweeping implications that affect...more

Medical Travel Reimbursement Benefits Under the Supreme Court’s New Dobbs Decision

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on 6/24/2022

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its highly anticipated decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, No. 19-1392. The Dobbs decision expressly overrules the two key precedents that...more

Roe Overturned! Meeting Employee Healthcare Needs Post-Roe

BCLP on 6/24/2022

The constitutional right to abortion has been eliminated. The Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, undoing a federal standard that had legalized abortions since 1973. ...more

I’m Leaving On A Jet Plane…Is Abortion Care Travel a Covered Benefit?

Holland & Hart - The Benefits Dial on 5/24/2022

The focus of this week’s post is on an emerging hot topic, abortion care travel reimbursement. Reimbursement for travel to obtain abortion care was already something being considered by a number of companies in response to...more

The Cost of Employee Benefits Non-Compliance Just Went Up . . . Again

Fisher Phillips on 11/30/2021

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) just announced increased penalty amounts for entities who violate the privacy, security, and breach notification rules under the Health Insurance Portability and...more

Federal Regulators Clarify the Application of HIPAA Privacy and Nondiscrimination Rules to COVID-19 Vaccines in the Workplace

Laner Muchin, Ltd. on 10/18/2021

On September 30, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued FAQs addressing how the HIPAA Privacy Rule applies to individuals’ disclosures of their COVID-19 vaccination status in the workplace and health...more

Federal Agencies Issue FAQ on Health Plan Premium Discounts for COVID-19 Vaccinations

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP on 10/15/2021

The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a set of Frequently Asked Questions about the interaction of HIPAA, the Affordable Care Act, and various group health plan issues relating to the COVID-19...more

Health Plan Surcharge for Unvaccinated Employees: New Guidance Provides a Roadmap

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on 10/7/2021

Employers that are considering imposing health plan premium surcharges to encourage their employees to get vaccinated have clearer guidance on how to do so without running afoul of the nondiscrimination rules under the Health...more

Money Money Money: How Much Can The Health Plan Surcharge On Unvaccinated Employees Be?

Jackson Lewis P.C. on 9/20/2021

In light of the lingering COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on employee productivity and health care expenses, employers are considering imposing a premium surcharge on employees participating in the company’s health plan who...more

Imposing Group Health Plan Monthly Surcharges on the Unvaccinated

Mintz - Employment Viewpoints on 9/16/2021

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

PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Can Employers Impose a Health Insurance Surcharge on Plan Participants Not...

Williams Mullen on 9/9/2021

On this episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion, host Brydon DeWitt explores compliance considerations for employers who are considering imposing a health insurance surcharge on plan participants who are not...more

What To Consider Before Implementing A Health Insurance Surcharge For Unvaccinated Employees

Amundsen Davis LLC on 9/8/2021

The recent announcement that Delta Airlines will begin imposing a $200 per month health insurance surcharge on unvaccinated employees has prompted many employers to consider whether a similar surcharge may be an alternative...more

Can Employers Charge Higher Group Medical Insurance Premiums for Unvaccinated Employees?

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP on 8/30/2021

As many companies continue to struggle with low employee COVID-19 vaccination rates, some employers are evaluating imposing higher premiums for unvaccinated employees under their group medical plans. These employers see this...more

Incentives: From Water Bottles To “Not So Substantial”

Jackson Lewis P.C. on 6/2/2021

For years (and we do mean years), the EEOC has waffled about whether incentives were permissible in connection with a medical inquiry under a voluntary wellness program. Friday, the EEOC issued its most recent pronouncement...more

EEOC Proposes New Incentive Limits for Workplace Wellness Programs

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP on 1/26/2021

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) proposed two new regulations on January 7 applying the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) to...more

EEOC Proposed Wellness Regulation Restricts Incentives For Voluntary Programs But Offers Path For Programs That Satisfy ACA...

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive... on 1/18/2021

On January 7th, the EEOC released proposed new regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) for employer-offered wellness programs. (As of January 15,...more

What's In Those Proposed Wellness Regs?

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP on 1/15/2021

Some Q and A. Last week (while I was on vacay), the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued proposed regulations on wellness programs and the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Genetic Information...more

2020 End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” List (Part 1) Health and Welfare

Snell & Wilmer on 9/28/2020

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

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) › Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) › Employer Group Health Plans

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