The No Surprises Act: A Cost Saving Opportunity for Employer Plan Sponsors
Under Section 404 of ERISA, plan fiduciaries must act for the exclusive benefit of plan participants and beneficiaries and use plan assets only to provide benefits and defray reasonable expenses of administering the plan. In...more
The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (“MHPAEA”) provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (“CAA”) introduced a requirement that group health plans and insurance providers offering both medical and...more
Plan participants can be hit with surprise medical bills when they receive care from out-of-network providers. Sometimes, this happens when participants do not know that the care they are receiving is from an out-of-network...more
In this edition of our newsletter, we have summarized key third quarter guidance from the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"), Department of Labor ("DOL"), and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation ("PBGC"). As we look back on...more
On June 21, 2018, the Department of Labor (the “DOL”) issued new regulations giving official status to a previously proposed new form of Association Health Plans (“AHPs”). A qualified AHP, while covering the employees 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
What are Association Health Plans? Association Health Plans allow small employers or self-employed individuals to group together to form a larger pool for offering health insurance. An Association Health Plan model can...more
In a year-end flurry of activity, Congress adopted major tax and spending legislation, which was signed into law on Friday, December 18 by President Obama. The legislation, called the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016...more
With the end of 2015 fast approaching, employers should be aware of certain issues under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”), the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”) and...more
Employers and plan sponsors must comply with numerous filing and notice deadlines for their retirement and health and welfare plans. Failure to comply with these deadlines can result in costly penalties. To avoid such...more
On November 6, 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (DOL) published Technical Release 2014-01, which provides technical guidance to States concerning stop-loss insurance. Stop-loss...more
Although the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA” or the “Act”) is now over three years old, the Act’s core requirements will not take effect until 2014....more