Many plan sponsors have read about the lawsuit filed against Johnson & Johnson alleging that it breached its fiduciary duties with regard to the prescription drug component of its group health plan, causing participants to...more
Under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ("ARPA"), a 100% COBRA subsidy is available to qualified beneficiaries who lose coverage due to an involuntary termination of employment or reduction in hours. The subsidy is...more
Under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ("ARPA"), a 100% COBRA subsidy is available to qualified beneficiaries who lose coverage due to an involuntary termination of employment or reduction in hours. The subsidy is...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act ("CAA") includes a number of provisions enhancing transparency in the operation of group health plans. One of those provisions will require brokers and consultants to make fee disclosures...more
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ("ARPA") includes a 100% COBRA subsidy for "assistance eligible individuals" during the six-month period of April 1, 2021 through September 30, 2021. Following is a summary of the COBRA...more
3/24/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
COBRA ,
Dependent Care ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
Notice Requirements ,
Popular ,
Subsidies ,
Tax Credits ,
Termination
The Department of Labor (DOL), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) (collectively, Agencies) issued final regulations in November 2020 requiring non-grandfathered group...more
The IRS recently issued Notice 2021-15 to provide guidance on certain provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020 (the "CAA") affecting the administration of flexible spending accounts ("FSAs"). The CAA changes...more
The IRS recently announced the ACA affordability threshold for 2021 at 9.83%, a small increase from the 2020 level of 9.78%. In order to avoid triggering a penalty under Section 4980H(b) of the Internal Revenue Code (the...more
In Notice 2020-29, the IRS gave plan sponsors additional flexibility to allow participants to make certain mid-year cafeteria plan election changes during calendar year 2020 without regard to the restrictions that typically...more
The DOL and IRS recently issued final regulations (the “Final Rule“) that extend notice and premium payment periods for participants and plans under COBRA. Specifically, a group health plan must disregard the period from...more
The IRS issued final regulations on June 20, 2019 (the “Final Regulations”), which will allow employers to offer two new categories of health reimbursement accounts (“HRAs”) for plan years beginning on or after January 1,...more
The Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued final regulations in June 2018, which loosened the DOL’s long-standing sub-regulatory guidance and allowed more organizations to form Association Health Plans (“AHPs”). ...more
With all the heated rhetoric surrounding the Affordable Care Act ("ACA"), including the President's Executive Order issued on January 20, 2017 and the recent efforts to repeal and replace the law, employers and individuals...more
Effective January 1, 2017, small employers with fewer than 50 full-time employees will be allowed to offer employees a standalone health reimbursement account (“HRA”) without being subject to an excise tax under a law passed...more
Despite guidance from the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), the Department of Labor (“DOL”) and the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) indicating the prohibition of the practice under the Affordable Care Act...more
5/29/2015
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
IRS ,
Medical Reimbursement ,
Penalties ,
Popular ,
S-Corporation ,
SHOP Program