In 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued 3 documents outlining guidance on cybersecurity practices for benefits plans, which we discussed in a blog post at the time. The DOL recently issued revised versions of the...more
9/12/2024
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Best Practices ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Fiduciary ,
Guidance Update ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Multi-Factor Authentication ,
Passwords ,
Pensions ,
Sensitive Personal Information
Both companies and their C-suite executives should be mindful of the interactions between COBRA and Medicare and their implications when negotiating a severance or retirement arrangement. This is because Medicare enrollment...more
Family building benefits continue to be top of mind as employers and plan sponsors implement new benefit programs to support family building journeys for their employees. At the same time, there have been a few recent...more
8/19/2024
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Compliance ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Employment Litigation ,
Fertility Treatments ,
Health Insurance ,
Health Plan Sponsors ,
Human Rights ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
Title VII
Plan sponsors of Code Section 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity plans (“403(b) plans”) that have not already done so may want to consider applying for an IRS determination letter or planning and budgeting for the process next year...more
As discussed in our prior blog post, on April 26, 2024, the Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) at the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) issued final regulations (“Reproductive Health Care Rule”) under the Health...more
The Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) at the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) recently issued final regulations (“Reproductive Health Care Rule”) under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of...more
5/10/2024
/ Abortion ,
Covered Entities ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
EMTALA ,
Executive Orders ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
OCR ,
PHI ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Reproductive Healthcare Issues ,
SCOTUS
On February 7, 2024, the IRS announced the second phase of its Pre-Examination Retirement Compliance Program... Under this program, sponsors will be notified that their plan is selected for examination and will have 90 days...more
Last week, the Departments of Labor, Treasury and Health and Human Services (“the Departments”) issued an FAQ about the final Transparency in Coverage rules (“TiC Rules”). This FAQ addresses compliance with cost‑sharing...more
As previously discussed, the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0”) was signed into law on December 29, 2022 as part of the 2023 Consolidated Appropriations Act, and included a myriad of required and optional plan design...more
Proskauer’s Asian Lawyer Affinity Group and Ares teamed up for a dynamic Q&A with fashion luminary and activist Phillip Lim, delving into the interplay between identity and entrepreneurship. Moderated by Ares' COO Jana...more
The IRS recently issued Notice 2023-43 providing new interim guidance for self-correction of plan errors. This guidance applies to corrections made prior to the anticipated issuance of revisions to the Employee Plans...more
In the wake of the recent news of bank failures, businesses—and their investors—are rightly concerned about the implications of a missed or delayed payroll. Let’s look at those implications, and strategies for minimizing...more
In the wake of the recent news of bank failures, businesses—and their investors—are rightly concerned about the implications of a missed or delayed payroll. Let’s look at those implications, and strategies for minimizing...more
As part of our continuing series on SECURE 2.0, signed into law December 29, 2022, this post focuses on significant changes for section 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity plans (“403(b) plans”). 403(b) plans are similar to 401(a)...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 (“CAA 2023”), signed into law on December 29, introduced sweeping reforms to the employee benefits landscape. Not only do the CAA 2023’s “SECURE 2.0” provisions make some...more
The IRS issued new proposed regulations that would permanently change the rules that require spousal consent for plan distributions to be signed in the physical presence of a notary or plan representative. Specifically, the...more
On October 21st, the IRS announced changes to its qualified plan determination letter program. Most notably, the program has been expanded to include section 403(b) tax-sheltered annuity plans (“403(b) plans”). Although...more
Perhaps channeling the old adage of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” the IRS recently released Notice 2022-27 extending through December 31, 2022 its temporary relief from the requirement that spousal consent for plan...more
The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) recently issued proposed regulations affecting certain reporting deadlines under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“ACA”). Specifically, proposed regulations would make...more
Proskauer’s 26th Annual Trick or Treat Seminar was held virtually on Friday, October 29th and discussed timely topics and best practices specifically tailored to the not-for-profit community. ...more
11/3/2021
/ Best Practices ,
CARES Act ,
Charitable Donations ,
Charitable Organizations ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Mandates ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Hardship Distributions ,
Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Legislative Agendas ,
OSHA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
SECURE Act ,
Tax Exempt Entities ,
Tax Reform ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Just when we were about to draft our blog reminding plans of the expiration of the temporary relief. . . The IRS has now issued Notice 2021-40 extending for another year the temporary relief from the requirement that spousal...more
On May 18, 2021, the IRS released Notice 2021-31 (the “Notice”) providing guidance on the temporary 100% COBRA premium subsidy under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”), summarized generally here. The Notice...more
One important question that arises when determining whether an individual is eligible for the COBRA premium subsidy under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”) is whether the employee has experienced an involuntary...more
In an earlier post we reviewed the end dates for the ARP COBRA premium subsidy provided by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”), and addressed the required expiration notice. This post revisits the topic in light of...more
Due to tight timelines and an initial sprint to issue the special extended COBRA election period notices by the May 31st deadline, plan administrators may not have focused on the other COBRA-related notice requirements under...more
4/22/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Premium Subsidies ,
Relief Measures ,
Special Election