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
HDHP and HSA participants - The IRS has expanded prior guidance to allow health plans to pay first-dollar costs for testing and treatment of COVID-19 without jeopardizing the participant’s HSA eligibility. ...more
Employers and health plans that want to provide some relief for participants during the spread of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease COVID-19) may waive deductibles for COVID-19 testing without...more
On March 11, 2020, the IRS issued Notice 2020-15, allowing health savings account (HSA)-compatible high deductible health plans (HDHPs) to provide coverage for testing and treatment of COVID-19-related services without an...more
Employers across the country are currently considering what actions to put in place in light of the potential spread of COVID-19 (the coronavirus). Many employers offer their employees high-deductible health plans that can...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a notice that allows individuals to participate in a health savings account (HSA) while participating in a high deductible health plan (HDHP) that provides coverage for both the...more
Benefit plan sponsors are responding to participant questions about the coronavirus/COVID-19. In particular, employers’ HR departments are fielding questions about whether their health plan will pay for any necessary testing...more
With the news about the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) in the U.S. and the world rapidly evolving, group health plan sponsors need to address how the plan will provide virus-related benefits. ...more
In response to the Coronavirus (“COVID-19”), the Internal Revenue Service advised that a health plan that otherwise satisfies the requirements to be a High Deductible Health Plan (“HDHP”) under section 223(c)(2)(A) will not...more
On March 11, the IRS issued Notice 2020-15. The new guidance permits high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) to pay for 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing and treatment without a deductible (or with a deductible below the...more
The IRS issued guidance on March 11 that clears the way for employers to offer employees covered by a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) testing and treatment for the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) with no deductible or at...more
On August 22, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia held that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (“EEOC”) regulations defining what incentives an employer may use to promote participation...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: After an employee lost his employer-funded health insurance because he failed to complete a medical examination required by his employer, the EEOC sued the employer under the ADA’s ban on involuntary...more
On January 25, 2017, in Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Flambeau, Inc., the Seventh Circuit rejected an EEOC challenge to an employer wellness program. The circuit court had the opportunity to address whether an...more
Wellness programs are trending in the U.S., especially with employers looking for ways to encourage and promote healthy lifestyles for their employees and to reduce the cost of their self-insured group health plan. Regardless...more
Trial to Be Scheduled on Retaliation Claim - MILWAUKEE - A federal court has ruled in favor of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in a disability discrimination case involving wellness programs filed...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: After the EEOC brought an action under the Americans With Disabilities Act against an employer who implemented a wellness program requiring employees to take a health assessment to participate, the Court...more
As we reported last month, the final Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) rules require employers who offer wellness programs that include disability-related inquiries or medical examinations to provide a written notice to...more
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today posted on its website a sample notice that will help employers who have wellness programs comply with their obligations under a recently issued...more
On June 16, 2016, the EEOC issued its model notice to be used in conjunction with wellness programs that ask disability related inquiries or require medical examinations. The notice requirement applies prospectively to...more
In its preamble to the final regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) published May 17, 2016, which will be the topic of an upcoming blog post, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) once...more
On May 17, 2016, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued two rules specifying how employer-sponsored wellness plans can comply with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and the Americans...more
On May 17, 2016, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued two final rules relating to how employer-sponsored wellness programs may comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Genetic...more
On May 16, 2016, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued two final rules regarding employer wellness plans, the first to amend existing regulations under the Genetic Information and Non-Discrimination Act...more
On May 16, 2016, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued final rules on employer-sponsored wellness programs. The final rules clarify the EEOC’s position on wellness plan compliance with the Americans...more