On March 20, a federal court in Ohio dismissed a tobacco premium surcharge lawsuit in its entirety for failure to state a claim. This marks the third time that a federal court has held that ERISA does not require employers...more
On March 3, 2026, a federal district court in Minnesota dismissed a lawsuit alleging that an employer imprudently managed its self-funded health plan’s prescription drug benefit, causing the plan participants to overpay for...more
On February 27, 2026, a federal court in New York granted a motion to dismiss a tobacco premium surcharge lawsuit. This is the now the third such lawsuit that has been dismissed, in its entirety, at the pleadings stage....more
Plaintiffs continue to file lawsuits against employers challenging wellness programs that impose a health insurance premium surcharge on participants if they use tobacco and do not complete a tobacco cessation course—in...more
In a widely anticipated and welcome move, the Departments of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), the Treasury, and Labor (“DOL”) (collectively, the “Departments”), sought an abeyance of a lawsuit challenging the Mental Health...more
In fall 2024, plaintiffs filed a wave of putative class action lawsuits against employers challenging wellness programs that impose a health coverage premium surcharge on participants if they do use tobacco or do not complete...more
On March 10, 2024, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint in a much-followed putative class action lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson (“J&J”) alleging that the plan fiduciaries for J&J’s group health plan violated ERISA by...more
There is a new series of putative class action lawsuits in which the plaintiffs allege that employers that sponsor self-funded health plans with health plan premium surcharges related to tobacco use or vaccination status...more
On September 25, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a putative class action lawsuit alleging that an employer violated ERISA by retaining approximately $65 million in...more
The Department of Labor (“the Department”) recently announced that it entered into settlement agreements with two group life insurance carriers regarding the carriers’ evidence of insurability (“EOI”) practices. These recent...more
The Paul Wellstone and Peter Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (“MHPAEA”) has increasingly been the focus of government enforcement activity and private plaintiff litigation. In its 2022 Report to...more