There were several significant legal developments relating to employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) last year. This information memo will summarize a few of the most important developments. ...more
Group health plan sponsors that are providing the temporary COBRA premium subsidy required by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) must provide advance notice to certain recipients that the COBRA subsidy will end. The notice...more
On April 7, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) released model notices that can be used by group health plan sponsors to notify laid off employees and other “assistance eligible individuals” about the COBRA premium...more
On April 2, 2021, the three federal Departments that regulate health plans and health insurance (Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services) published guidance on the recently enacted changes to the Mental Health Parity...more
The IRS recently announced that the costs of masks, hand sanitizers and other "personal protective equipment" (PPE) used for the primary purpose of preventing the spread of coronavirus are qualifying medical expenses under...more
On July 15, 2020, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) published a final rule that, for the third time in as many years, significantly amended its regulations on the confidentiality of...more
The SECURE Act (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act), signed into law on December 20, 2019, included several significant changes relating to qualified retirement plans. Our previous Information Memo...more
On May 27, 2020, the United States Department of Labor (DOL) published a Final Rule that establishes an alternative “safe harbor” method by which retirement plan administrators can provide participant disclosures and notices...more
In an earlier information memo we described the coverage mandate for coronavirus testing and related items and services imposed on health plans under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Congress subsequently...more
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic uncertainty, 401(k) plan sponsors can expect to see a significant increase in employee requests to withdraw funds from their plan accounts....more
Late on March 18, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the Act), a package of new laws that had been pushed through Congress in response to the COVID-19 pandemic....more
On the last day of its 2019 session, the California legislature passed six bills that amend and clarify key provisions of the California Consumer Privacy Act (the “CCPA”), the state’s landmark 2018 data privacy law. The CCPA,...more
12/5/2019
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Administrators of qualified retirement plans have always had to deal with the problem of “missing participants” – that is, terminated vested participants for whom the administrator does not have a current mailing address or...more
With the Congress and the President aligned to repeal the Affordable Care Act, there are now renewed efforts to make further changes designed to close perceived loopholes in eligibility for long term care. On February 1, 2017...more
In final regulations issued on September 28, 2016, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency within the Health and Human Services Department, banned the use of binding pre-dispute arbitration agreements by...more
Three lawsuits filed in early August suggest that plaintiffs’ law firms, representing employees of colleges and universities, are looking at higher education retirement plans as potential targets for lawsuits seeking millions...more
The Office of Civil Rights (OCR), the agency within the United States Department of Health and Human Services that enforces the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules, recently sent a clear message about the importance of business...more