Fiduciary committees have long been established in connection with retirement plans to manage the investment, legal compliance, and operational risks that can arise under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974,...more
With the COVID-19 public health emergency and the presidential declaration of national emergency intended to end on May 11 and the US government recently issuing guidance on unwinding these emergency declarations, this...more
Permissible Flexibility under Code Section 125 Pursuant to IRS Notice 2021-15 Notice 2021-15 offered plan sponsors the flexibility to adopt any of the following options despite the longstanding rules under Section 125 of the...more
11/9/2021
/ Affordable Care Act ,
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
COBRA ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Mental Health Parity Rule ,
NQTLs ,
TPAs
As we get closer to the September 30 expiration date of the COBRA premium subsidy provided under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the IRS has issued a second set of FAQs in Notice 2021-46 (Notice) to supplement its prior...more
The Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2021-31, providing the much-anticipated guidance plan sponsors, multiemployer plans, and COBRA administrators have been waiting for related to the COBRA subsidy provisions under the...more
5/21/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
Infectious Diseases ,
IRS ,
New Legislation ,
Premium Subsidies ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Credits
As we described in our March 15, 2021 LawFlash, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) includes a 100% COBRA premium subsidy for any employee or dependent who is a COBRA qualified beneficiary ...more
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 includes a COBRA premium subsidy and increases the dependent care flexible spending account (DCFSA) limits. While the availability of the COBRA premium subsidy is a requirement, the...more
3/16/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dependent Care ,
Employee Benefits ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Health Insurance ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Legislation ,
Relief Measures
President Joseph R. Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March 11, which provides $1.9 trillion in relief funds across a broad spectrum of categories, including additional support for vaccine distribution,...more
3/11/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
CARES Act ,
Child Tax Credit ,
COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Defense Production Act ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Mortgages ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Credits ,
Tribal Governments ,
Unemployment Benefits
At the 11th hour, the US Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), with coordination and review by the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Health and Human Services (collectively, the...more
As we described in our LawFlash from last spring, the US Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) (collectively, the Agencies) issued EBSA Notice 2020-01...more
The US Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (DOL) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued guidance last week providing deadline and other relief affecting welfare plans and their sponsors and...more
5/8/2020
/ COBRA ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
EBSA ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Hardship Distributions ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
IRS ,
Popular ,
Retirement Plan
Group health plan sponsors turn their attention to completing 2013 tasks, implementing upcoming 2014 changes, preparing for the ACA Shared Responsibility requirement in 2015, and documenting recent extensive plan changes....more
12/19/2013
/ Affordable Care Act ,
COBRA ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Flexible Spending Accounts ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Healthcare ,
HRA ,
Mental Health Parity Rule ,
MHPAEA ,
Reporting Requirements ,
W-2 ,
Wellness Programs ,
Year-End Planning