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
The Biden administration intends to end the national emergency and public health emergency declarations (Emergency Declarations) attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11, 2023. The COVID-19 pandemic brought multiple...more
The US Departments of Labor, Health & Human Services, and Treasury issued new frequently asked questions on February 4, 2022, regarding coverage of over-the-counter, at-home COVID-19 tests at no cost sharing (i.e.,...more
The US Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (collectively, the Departments) on January 10 published much-anticipated FAQs implementing President Joseph Biden’s announcement last month to expand...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
Immediately following his inauguration on January 20, US President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. began taking executive action to enact many of his administration’s initial priorities, which included a number of executive orders,...more
1/22/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
DACA ,
Eviction ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreclosure ,
Infectious Diseases ,
LGBTQ ,
Masks ,
Moratorium ,
Muslims ,
Paris Agreement ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Regulatory Mandates ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Travel Ban ,
Workplace Safety
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Act) that was signed into law on December 27, 2020 contains provisions impacting employer sponsored group health plans, including protecting group health plan participants from...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
The US Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (Departments) issued a set of 14 frequently asked questions (FAQs) on April 11....more
4/16/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Federal Loans ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
U.S. Treasury
Dear Retail Clients and Friends, This edition of Morgan Lewis Retail Did You Know? examines how the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act impacts companies in the retail and hospitality sector...more
With broad bipartisan support, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act or Act), signed into law by the president on March 27, provides a $2 trillion economic stimulus and contains numerous and...more
4/7/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Federal Loans ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Health Insurance ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Relief Measures ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement Plan ,
Tax Relief
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Act), signed into law Wednesday, requires group health plans to provide coverage for coronavirus (COVID-19) diagnostic testing, including the cost of healthcare provider visits (as...more
3/23/2020
/ Clinical Laboratory Testing ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
New Legislation ,
Relief Measures ,
Sick Leave ,
Sick Pay ,
Telehealth ,
TPAs ,
Trump Administration
Morgan Lewis’s seven employee benefits and executive compensation substantive task forces are available to help employers evaluate and troubleshoot potential issues arising from the changing work environment and economic...more
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Act), signed into law Wednesday, requires group health plans to provide coverage for coronavirus (COVID-19) diagnostic testing, including the cost of healthcare provider visits (as...more
Since the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) was first detected in December, the death toll has continued to rise as the virus quickly spreads. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) officials have stated that while the immediate...more
3/2/2020
/ Best Practices ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disclosure ,
Electronic Protected Health Information (ePHI) ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Privacy Rule ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OCR ,
Patient Privacy Rights ,
PHI ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Workplace Safety