Last week, President Biden signed legislation formally ending the COVID-19 national emergency that was originally declared under the Trump administration in March 2020. The bill to end the national emergency, H. J. Res. 7, was advanced by House Republicans. It passed the House of Representatives in February by a vote of 229–197 and passed the Senate last month by a vote of 68–23. The national emergency that the bill ends is distinct from the public health emergency declared by HHS, which remains in effect, but is set to expire on May 11, 2023.

The end of the national emergency means certain emergency powers will no longer be available to government agencies. It will also cause certain temporary regulations relating to employee benefits to terminate. In May 2020, the Departments of Labor and Treasury and the IRS published a joint notice, Extension of Certain Timeframes for Employee Benefit Plans, Participants, and Beneficiaries Affected by the COVID-19 Outbreak (the Joint Notice). The Joint Notice provided for certain time periods for special enrollment, COBRA continuation coverage, internal claims and appeals, and external review to be disregarded during the COVID-19 national emergency. These temporary regulations are set to expire in June 2023, sixty days after the end of the national emergency. In March of this year, the Departments of Labor and Treasury published an FAQ that discusses the end of these temporary regulations. The FAQ also discusses other changes that will result when the public health emergency ends on May 11, 2023.

For a copy of the bill, click here.