Medicare premiums are rising sharply next year, cutting into the large Social Security cost-of-living increase. The basic monthly premium will jump 15.5 percent, or $21.60, from $148.50 to $170.10 a month. The Centers for...more
Patient access to behavioral health and substance use disorder services has increasingly become the subject of legislation. Although the federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA), introduced in 2008,...more
During 2020, a number of newly enacted laws created flexibility for various employee benefit plans. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (the “Act”), which was signed into law on December 27, 2020, provides additional...more
Massachusetts began this year by enacting comprehensive health care legislation that will have a lasting impact on the provision of telehealth within the Commonwealth. Massachusetts had previously expanded the use of...more
Effective March 18, 2020, group health plans and health insurance policies are required to pay for COVID-19 testing and related health provider visits, without imposing any cost sharing requirements, such as a deductible,...more
HDHP and HSA participants - The IRS has expanded prior guidance to allow health plans to pay first-dollar costs for testing and treatment of COVID-19 without jeopardizing the participant’s HSA eligibility. ...more
Background. These days, almost all employer-sponsored group health plans require an employee (and any dependents) covered under the plan (each are referred to as a “member”) to pay “out-of-pocket” for covered expenses in the...more
Employer plans will still be able to exclude the value of drug manufacturer coupons from annual out-of-pocket maximums, even when no generic equivalent is available, under new guidance from the Department of Labor, Department...more
“You scratch my back, I scratch yours” arrangements are common in business transactions. These agreements are risky in the healthcare space, however, with the potential to implicate civil and criminal sanctions. Whether...more