Employers often target benefit offerings to specific groups of workers—think dependent care accounts or student loan repayment matching contributions—so maybe it was inevitable....more
The U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and U.S. Department of the Treasury recently issued regulatory guidance on the requirement that health plans cover pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)...more
A federal court ruling staying key parts of new Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations in light of the landmark Supreme Court of the United States ruling on sexual orientation and gender identity will provide little certainty...more
Most employer-sponsored health plans will be exempt from the primary Affordable Care Act (ACA) provision governing race, color, age, sex, disability, and national origin discrimination under new final rules issued by the U.S....more
High-deductible health plans may now cover testing and treatment for 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) on a first-dollar basis without risking making participants ineligible to participate in health savings accounts (HSAs)....more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Notice 2019-63 on December 2, 2019 providing some relief from Affordable Care Act (ACA) reporting requirements. The notice provides relief consistent with that provided in the past...more
12/11/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Employer Mandates ,
Form 1095 ,
Good Faith ,
Health Insurance ,
Individual Mandate ,
Insurance Industry ,
IRS ,
New Guidance ,
Relief Measures ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Time Extensions
Employer-sponsored health plans and health insurers may be required to post online - and to provide participants upon request - a range of pricing and cost-sharing information beginning in 2021.
Proposed Affordable Care...more
11/26/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Cost-Sharing ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Costs ,
Hospitals ,
Out-of-Pocket Expenses ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Transparency
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
8/28/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Co-payments ,
Deductibles ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Generic Drugs ,
Health Insurance ,
IRS ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Prescription Drugs ,
U.S. Treasury
Regulations published last month grant employers more options for covering their employees with health insurance, effective January 1, 2020. The regulations will be particularly favorable to higher education institutions....more
Starting in 2020, employers will be able to offer health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) that work in conjunction with individual coverage or Medicare without running afoul of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) market reform...more