In response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, on May 12, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Code Section 125 (cafeteria plan) guidance (see IRS Notice 2020-29 and Notice 2020-33) that allows employers to...more
The US Department of Labor, in conjunction with the Internal Revenue Service and US Department of the Treasury, issued guidance and deadline extensions applicable to ERISA-governed group health and welfare plans. The guidance...more
The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury have jointly issued an FAQ regarding implementation of the various requirements for group health plans under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act and...more
In the ongoing effort to help individuals impacted by COVID-19, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Securities Act (the “CARES Act” or “Act”) on March 27, 2020. The President signed the Act into law the...more
4/1/2020
/ Business Interruption ,
CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Federal Loans ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Relief Measures ,
SBA ,
SBA Lending Programs ,
Small Business ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Relief ,
Unemployment Insurance
Coronavirus (COVID-19) raises serious concerns for employers of all shapes and sizes, across all industries and in every business sector. As the impact of COVID-19 continues to grow, many employers are faced with new...more
As part of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the “Act”), Congress eliminated patient cost-sharing for Coronavirus (COVID-19) diagnostic testing and related services provided under employer-sponsored group health...more
As the globe grapples with increasing challenges to sustaining “business as usual” in their enterprises, our team of Employment, Employee Benefits, Health and Privacy & Cybersecurity lawyers invite you to join us for...more
3/17/2020
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Security ,
Data-Sharing ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employment Policies ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
Health Savings Accounts ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Paid Time Off (PTO) ,
Personal Data ,
Public Health ,
Quarantine ,
Remote Working ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Sick Leave ,
Webinars ,
Workplace Safety
The Supreme Court ruled in 2012 that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was constitutional pursuant to Congress’ power to levy taxes. Since that decision, Congress reduced the ACA’s individual mandate’s tax penalty to $0. With the...more
A new IRS notice will allow individuals to receive testing and care for COVID-19 without jeopardizing their ability to contribute to a health savings account (HSA). The IRS issued the notice due to the public health threat...more
An increasing number of jurisdictions around the country, including parts of California, New Jersey and Washington, DC, are mandating that employers provide commuter benefit programs that allow employees to pay for commuting...more
The SECURE Act, signed into law on December 20, 2019, is the broadest piece of retirement legislation passed in 13 years. It aims to enhance and expand retirement security for more Americans, in part, by encouraging plan...more
1/15/2020
/ 401k ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employee Benefits ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Providers ,
SECURE Act ,
Webinars
The SECURE Act—the most significant piece of retirement plan legislation in more than a decade—is now law. Plan sponsors should immediately start considering how changes included in the SECURE Act could impact their...more
1/8/2020
/ 401k ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Health and Welfare Plans ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Required Minimum Distributions ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Safe Harbors ,
SECURE Act
An employer learned the full cost of ambiguity when a Connecticut federal district court agreed with an employee’s widow that the word “maximum” was ambiguous in the company’s life insurance plan, thus making the widow...more
9/12/2019
/ Ambiguous ,
Beneficiaries ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Contract Interpretation ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Death Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Equitable Interests ,
Insurance Industry ,
Insurance Litigation ,
Life Insurance ,
Summary Judgment ,
Widows
The IRS issued a private letter ruling (PLR) this week indicating that an FSA (and presumably an HSA and HRA) may reimburse a portion of the purchase of genetic testing and reports regarding ancestry and health. The IRS noted...more
A Third Circuit appeals panel upheld the lower court ruling in Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. President United States of America et al. No. 17-3752. This ruling grants a nationwide preliminary injunction against the...more
The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC), Fidelity and McDermott invite you to join your peers and colleagues for breakfast and an interactive discussion around hot topics in benefits and compensation. Areas of focus will...more
The Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services have released final rules removing the prohibition on pairing HRAs with individual health policies. The final rules also allow certain HRAs and other...more
7/30/2019
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Group Health Plans ,
Final Rules ,
Health Insurance ,
HRA ,
Pay or Play ,
Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Plan (QSEHRAs) ,
U.S. Treasury
A new IRS notice will allow many with chronic health conditions who participate in high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) with health savings accounts (HSAs) to receive necessary care that may otherwise be out of financial...more
The US Supreme Court declined to review a recent Ninth Circuit decision, blocking the interim rules that exempted employers with religious or moral objections from providing birth control coverage required by the Affordable...more
Last week, the Department of Labor (DOL) responded to the district court decision striking down the final regulations expanding the ability for a group of unrelated employers to form an organization in order to offer health...more
On March 28, a District of Columbia federal court agreed with a New York-led challenge by a group of 11 states and the District of Columbia and found that the Department of Labor’s (DOL) 2018 association health plan (AHP)...more
Join McDermott lawyers Samantha Souza and David Fuller for an interactive discussion around the implications of providing fringe benefits to your employees. Sam and David will walk through the tax impact of seemingly...more
On January 14, 2019, US District Judge Wendy Beetlestone in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania issued a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration’s carveouts to the...more
Late in the afternoon on Friday, December 14, Federal US District Judge Reed O’Connor struck down the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in its entirety, a feat that was, for the past few years, unsuccessfully attempted by the...more
Yesterday, November 29, 2018, the IRS released Notice 2018-94. This notice extends the due date for furnishing to individuals the 2018 Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, and the 2018 Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance...more