PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Gag Clause Prohibitions
Changing Telehealth Rules
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Health Plan Transparency Requirements
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Group Health Plan Service Provider Compensation Disclosure Requirements
Podcast: What's New for Insurers in Mental Health Parity Compliance - Diagnosing Health Care
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Employee Retention Tax Credit Expansion
Department of Labor Imposes Additional Requirement on Employer-Provided Health Services
COVID-19 Relief in 2021: What Small Businesses Need to Know
On-Demand Webinar | Navigating Leave and Disability Protection Laws During COVID-19: A Practical Guide for California Employers
COVID-19 in the Workplace - PPP Update, COVID Plans from the Biden Transition Team, Higher Education Relief Package Provision, COVID WARN Act Developments
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - New Round of COVID-19 Relief Expands Assistance for Employers
On this episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion, host Brydon DeWitt discusses prohibitive gag clauses under the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA). While intended to promote transparency, not all gag clauses are...more
In an April 15 Executive Order, entitled “Lowering Drug Prices by Once Again Putting Americans First,” the Trump Administration has called attention to an ERISA disclosure required by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 prohibits group health plans from agreeing to avoid making certain disclosures of provider-specific cost or quality-of-care information. This is referred to as the gag clause...more
We are pleased to present our annual End of Year Plan Sponsor “To Do” Lists. This year, we present our “To Do” Lists in four separate Employee Benefits Updates. This Part 1 covers year-end health and welfare plan issues....more
Well, it was good while it lasted. On September 27th, the Departments issued new FAQs regarding implementation of provisions of The Transparency in Coverage Final Rules (TiC Final Rules). ...more
As we recently suggested, ERISA disputes over the fees and expenses charged to employer or union sponsored group health plans may well become the next wave in ERISA litigation. At minimum, the Consolidated Appropriations Act...more
President Biden signed into law H.R. 2617, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 on December 29, 2022. This new legislation includes the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022 (MFFMA), which amends the amounts and...more
On December 29, President Biden signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (CAA-23) — a $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package that includes notable changes to current antitrust laws and policies. This...more
On this episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion, host Brydon DeWitt is joined by his colleague, Allison Carlon, who helps us better understand what employers need to know about the Consolidations Appropriations Act...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (“CAA” or the “Act”) includes several transparency requirements for health plans. Some of these requirements are already in effect for plan years beginning on or after January 1,...more
In our January 2022 update, we discussed new federal requirements that group health plans should pay close attention to in 2022. The sponsor of a self-funded plan will need to work closely with its legal counsel, benefits...more
On this episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion, host Brydon DeWitt discusses the group health plan broker and consultant compensation disclosure requirements under the Consolidated Appropriations Act and what you...more
The Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Department of Treasury (collectively, the Departments) recently issued their joint report to Congress regarding their Mental Health...more
With each new year, new legal obligations for employers sponsoring group health plans seem to arrive. This article provides a brief overview and reminder of some of the new key requirements for 2022, many of which we have...more
Summary - New rules require group health plans and insurers to disclose pricing information in three phases. This is the third briefing in Ballard Spahr’s series on the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) and...more
On December 30, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued Field Assistance Bulletin No. 2021-03 (“FAB”), announcing its temporary enforcement policy for group health plan service provider disclosures under ERISA...more
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Public Law 116-260 (CAA) set forth new compensation disclosure requirements that apply to service providers who provide “brokerage services” or “consulting” to group health plans...more
In two previous posts, we reported on the rules enacted in Section 202, Division BB of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the “Act”) requiring the disclosure of direct and indirect compensation paid to brokers and...more
Summary - The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued a temporary enforcement policy to address frequently asked questions about the requirement for certain service providers to disclose direct and indirect compensation...more
Ten years ago, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final regulation under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) that required retirement plan service providers to disclose information about...more
On December 30, 2021, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a temporary enforcement policy and guidance regarding group health plan service provider disclosures under section 408(b)(2) of the Employee Retirement Income...more
In Field Assistance Bulletin 2021-03, the Department of Labor (the “Department”) announced a temporary enforcement policy relating to the rules enacted in Division BB of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (the “Act”)...more
On December 27, 2020, the No Surprises Act was signed into law as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. In July and October 2021, respectively, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of...more
Division BB of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (“Act”) broadly addresses surprise medical billing and health plan transparency. This post focuses on Section 202 of Division BB (the “Provision”), which establishes...more