Business Better Podcast Episode: Bridging Campuses: Legal Insights on Education Industry Consolidation – Labor, Employment, and Benefits
How ERISA Litigators Strengthen Plan Compliance and Risk Management: One-on-One with Jeb Gerth
#WorkforceWednesday®: New DOL Guidance - ERISA Plan Cybersecurity Update - Employment Law This Week®
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - ERISA Forfeiture Litigation
ERISA Blog | Changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rules A Primer for Self-Insured Group Health Plans
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - What the J&J Case Means for Plan Administrators
The No Surprises Act: A Cost Saving Opportunity for Employer Plan Sponsors
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - New Federal Rule Aims to Hold Investment Advisors to a Higher Standard
Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation: Getting Ready for 2024 – Top-Hat Plans — Special Edition Podcast
Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation: Getting Ready for 2024 - Health and Welfare Plan Developments — Special Edition Podcast
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Partial Plan Terminations
Podcast Episode 189: Adding Context to Compliance and Color To Your Legal Practice
#WorkforceWednesday: SECURE Act 2.0 - What 401(k) Plan Sponsors Need to Know - Employment Law This Week®
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Plan Administrators’ 2022 Year-End Checklist
An Inside Look as a Juror - FCRA Focus Podcast
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Multiemployer Plans
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Court Decisions Impacting Plan Sponsors and Fiduciaries
(A)ESOP's Fables - The Income and Estate Tax-Free ESOP
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - What Constitutes Plan Assets Under ERISA?
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Group Health Plan Service Provider Compensation Disclosure Requirements
Recently, companies have seen a spate of class action lawsuits challenging the legality of tobacco cessation wellness programs and related tobacco surcharges imposed by their employer-sponsored health benefit plans....more
Many employers implement wellness programs into their employee health plan offering. Wellness programs have varying designs but commonly offer premium discounts to participants who are tobacco-free or achieve certain...more
Even the most well-managed employee benefit plans may have certain compliance blind spots. From outdated documentation to missed filing deadlines, we have highlighted a few areas below where we often see gaps....more
A growing number of class action lawsuits have been filed against employer-sponsored self-insured group health plans alleging that tobacco cessation wellness programs violate key provisions of the Employee Retirement Income...more
Over the past several months, numerous large employers and their health plan fiduciaries have faced lawsuits regarding their health plan’s tobacco surcharge. A tobacco surcharge wellness program typically charges a higher...more
The year was packed with developments for health and welfare benefits plans. Our Health Benefits Team reviews 2024, from new data privacy rules to disaster tax relief....more
A wave of ERISA class-action lawsuits is challenging tobacco surcharge programs in employer-sponsored health plans across the U.S. These cases center on potential fiduciary breaches, with plaintiffs arguing that surcharges...more
There have been two important developments in the law applicable to the privacy and cybersecurity of group health plan participants’ health information. Plan sponsors must review plan policies and procedures, provider...more
On Labor Day fifty years ago, September 2, 1974, President Ford signed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) into law. It is a combination of tax and labor law incorporating trust law like fiduciary...more
Earlier this year, a cyberattack on a leading healthcare claims processing provider had an unprecedented impact on patients and healthcare providers across the country. While group health plans were not directly targeted in...more
In a recent article in Managed Healthcare Executive, Peter Wehrwein examines the trend of self-funding of group health benefits by smaller employers who used to depend mainly or entirely on fully insured programs....more
One of the most common questions that we receive is whether an employee can change their benefits elections after the plan year has already started (also referred to as a mid-year change). The answer is very fact-specific...more
It was a lively year for health benefits. Our Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group unpacks 2023, from the end of the COVID-19 emergencies to the much-anticipated Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act...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
ERISA requires plan sponsors to distribute SPDs to inform participants of their benefits, rights, and obligations under the plan and describe how the plan operates. Department of Labor (DOL) regulations (available here)...more
Just when you thought the confusing COVID-19 ERISA deadline extensions were behind you, the Biden-Harris Administration asks you to reconsider. ...more
Today marks the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency that first began on March 13, 2020. The end of the public health emergency has a wide range of implications for employer sponsored benefit plans. This alert...more
Where did the time go? Just a brief 1,199 days after it began, the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) is coming to an end. The PHE formally ends on May 11, 2023, short of any unexpected developments. And that means the...more
Earlier this year, the Biden Administration announced its intention to end the COVID-19 National Emergency (and the related nationwide Public Health Emergency) at the end of the day on May 11, 2023. On March 29, 2023, the...more
President Biden announced that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) and the National Emergency declared by President Trump in 2020 will end on May 11, 2023. The PHE relief issued in response to the pandemic affected...more
With the pandemic winding down, deadlines for employee benefit plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) will be resuming. Two different emergencies affect employer-sponsored group health plans:...more
Amazon. Bank of America. Citigroup. Dick’s Sporting Goods. JP Morgan. Kroger. Meta. Microsoft. Procter & Gamble. Target. Walt Disney Company. These are just a few of what is a growing list of companies that have offered to...more
The implications of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that overturned Roe v. Wade’s constitutional right to abortion have had sweeping implications that affect...more
Not surprisingly, leading up to and in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, our employee benefits team has been spending a lot of time helping our clients wade through...more
Since the Supreme Court’s ruling that abortions are not a constitutional right, Woodruff Sawyer has been receiving questions about how this affects benefits compliance. Some states have enacted anti-abortion laws, which will...more