ERISA Blog | Changes to the HIPAA Privacy Rules A Primer for Self-Insured Group Health Plans
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#WorkforceWednesday: Employee and Health Benefits One Year After Dobbs - Employment Law This Week®
The Burr Broadcast April 2023 - The Official End of COVID-19 Emergencies
Taking the Pulse, A Health Care and Life Sciences Video Podcast | Episode 138: Mason Ellerbe, Lead Executive for High Value Health, OneDigital
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Dobbs on Demand: Approaching Benefits in the New Legal Environment
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PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Health Plan Transparency Requirements
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PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - 2023 Benefits Forecast with Mercer
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Navigating the Nuances of the COBRA Subsidy Under the American Rescue Plan Act
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Can Employers Impose a Health Insurance Surcharge on Plan Participants Not Vaccinated for COVID-19?
AGG Talks: Solving Employers’ Problems - Health Plan Premium Surcharges for the Unvaccinated: Are They Legal and How Do They Work?
Podcast: What's New for Insurers in Mental Health Parity Compliance - Diagnosing Health Care
Leading in a Lonely World Podcast: Meet Jamie Pagliaro, a Leader Who has Made His “Passion” for Helping Others His Life’s Work
COBRA Deadlines and Proofs of Mailing in Carter v. Southwest Airlines Co. Board of Trustees
Midyear Premium Increases and Cafeteria Plan Rules
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
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
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
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
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
Effective December 27, 2020, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (“CAA”), as part of its transparency in health care protections, prohibits group health plans and issuers from entering into agreements that directly or...more
After nearly three years of emergency measures related to COVID-19, the U.S. government acted this spring to officially end the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency and the National Emergency. Accordingly, the Departments of...more
The Biden administration has announced its intention to end the COVID-19 National Emergency (NE) and the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) on May 11, 2023 (read our series introduction for more information)....more
The No Surprises Act (the NSA) bans “gag clauses” that prevent disclosure of price or quality information in agreements between health plans and certain service providers. In addition, the NSA requires plan sponsors to attest...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
While many in the U.S. have attempted to resume a sense of normalcy despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, for employer-sponsored health plans, special “emergency” pandemic rules and extensions remain in effect. As previously...more
On September 30, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued FAQs addressing how the HIPAA Privacy Rule applies to individuals’ disclosures of their COVID-19 vaccination status in the workplace and health...more
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a set of Frequently Asked Questions about the interaction of HIPAA, the Affordable Care Act, and various group health plan issues relating to the COVID-19...more
Employers that are considering imposing health plan premium surcharges to encourage their employees to get vaccinated have clearer guidance on how to do so without running afoul of the nondiscrimination rules under the Health...more
At the last minute, certain suspended COBRA, HIPAA and claims procedure deadlines that were set to expire on February 28, 2021 have been further extended. As we discussed last year the Department of Labor (DOL) and Internal...more
Last year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of Labor (DOL) issued two notices that extended certain benefit plan deadlines for both employees/plan participants and for plan administrators as a result of...more
On January 7, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued proposed guidance regarding employer-sponsored wellness programs and the level of incentives employers may offer employees who participate in these...more
On July 17, 2020, a panel majority of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a rule issued by the Department of Treasury, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services (collectively, the...more
There has been a recent flurry of regulatory guidance issued affecting employee benefit plans. Most of the guidance addresses challenges specifically created by the COVID-19 pandemic, while other guidance is applicable...more
On the latest episode of Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion, host Brydon explains the Department of Labor’s Disaster Relief Notice that extends certain filing and notification timeframes applicable to employee benefit plans...more
Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton are producing a series of podcasts to discuss employee benefits, executive compensation, and labor and employment issues that employers are confronting in light of the COVID-19 pandemic,...more
This post summarizes the health and welfare benefit plan-related deadline extensions described in IRS Notice 2020-23 issued April 9, 2020 and the DOL and Treasury Joint Notice issued April 28, 2020 (the “Joint Notice”). IRS...more