In a unanimous opinion issued today, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has ruled that any item that is part of a health care provider’s treatment plan falls within the purview of medical services and the broad-encompassing...more
In recent months, several changes to healthcare rules regulations focusing on reproductive health care have been introduced. These include (1) privacy protections for reproductive health data under HIPAA, (2) expanding access...more
The IRS recently published two notices which describe the tax treatment of amounts paid for condoms and expand the list of preventive care benefits permitted to be provided by a high deductible health plan (HDHP) without...more
On Feb. 4, 2022, in response to a number of questions from various stakeholders about FAQs Part 51, regarding the requirement for individual and group health plans to cover over-the-counter (OTC) COVID-19 tests, the U.S....more
Update Feb 10: This advisory has been updated to include the latest information on the requirement that employer group health plans must pay for over-the-counter COVID-19 tests....more
As we previously discussed, federal regulators released FAQs on January 10, 2022 (“January FAQs”), requiring health plans to cover over-the-counter (OTC) COVID-19 tests for all participants during the pandemic, without...more
As indicated in our January 11, 2022 blog post and alert, the Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (the “Agencies”) issued FAQs Part 51 on January 10, 2022, requiring group health...more
On February 4, 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), U.S. Department of the Treasury, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued subregulatory guidance that provides greater flexibility and clarifies a...more
On December 2, 2021, President Biden announced new actions to combat COVID-19, given the emergence of the new Omicron variant. As part of his nine-point plan, the President included a directive that “the more than 150...more
A few short weeks ago we told you in a blog post that, with only four days’ notice, the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and HHS (the Departments) required that, starting January 15, 2022, group health plans cover FDA-approved...more
Effective January 15, 2022, employer group health plans must pay for at-home COVID-19 diagnostic tests purchased during the public health emergency. Given that the requirement to cover over-the-counter (OTC) COVID-19 tests is...more
The January Monthly Minute highlights the new OTC COVID-19 test coverage mandate (eff. January 15, 2022), group health plan provider compensation disclosure rules, and updated standards for ERISA plan financial statement...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Since March 18, 2020, group health plans have been required to provide benefits for certain items and services related to testing for or diagnosis of COVID-19 during the applicable emergency period - see...more
On Monday, the government issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) requiring employer group health plans (Plans) and health insurance issuers to cover certain over-the-counter (OTC) COVID-19 tests at no cost to the...more
Effective January 15, 2022, health plans are required to cover the cost of over-the-counter (“OTC”) COVID-19 test kits obtained without a health care provider’s prescription or clinical assessment. This new requirement was...more
I. Biden Administration Requirement for Insurance Companies to Cover Cost of At-Home COVID-19 Tests - On January 10, 2022, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Safety (HHS) announced that the Biden-Harris...more
Beginning January 15, 2022, and through the duration of the public health emergency, insurers and group health plans must cover at-home COVID-19 diagnostic tests available over-the-counter (OTC) without imposing cost-sharing,...more
Looking forward to the weekend? Many employers and plan administrators may also have been . . . up until yesterday, when the government issued new requirements that take effect on Saturday. ...more