Employee Benefits White Papers

17 Jun

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Legal Update Header On June 17, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) individual mandate in a 7-2 ruling.

This lawsuit was filed in 2018 by 18 states as a result of the 2017 tax reform law that eliminates the individual mandate penalty. In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ACA on the basis that the individual mandate is a valid tax. With the penalty’s elimination, the appeals court in this case determined that the individual mandate is no longer valid under the U.S. Constitution.

21 May

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Legal Update Header On May 10, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a notice announcing that effective immediately, it will now interpret and enforce the prohibitions on discrimination based on sex under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to include:

  • Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation; and
  • Discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
 

20 May

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Legal Update Header On May 5, 2021, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a second Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters (NBPP) for 2022 that finalized the remainder of the standards included in the proposed notice issued at the end of 2020.

The first final 2022 NBPP was published Jan. 19, 2021. This second NBPP describes additional benefit and payment parameters under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that apply for the 2022 benefit year, including the following:

14 May

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Legal Update Header On May 10, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released guidance on the taxability of dependent care assistance programs (DCAPs) for 2021 and 2022, clarifying that amounts attributable to previously issued carryover and extended grace period relief generally are not taxable.

Specifically, if these dependent care benefits would have been excluded from income if used during taxable year 2020 (or 2021, if applicable), these benefits will remain excludible from gross income and are not considered wages of the employee for 2021 and 2022.

16 Apr

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For a growing number of employers, voluntary accident insurance plans may play a part in rounding out employee benefits packages to help employees pay for unexpected costs.

Accidents can happen to anyone—and the reality is that accidents do happen. In fact, more than 80 million people in the United States seek medical treatment for injuries each year. This article provides an overview of accident insurance and reasons why many employers are offering this voluntary benefit to employees.

09 Apr

Posted at 18:39h in Employee Benefits White Papers by
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Legal Update Header On April 7, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) issued FAQs and model notices for the COBRA premium assistance provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

The ARPA provides a 100% subsidy for employer-sponsored group health insurance continued under COBRA and similar state continuation of coverage programs for eligible individuals. The subsidy applies from April 1 through Sept. 30, 2021. The notices and the FAQs appear on a new DOL webpage dedicated to the ARPA COBRA subsidy.

09 Apr

Posted at 18:32h in Employee Benefits White Papers by
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Legal Update Header The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA) amended the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) to provide additional protections.

On April 2, 2021, the Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury (Departments) jointly issued FAQs to clarify these amendments. In particular, the CAA requires group health plans and health insurance issuers to conduct comparative analyses of the nonquantitative treatment limitations (NQTLs) used for medical and surgical benefits as compared to mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) benefits. The comparative analyses, and certain other information, must be made available upon request to applicable agencies beginning Feb. 10, 2021.

02 Apr

Posted at 16:31h in Employee Benefits White Papers by
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Pet insurance has been a trendy benefit offering in recent years, with around a third (34%) of employers providing some version of this benefit, according to a Willis Towers Watson survey.

Since benefits packages are aimed to help employees lower important costs, it makes sense that pet insurance is trending upward—individuals spend thousands on their pets every year, after all. Pet insurance helps lower those expenses in a number of ways. Depending on the plan, it may cover vet exams, vaccinations, chronic conditions, injuries and flea treatments. And when a pet needs emergency care, the safety net of pet insurance can save an individual from needing to choose between their wallet and their furry friend.

26 Mar

Posted at 17:50h in Employee Benefits White Papers by
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News Brief header President Joe Biden’s administration recently extended access to the Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to Aug. 15, from the previously announced end date of May 15.

This direction comes after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) opened this SEP for the Health Insurance Marketplace on Feb. 15, resulting in over 200,000 enrollments in the first two weeks.

American Rescue Plan ACA Subsidies