Health & Welfare Plans

Seyfarth Synopsis: Under a Tri-Agency Proposed Rule, health plans could be required to report information relating to air ambulance services by March 31, 2023. As this proposed deadline approaches, plan sponsors should reach out to their third party administrators to determine what assistance, if any, will be provided relating to these reporting requirements.

Just as

Seyfarth Synopsis: Plans have been scrambling to gather data and work with providers in preparation for the December 27, 2022 deadline to report prescription drug and health care spending information. Just in time for the holidays, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury (the “Departments”) have issued FAQs related to Prescription Drug

Seyfarth Synopsis: Recently the U.S. Treasury Department (Treasury) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued regulations (the “Final Regulations”) which finalized previously proposed relief for furnishing Forms 1095-B and 1095-C to individuals. Notably, the Final Regulations provide a permanent 30-day extension to the due date for furnishing Form 1095-C to individuals. This extension was previously granted in the 2021 final instructions for completing Forms 1094-C and 1095-C for 2021 (see our blog here) issued in December 2021.Continue Reading Permanent Extension to the ACA Reporting Deadline

Seyfarth Synopsis: The IRS has announced an increase to the applicable dollar amount for determining the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (“PCORI”) Fee for 2023 as well as other health and welfare limits.

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) established the PCORI to support research on clinical effectiveness. The PCORI is funded in part by fees paid

Seyfarth Synopsis: IRS quietly extends relief for the “family glitch” to calendar year cafeteria plans in unannounced revisions to Notice 2022-41.

In our October Legal Update (available here), we described the publication of final IRS rules fixing the so-called “family glitch” in the availability of a premium tax credit for Health Insurance Exchange (Exchange)

Seyfarth Synopsis: HHS has announced that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) has been extended another 90 days, and will run until January 11, 2023.

Seyfarth Update: On January 11, 2023, HHS announced another extension of the PHE to April 11, 2023.

Seyfarth Update: On January 20,2023, the Biden administration announced that it is

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, overturning Roe v. Wade, abolishing the federal standard protecting the right to abortion. In the immediate aftermath of Dobbs, many states have raced to pass more restrictive laws against abortions, including some near-total bans. Several states

Seyfarth Synopsis: To promote healthier lifestyles in an effort to ultimately reduce the cost of health care in the United States, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires private health plans to provide first dollar coverage for evidence-based preventive care. As a result, such things as immunizations and cancer screenings must be covered without the requirement

Seyfarth Synopsis: The IRS has announced adjustments decreasing the affordability threshold for plan years beginning in 2023, which may cause employers to have to pay more for ACA compliant coverage in 2023.

The IRS recently released adjustments decreasing the affordability threshold for plan years beginning in 2023 in Revenue Procedure 2022-34.

Under the Affordable

Cybersecurity has become an integral concern for employers and employee benefit plans alike. With an increase in DOL cybersecurity audits, plan fiduciaries are looking to strengthen their cybersecurity practices more than ever before. What specific risks are plans facing? Who is responsible for keeping plans safe, and what legal duties do they have? What steps