Met Opera Faces ERISA Suit Stemming from “Extra Musician” Retirement Plan Rule

An oboist who performed as an extra musician for the New York Metropolitan Opera for more than 30 years filed suit against the company, alleging that it allegedly restricted access to its retirement plan for extra musicians in violation of ERISA. The case is Sharon Meekins v. The Metropolitan Opera Association Retirement Plan et al., case number 1:23-cv-09990, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New Read More

NJ Hospital Urges State Supreme Court to Overturn $26M Verdict

Valley Hospital recently argued before the New Jersey Supreme Court to overturn a $26 million verdict that a jury awarded the North Jersey Brain and Spine Center (NJBSC) and its 11 neurosurgeons following a four-week trial. According to the hospital, the neurosurgeon group failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted, and the trial court should have dismissed the case before it ever went to trial before Read More

Former Employee Dismisses ERISA 401(k) Suit Concerning BlackRock Funds

A former employee of Advance Publications, Inc., the holding company for Conde Nast, voluntarily dismissed his proposed class action ERISA 401(k) suit over poorly performing BlackRock funds. Ex-worker Jermaine Anderson had the opportunity to raise ERISA claims in a second amended complaint following the dismissal of his amended complaint but instead chose to dismiss the lawsuit. The dismissal comes as similar Read More

Group Health Plans Must Affirm Compliance with Price Transparency Rule

January 17, 2024 | Leah Shepherd Employers that sponsor group health plans need to ensure they are in line with a new annual requirement to vouch that they are complying with a federal price transparency rule. The reporting requirement was part of the No Surprises Act, which passed in 2021 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act. It prohibits group health plans from entering into any agreement that prevents Read More

10th Circuit Seems Wary of Amazon’s Holiday Pay Arguments

A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals of the Tenth Circuit recently heard oral arguments in a proposed class action lawsuit involving Amazon warehouse workers and the computation of overtime pay. The judges appeared skeptical of Amazon’s arguments against the workers’ claims that their employer wrongfully failed to pay them overtime pay for weeks in which they received holiday incentive pay. The case is Hamilton v. Read More

4 Benefits Issues That May Trip Up Worker Reclassification

By Kellie Mejdrich Law360 (January 12, 2024, 6:02 PM EST) -- The U.S. Department of Labor's recently finalized rule toughening the test for determining whether someone qualifies as an independent contractor or an employee under federal wage and hour law may make businesses rethink deeming workers contractors. The DOL's final rule, published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, sets out a six-factor, nonexhaustive Read More

Federal Court Allows Transgender Woman’s Sex Discrimination Claim Under ACA to Proceed, Dismisses ADA, ERISA, and Other Claims

Jane Doe, a transgender woman with gender dysphoria, sued Independence Blue Cross (IBX) after it denied coverage for facial feminization surgeries (FFS) as cosmetic and not medically necessary. Doe filed sex and disability discrimination claims under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as claims under the Employee Read More

IRS Releases Section 401(k) Guidance for Long-Term Part-Time Employees

Although the Internal Revenue Code does not allow employers to exclude part-time employees, it has allowed them to exclude employees from their 401(k) plans until they have worked at least 1,000 hours in a year. As a result, employers historically used this rule to exclude part-time employees from plan participation, including the right to make elective salary deferral contributions to a plan. However, the Setting Read More

As COVID Vaccine Injury Lawsuits Increase, Liability Questions Arise

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has posted an employment ad seeking eight attorneys to work in its Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP). The LinkedIn ad appeared soon after the filing of a lawsuit in Louisiana last month by six plaintiffs who allege injuries from the COVID-19 vaccine against the federal government. These individuals are seeking to overturn the immunity that the feds granted big Read More

Lawsuit Claims UnitedHealthcare Uses AI to Deny Majority of Medicare Advantage Extended-Care Facility Claims

As the healthcare industry has begun to use artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms in its claims determination process, litigation has ensued. In a recent class action lawsuit, plaintiffs claim that UnitedHealthcare used its “nH Predict” AI algorithm to wrongfully deny elderly patients’ claims for post-acute care, including stays in skilled nursing-care facilities and in-home care. When patients appeal the denials Read More