A bipartisan group of lawmakers, including five medical doctors, has introduced a bipartisan bill in the House to enforce provisions of the No Surprises Act. The bill could increase the maximum penalties for employer health plans for delayed payments from a No Surprises Act claim to $10,000. The current penalty is $100. Furthermore, the bill would require federal officials to annually report their work to ensure Read More
Lawmakers Criticize EBSA for Giving Information to Plaintiffs’ Attorneys
The House Education and the Workforce Committee’s Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions subcommittee was critical of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) divulging certain information to plaintiffs’ attorneys during a recent oversight meeting. EBSA reportedly shared information concerning enforcement investigations with attorneys representing benefits plan Read More
The Effects of the One Big Beautiful Bill on Employee Benefits
Congress has passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB)” and President Donald Trump has signed it into law. The OBBB contains multiple changes to employee benefits law, including in the areas of HSAs, dependent care FSAs, student loan repayment assistance, and “Trump accounts.” OBBB HSA Expansion Although the changes to health savings accounts (HSAs) are not as extensive as in the original House bill, the Read More
4 Appellate Arguments For Benefits Attys To Watch In Sept.
Law360 (August 29, 2025, 4:54 PM EDT) -- Yellow Corp. seeks to revive a $137 million breach dispute against the Teamsters at the Tenth Circuit, married retirees will ask the Eleventh Circuit to restart a pension conversion fight, and the en banc Fifth Circuit reconsiders a challenge to a rule implementing a 2020 surprise health billing law. Here are four appellate argument sessions in September that benefits Read More
Federal Court Invalidates EEOC Guidance on Harassment
A Texas federal district court has issued a ruling finding portions of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) enforcement guidance on harassment unlawful. More specifically, the Court held that the definition of “sex” in the guidance was too expansive insofar as it included sexual orientation or gender identity. The Court’s ruling has vacated those portions of the guidance Read More
Supreme Court Okays Mass Federal Workforce Layoffs
The U.S. Supreme Court recently gave the green light to the Trump administration to continue laying off large numbers of workers at 19 federal agencies and departments. While litigation over the issue is ongoing, the Court lifted a lower court ruling that temporarily blocked the layoffs. However, the justices noted that they were not deciding the legality of the layoffs or agency restructuring plans but were simply Read More
Downward Trend in U.S. Labor Market Becomes Apparent
The initial report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for June took economists by surprise, showing an increase of 147,000 jobs. Economists had predicted a slowdown in hiring due to trade policy uncertainties, high interest rates, immigration, and federal employee layoffs. However, as one economist quickly pointed out, despite the promising numbers, only 74,000 private sector jobs were added in Read More
Recent Supreme Court Decisions Allow More Title VII Claims
Four U.S. Supreme Court decisions over the past four years collectively have created the potential for increased discrimination lawsuits based on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In 2023, the Court eliminated affirmative action in admissions to higher education in Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College. That same year, the Court’s ruling in Groff v. DeJoy stated that Read More
Equinix Agrees to Settle Stockholder Class Action Suit for $41.5M
Equinix, a data center developer, has agreed to a $41.5 million settlement in a class action lawsuit involving its stockholders. The class alleged that Equinix mischaracterized routine expenses as nonrecurring capital costs to qualify executives for bonuses of $150 million over five years. The Uniformed Sanitationmen’s Association Compensation Accrual Fund recently filed a motion for preliminary approval of the Read More
Fifth Circuit Bars Private Right of Action to Enforce IDR Awards Under No Surprises Act
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has affirmed two decisions of a lower court barring air ambulance providers from privately enforcing independent dispute resolution (IDR) awards under the No Surprises Act (NSA). The appellate court also reversed the lower court’s decision in one of the cases that had allowed the provider’s claim against the certified IDR entity to go forward. The cases are Guardian Read More
