In his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden highlighted the more than three hundred bipartisan bills he has signed into law since becoming president. He also emphasized the need to continue with important bipartisan legislation, including laws enacting paid family and medical leave, immigration reform, police reform, and ending non-compete agreements. Biden’s State of the Union follows his February 2nd Read More
Texas Court Invalidates ACA’s Free Preventive Care Requirement Nationwide
A Texas federal judge has struck down the portion of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires insurers and employers to provide free preventative care services, such as contraception, as well as screenings for cancer, heart disease, HIV, and other diseases. The judge also found in his decision that requiring coverage of PrEP for HIV violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). The ruling in Braidwood Read More
Biden Calls for Nationwide Paid Family and Medical Leave
President Joe Biden recently held a press conference celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for certain workers without losing their jobs or health care benefits. As part of that press conference, Biden called for expanding that legislation through a national program of paid family and medical leave for employees, which he laid out in Read More
2nd Circ. Will not Undo Colgate’s $300M Loss in ERISA Suit
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld an August 2020 grant of partial summary judgment in favor of ex-workers in a class action suit against Colgate-Palmolive. The former workers claimed that the company paid them lower benefits than they were entitled to when they received lump-sum retirement payouts. The three-judge panel of the Second Circuit agreed that the provisions of Colgate’s retirement Read More
IRS Rev. Proc. 2023-17: Adjustments Under Section 4980H to Calculate 2024 Employer Shared Responsibility Payments
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released IRS Rev. Proc. 2023-17, which provides indexing adjustments for the applicable dollar amounts under § 4980(H)(a) and (b)(1). These indexed amounts are necessary to calculate the employer-shared responsibility payments (ERSP) under these sections. This revenue procedure is effective for taxable and plan years beginning after December 31, 2023. The IRS based on the Read More
EEOC Looks for Suggestions to Combat AI Discrimination
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently held a public hearing discussing the pros and cons of using artificial intelligence (AI) in employment decisions. During the hearing, it solicited recommendations from workplace professionals about ensuring that AI does not discriminate against job applicants. Employers increasingly use automation or AI tools to support HR-related functions and Read More
ERISA Class Action Lawsuit Claims Cigna Overcharged Members
Cigna Health and Life Insurance Co. is facing an ERISA class action lawsuit in Connecticut District Court, in which proposed class members alleged that the insurance company is overcharging for medical services. Although Cigna claims that it negotiates with in-network providers for lower rates to help their insureds save money, the proposed class members claim that Cigna engaged in a fraudulent scheme and that they Read More
Federal Agencies Issue FAQs (Part 57) to Provide Guidance on Gag Clause Ban for Group Health Plan Agreements
The DOL, IRS, and HHS have issued joint FAQs About Affordable Care Act and Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 Implementation Part 57. These FAQs address certain provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA, 2021) that ban so-called "gag clauses" or any provisions in group health plan agreements that preclude certain disclosures of provider-specific cost or quality-of-care information. Previously, Read More
The FTC’s Noncompete Proposal: The Good and the Bad
The Federal Trade Commission has issued a proposed regulation that generally would prohibit the use of noncompete agreements between employers and employees in all 50 states. Although the proposal's reasoning may be sound, federal legislation may be a better way to achieve the same goal, particularly if the proposed regulation fails to withstand judicial scrutiny. The Pros and Cons of Noncompete Read More
CMS Delays Final Regulations on Civil Penalties for Violations of MSP Reporting Requirements
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has pushed back the deadline by one year for issuing final regulations concerning the imposition of civil penalties for violations of Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) reporting requirements. Responsible reporting entities (RREs) for group health plans, typically insurers or third-party administrators, must report certain information to CMS about individuals with Read More
