The American Benefits Council has released a new white paper calling for reforms to the federal 340B drug pricing program. According to the paper, the 340B program is failing to meet the needs of the patients that it was designed to help. At the same time, the program is driving up healthcare expenses for employer-sponsored health plans by $5.2 billion annually due to a loss of rebates. Furthermore, the program has Read More
Federal Judge Refuses to Dismiss Retaliation Claims Over Sephora’s Hiring Practices
A U.S. District Court judge in Georgia has declined to partially dismiss a former store manager’s discrimination and retaliation claims against Sephora. Nixaliz Mestre, who is Latina, was terminated from the high-end beauty chain after refusing to prioritize white job applicants over applicants of other races. The judge ruled that Mestre’s allegations were sufficiently detailed to avoid dismissal prior to the start Read More
IRS Begins Implementation of Biden-Era Paperwork Burden Reduction Act
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has begun the process of implementing the Paperwork Burden Reduction Act, a law from the Biden administration that is already in effect. To assist employers, the IRS has issued Notice 2025-15, which no longer requires employers to send coverage statements to all full-time employees. Instead of sending out complex, personalized statements to full-time employees, employers now can Read More
Liability for Employers Handling Discrimination Complaints Without DEI
More and more companies are explicitly moving away from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies in the wake of the White House’s January executive order addressing the issue. In the aftermath of this exodus, employers now must grapple with how to handle discrimination complaints. Abandoning DEI policies also results in rejecting in-house dispute resolution processes for discrimination Read More
DOL’s New Retirement Security Rule Remains on Hold as Agency Pauses Appeals
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has filed a motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to pause its appeals of two federal court cases challenging its new Retirement Security Rule. This move follows two July 2024 federal court orders staying the implementation of the rule, which was supposed to go into effect in September 2024. The new Retirement Security Rule extends fiduciary responsibilities Read More
Episode 1: The Role of CPAs in Employee Benefit Plan Compliance & Oversight
Listen to the Podcast Episode on Episode Summary: In this episode of In-House Counsel and HR Perspectives, host David Hall, Chief Administrative Officer at Hall Benefits Law, sits down with Erin Sak, a partner in the assurance practice at Smith and Howard CPA. Erin shares her journey from a math-loving student at the University of Georgia to becoming a specialist in employee benefit plan audits. Read More
Website Tracking Without Notice Leads to Class Action Lawsuit
A California federal district court has granted class certification in a lawsuit against a financial services company for tracking the activities of people using their website without prior notice to them. The lawsuit claims that the company used a third-party marketing software platform to track user activity on their website in violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA). The software allowed the Read More
HHS Settles HIPAA Security Breach Stemming from Phishing Cyberattack for $3 Million
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has announced a $3 million settlement with Solara Medical Supplies, LLC, a covered entity under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The unauthorized disclosures stemmed from a cyberattack that resulted in violations of the HIPAA security and breach notification rules. OCR began its Read More
More I-9 Audits for Employers Expected Under Trump Administration
As the Trump administration takes swift action to change U.S. immigration policies, employers should expect increased work authorization enforcement actions. To that end, employers should review their employees’ I-9 forms for compliance in anticipation of potential I-9 audits. I-9 audits are the most common form of immigration enforcement that the federal government undertakes. During the previous Trump Read More
HHS Delays Effective Date of Final Rule Modifying HIPAA Retail Pharmacy Standards
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has extended the effective date of its final rule updating electronic transaction standards for retail pharmacy transactions under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The final rule also modifies the Medicaid pharmacy subrogation standard. These final rules were scheduled to go into effect on February 11, 2025. The new effective date Read More
