We work in an exciting industry – which means quick changes are the norm, and adaptability is a necessity. Keep your compliance plans up to date with a download of all legislative changes since our last update webinar. This webinar covered legislation that's passed in the last six months, what's on the way, and what it means for your organization.
Healthcare check in the latest developments in health and welfare plansbenefitexpress
We work in an exciting industry—which means quick changes are the norm, and adaptability is a necessity.
Keep your compliance plan up-to-date with a download of recent legislative changes.
We'll cover legislation that's passed, what's on the way, and what it means for your organization.
Topics Covered Include:
• IRS Information Letters
• Tax Reform Legislation
• Wellness Regulations - EEOC, AARP
• Comprehensive Guidance on QSEHRAs
• ACA: Elimination of Individual Mandate Penalty
• Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave
• DOL Annual Adjustments to Employee Benefit Plan Penalties
• “Good Faith” Penalty Relief
• Final Disability Claim Regulations
• Cadillac Tax Updates
• And More!
Presented by Larry Grudzien, Attorney at Law
Although many key reforms of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are effective for 2014, additional reforms will become effective in 2015 for employers sponsoring group health plans. For 2015, the most significant ACA change is the shared responsibility penalty for applicable large employers. To prepare for 2015, employers should review upcoming requirements and develop a compliance strategy. This Legislative Brief provides a health care reform checklist for 2015.
Affordable Care Act - Healthcare Reform Briefing for CareermindsCareerminds
2014 and Beyond – What’s Next in Employer Sponsored Healthcare Plans
Next year will be a significant year for employer sponsored health care. With the onset of numerous benefit and eligibility mandates as well as the introduction of public medical exchanges, employers are taking a closer look of the healthcare benefits they traditionally offer employees in the US. Join us to learn about the changes in the health insurance market. We will discuss how these changes impact employer strategies and how employers will interact with the public exchanges. Beyond the employer impact we will address how the changing market will impact employees who are subject to the individual mandate beginning in 2014.
By the end of this webcast participants will be able to:
• Identify key changes HR and Benefits functions to know and do as a result of these changes
• Identify key changes required for 2014
• Discuss emerging healthcare cost trends
• Understand how employers will interact with the public exchanges
• Review emerging employer strategies including the interworkings of private exchanges
ABOUT THE PRESENTER:
Jennifer Calhoun Mohl is a Partner and senior consultant in Mercer’s Philadelphia health and benefits practice. She assists clients with various consulting assignments, including the design, administration, financing, and regulatory compliance of health and welfare benefit plans for both active and retiree populations. In addition, Jennifer serves as a relationship manager on client assignments that involve multiple Mercer offices and multiple lines of business.
In addition, Jennifer has assisted with the implementation and operations of benefit programs, including communications, outsourcing and call center support. Recently, she has served as the lead health and benefit strategist on client assignments involving multiple lines of business – with a particular focus on mergers and acquisitions.
Jennifer serves as one of Mercer’s National Health and Benefits spokeswomen. She has been quoted in various periodicals including, Managed Care Report, O&P Business News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Business Journal, Money Magazine and has been featured on Money Matters Today on CN8.
Prior to joining Mercer in 1999, Jennifer began her consulting career with Towers Perrin in 1994. She was also a legislative intern in Washington for the New York State legislature with a particular focus on employment issues including the 1993 National Healthcare Initiative spearheaded by (at time first-lady), Hillary Clinton. Jennifer received a BS in Industrial and Labor Relations at the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University.
Health Reform Bulletin 122 | 2017 Inflationary Adjustments and moreCBIZ, Inc.
1) 2017 Inflationary Adjustments; 2) Final Rules: Excepted Benefits, Lifetime and Annual Limits, and Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance; and 3) Whistleblower and Retaliation Protections
Health Care Reform -- 2016 Compliance Checklistntoscano50
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has made a number of significant changes to group health plans since the law was enacted over four years ago. Many of these key reforms became effective in 2014 and 2015, including health plan design changes, increased wellness program incentives and the employer shared responsibility penalties.
Additional reforms take effect in 2016 for employers sponsoring group health plans. To prepare for 2016, employers should review upcoming requirements and develop a compliance strategy.
Healthcare check in the latest developments in health and welfare plansbenefitexpress
We work in an exciting industry—which means quick changes are the norm, and adaptability is a necessity.
Keep your compliance plan up-to-date with a download of recent legislative changes.
We'll cover legislation that's passed, what's on the way, and what it means for your organization.
Topics Covered Include:
• IRS Information Letters
• Tax Reform Legislation
• Wellness Regulations - EEOC, AARP
• Comprehensive Guidance on QSEHRAs
• ACA: Elimination of Individual Mandate Penalty
• Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave
• DOL Annual Adjustments to Employee Benefit Plan Penalties
• “Good Faith” Penalty Relief
• Final Disability Claim Regulations
• Cadillac Tax Updates
• And More!
Presented by Larry Grudzien, Attorney at Law
Although many key reforms of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are effective for 2014, additional reforms will become effective in 2015 for employers sponsoring group health plans. For 2015, the most significant ACA change is the shared responsibility penalty for applicable large employers. To prepare for 2015, employers should review upcoming requirements and develop a compliance strategy. This Legislative Brief provides a health care reform checklist for 2015.
Affordable Care Act - Healthcare Reform Briefing for CareermindsCareerminds
2014 and Beyond – What’s Next in Employer Sponsored Healthcare Plans
Next year will be a significant year for employer sponsored health care. With the onset of numerous benefit and eligibility mandates as well as the introduction of public medical exchanges, employers are taking a closer look of the healthcare benefits they traditionally offer employees in the US. Join us to learn about the changes in the health insurance market. We will discuss how these changes impact employer strategies and how employers will interact with the public exchanges. Beyond the employer impact we will address how the changing market will impact employees who are subject to the individual mandate beginning in 2014.
By the end of this webcast participants will be able to:
• Identify key changes HR and Benefits functions to know and do as a result of these changes
• Identify key changes required for 2014
• Discuss emerging healthcare cost trends
• Understand how employers will interact with the public exchanges
• Review emerging employer strategies including the interworkings of private exchanges
ABOUT THE PRESENTER:
Jennifer Calhoun Mohl is a Partner and senior consultant in Mercer’s Philadelphia health and benefits practice. She assists clients with various consulting assignments, including the design, administration, financing, and regulatory compliance of health and welfare benefit plans for both active and retiree populations. In addition, Jennifer serves as a relationship manager on client assignments that involve multiple Mercer offices and multiple lines of business.
In addition, Jennifer has assisted with the implementation and operations of benefit programs, including communications, outsourcing and call center support. Recently, she has served as the lead health and benefit strategist on client assignments involving multiple lines of business – with a particular focus on mergers and acquisitions.
Jennifer serves as one of Mercer’s National Health and Benefits spokeswomen. She has been quoted in various periodicals including, Managed Care Report, O&P Business News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Business Journal, Money Magazine and has been featured on Money Matters Today on CN8.
Prior to joining Mercer in 1999, Jennifer began her consulting career with Towers Perrin in 1994. She was also a legislative intern in Washington for the New York State legislature with a particular focus on employment issues including the 1993 National Healthcare Initiative spearheaded by (at time first-lady), Hillary Clinton. Jennifer received a BS in Industrial and Labor Relations at the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University.
Health Reform Bulletin 122 | 2017 Inflationary Adjustments and moreCBIZ, Inc.
1) 2017 Inflationary Adjustments; 2) Final Rules: Excepted Benefits, Lifetime and Annual Limits, and Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance; and 3) Whistleblower and Retaliation Protections
Health Care Reform -- 2016 Compliance Checklistntoscano50
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has made a number of significant changes to group health plans since the law was enacted over four years ago. Many of these key reforms became effective in 2014 and 2015, including health plan design changes, increased wellness program incentives and the employer shared responsibility penalties.
Additional reforms take effect in 2016 for employers sponsoring group health plans. To prepare for 2016, employers should review upcoming requirements and develop a compliance strategy.
Created by WEA Trust Vice President & General Counsel Vaughn Vance, this presentation helps explain to employers the changing health insurance marketplace. You'll learn about new fees and taxes, plan restrictions and employer obligations under health care reform.
This presentation reviews: what information must be protected, what policies and procedures need to be in place, what disclosures have to be given to employees, what agreements have to be in place for business associates, and what breach procedures have to be followed.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has made a number of significant changes to group health plans since the law was enacted in 2010. Many of these key reforms became effective in 2014 and 2015, including health plan design changes, increased wellness program incentives and the employer shared responsibility penalties.
Certain changes to some ACA requirements take effect in 2017 for employers sponsoring group health plans, such as increased dollar limits. To prepare for 2017, employers should review upcoming requirements and develop a compliance strategy.
If the employer mandate is repealed, many ALEs will likely want to modify their plan designs to go back to pre-ACA eligibility rules. Employers may also consider increasing the amount that employees are required to contribute for group health plan coverage.
Health Reform Alert - Implementation Guidance FAQsCBIZ, Inc.
The ACA’s governing agencies (Labor, HHS and IRS) have issued their 18th set of implementation FAQs, further defining certain aspects of the Affordable Care Act, as well as how the law coordinates with the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA). Following are highlights of this guidance.
Learn more at www.cbiz.com
The recently enacted federal healthcare legislation will affect virtually everyone and will mean significant changes for patients, insurers, employers, hospitals and physicians. This is one of the largest changes to the tax laws in the past 30 years. Are you interested in finding out how the Reform will affect you or your business? We want to help. We are offering presentations to businesses and groups to provide information on how the Reform may impact you.
For more information visit our website at www.kl-cpa.com.
Are you ready for the upcoming 2014 provisions of the new healthcare reform act? Do you know what the implications are to you as a small or midsize company?
Our webinar will help you become familiar with upcoming requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Expect to learn the following and more:
What is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
How does an organization determine their 2014 cost to comply?
What should organizations be doing now to prepare?
Developments in Health and Welfare Plans in 2016benefitexpress
Kick off enrollment season with a comprehensive review of the legislative changes for 2016. This webinar focuses on what you need to know for successful enrollment and ACA reporting. Learn about new legislation from DOL, HHS, IRS, and EEOC. It’s a webinar you (and your compliance strategy) can’t afford to miss.
Created by WEA Trust Vice President & General Counsel Vaughn Vance, this presentation helps explain to employers the changing health insurance marketplace. You'll learn about new fees and taxes, plan restrictions and employer obligations under health care reform.
This presentation reviews: what information must be protected, what policies and procedures need to be in place, what disclosures have to be given to employees, what agreements have to be in place for business associates, and what breach procedures have to be followed.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has made a number of significant changes to group health plans since the law was enacted in 2010. Many of these key reforms became effective in 2014 and 2015, including health plan design changes, increased wellness program incentives and the employer shared responsibility penalties.
Certain changes to some ACA requirements take effect in 2017 for employers sponsoring group health plans, such as increased dollar limits. To prepare for 2017, employers should review upcoming requirements and develop a compliance strategy.
If the employer mandate is repealed, many ALEs will likely want to modify their plan designs to go back to pre-ACA eligibility rules. Employers may also consider increasing the amount that employees are required to contribute for group health plan coverage.
Health Reform Alert - Implementation Guidance FAQsCBIZ, Inc.
The ACA’s governing agencies (Labor, HHS and IRS) have issued their 18th set of implementation FAQs, further defining certain aspects of the Affordable Care Act, as well as how the law coordinates with the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA). Following are highlights of this guidance.
Learn more at www.cbiz.com
The recently enacted federal healthcare legislation will affect virtually everyone and will mean significant changes for patients, insurers, employers, hospitals and physicians. This is one of the largest changes to the tax laws in the past 30 years. Are you interested in finding out how the Reform will affect you or your business? We want to help. We are offering presentations to businesses and groups to provide information on how the Reform may impact you.
For more information visit our website at www.kl-cpa.com.
Are you ready for the upcoming 2014 provisions of the new healthcare reform act? Do you know what the implications are to you as a small or midsize company?
Our webinar will help you become familiar with upcoming requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Expect to learn the following and more:
What is the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
How does an organization determine their 2014 cost to comply?
What should organizations be doing now to prepare?
Developments in Health and Welfare Plans in 2016benefitexpress
Kick off enrollment season with a comprehensive review of the legislative changes for 2016. This webinar focuses on what you need to know for successful enrollment and ACA reporting. Learn about new legislation from DOL, HHS, IRS, and EEOC. It’s a webinar you (and your compliance strategy) can’t afford to miss.
How to Avoid a Head-on Collision with The Cadillac TaxBill Conlan
The Webinar addressed what state and local governments need to know about how other provisions of reform that take effect beginning in 2010 will complicate the challenge of meeting the thresholds – and that the time to begin planning for the Cadillac tax is now.
The presenters provided details on the Cadillac tax and factors that complicate compliance with premium thresholds such as the removal of traditional coverage limits, the increase in the dependent eligibility age, additional fees, mental health parity and the estimated 16 million more Americans who will receive Medicaid.
Compliance Overview - Employee Benefits Compliance Checklist for Large Employersntoscano50
Federal law imposes numerous requirements on the group health coverage that employers provide to their employees. Many federal compliance laws apply to all group health plans, regardless of the size of the sponsoring employer. However, there are some additional requirements for large employers. For this purpose, a large employer is one with 50 or more employees.
Unlike smaller employers, large employers must comply with the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer shared responsibility rules, the ACA’s Form W-2 reporting rules and the Family and Medical Leave Act’s (FMLA) requirements.
This Compliance Overview provides a checklist for employee benefit laws applicable to large employers.
Health Reform: Interim Guidance on Expatriate Plans; Updates on ACA Reportin...CBIZ, Inc.
This Health Care Reform Bulletin provides information on the following topics:
a. Interim Guidance on Expatriate Health Coverage
b. Updates on Section 6055/6056 Reporting
i. Revised and Increased Reporting Penalties
ii. E-filing requirements for Employers
c. Final Rules: Preventive Services
d. Reminder on PCOR Fees and Transitional Reinsurance
i. Checklist for PCOR and Transitional Reinsurance Fee
2016 Developments in HRA Administration: Reviewing Recent IRS Guidancebenefitexpress
This webinar reviews: the recent IRS guidance in HRA administration, when HRAs are free standing, what requirements must be met to be integrated, and HRA reimbursed Medicare premiums.
May 2017 Summary of the American Health Care Act T.docxalfredacavx97
May 2017
Summary of the American Health Care Act
This summary describes key provisions of H.R. 1628, the American Health Care Act, as approved by the House
of Representatives on May 4, 2017, as a plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) through the
Fiscal Year 2017 budget reconciliation process.
American Health Care Act
H.R. 1628
Date plan
announced
March 6, 2017; passed by the House of Representatives on May 4, 2017
Overall
approach
Repeal ACA mandates (2016), standards for health plan actuarial values (2020),
and, premium and cost sharing subsidies (2020).
Modify ACA premium tax credits for 2018-2019 to increase amount for younger
adults and reduce for older adults; allow tax credits to apply to coverage sold outside
of exchanges and to catastrophic policies. In 2020, replace ACA income-based tax
credits with flat tax credits adjusted for age. Eligibility for new tax credits phases out
at income levels between $75,000 and $115,000
Retain private market rules, including requirement to guarantee issue coverage,
prohibition on pre-existing condition exclusions, requirement to extend dependent
coverage to age 26. Modify age rating limit to permit variation of 5:1, unless states
adopt different ratios, effective 2018. Retain essential health benefits requirement,
with state option to waive. Retain prohibition on health status rating with state
option to waive for individual market applicants who have not maintained continuous
coverage.
Retain health insurance marketplaces, annual Open Enrollment periods (OE), and
special enrollment periods (SEPs).
Impose late enrollment penalty for people who don’t stay continuously covered.
Establish Patient and State Stability Fund with federal funding of $115 billion over
9 years available to all states, and additional funding of $8 billion over 5 years for
states that elect community rating waivers. States may use funds to provide financial
help to high-risk individuals, promote access to preventive services, provide cost
sharing subsidies, and for other purposes. In 2020, $15 billion of funds shall be used
only for services related to maternity coverage and newborn care, and mental health
and substance use disorders. [For 2018-2026, a further $15 billion is allocated
through the fund for Federal Invisible Risk Sharing Program (reinsurance). This
program is established as part of the fund, though administered by CMS to make
payments directly to health insurers.] In states that don’t successfully apply for
grants, funds will be used for reinsurance program.
Repeal funding for Prevention and Public Health Fund at the end of Fiscal Year
2018 and rescind any unobligated funds remaining at the end of FY 2018. Provide
supplemental funding for community health centers of $422 million for FY 2017
Encourage use of Health Savings Accounts by increasing annual tax free
co.
The article below describes a new health care reform development (additional federal agency guidance on prohibition of premium reimbursement arrangements).
Health Reform Bulletin 116 | Year-End Wrap Up Dec. 29, 2015CBIZ, Inc.
The government is winding up 2015 and ringing in 2016 with a bang. The final HRB of 2015 will keep you abreast of the various changes that occurred at the end of the year.
Health Reform Bulletin 116 Year End Wrap Up 12-29-15Daniel Michels
The most recent CBIZ Health Reform Bulletin: Year-End Wrap Up (HRB 116). This issue includes specific information and guidance on:
1. Late breaking development, IRS delays new Affordable Care Act's (ACA) reporting and disclosure obligations!
2. On December 18, 2015 Consolidate Appropriations Act, 2016, and the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act of 2015 (H. R. 2029; now Public Law No. 114-113) were signed by the President, and amend several provisions of the Affordable Care Act.
3. The IRS Issued guidance relating to ACA implementation
4. Year-End Reminders
Webinar: Mid-Year Election Changes for Cafeteria Plansbenefitexpress
Let's talk about cafeteria plans. When can participants make election changes?
While cafeteria plans can be a great option for employees wishing to pick and choose benefits based on cost, when and how to facilitate election changes outside of open enrollment can be tricky to navigate for employers. As the use of cafeteria plans continue to grow, we take a deeper look at the rules and regulations of these plans, particularly as they pertain to mid-year election changes.
COVID-19 Health & Welfare: Compliance for Employersbenefitexpress
As part of our continuing ERISA Compliance series, we covered such compliance topics and more in our April 9th webinar discussing COVID-19 and updates from the IRS and DOL concerning the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.
Plan Sponsor Webinar: Navigating COVID-19 for Employersbenefitexpress
In this webinar, we take a deeper look into how the novel coronavirus is not only affecting the way we live, but changing the way we work. From remote work environments, FMLA, contract agreements and more, we discuss how to navigate the changing workforce during this time of uncertainty, and answer questions to help you make the best decisions for the health and safety of your employees.
Medicare & Employer Health Coverage - a Coordination Conversationbenefitexpress
Let's talk about Medicare and Employer Health Coverage. The rules on coordinating Medicare and employer coverage can be complex. How it complements other programs (such as COBRA, HSAs and the ACA) are also areas of question for both employees and their employers.
Part of our ERISA Compliance Series, this webinar is hosted by ERISA Attorney Larry Grudzien and moderated by chief marketing officer Julia Goebel. This webinar will discuss the top wage and hour issues that may be unknowingly lurking within your company.
The Affordable Care Act touches the lives of most Americans. In fact, nearly 21 million will be at risk if Obamacare is struck down, and may even lose health insurance completely if the law is ruled unconstitutional. This webinar will discuss what the outcome may be if ACA is repealed.
Watch our free one-hour webinar reviewing the rules for the new Individual Coverage HRA and the new Excepted Benefit HRA (ICHRA and EBHRA).
In June 2019, Treasury, DOL and HHS released final regulations that are effective for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2020. These regulations created two new HRAs, Individual Coverage HRAs (ICHRA) and Excepted Benefit HRAs (EBHRA).
These new HRAs will be subject to ERISA and COBRA, but will not be subject to the nondiscrimination rules under Code Section 105(h). Any employer can offer these new HRAs to their employees. They can be offered to common law employees, but cannot be offered to self-employed individuals, partners and more than 2% S-Corporation shareholders.
Facilitated by ERISA attorney Larry Grudzien, and moderated by Chief Marketing Officer Julia Goebel, this webinar will cover the following:
-Why are these new HRAs so important?
-Which employees can be included or excluded
-What documentation is needed to be completed by employers to adopt them
-What reporting and disclosure requirements must be met
-What types of expenses can be reimbursed
-The pros and cons of establishing and participating in these new HRAs for employers
In today's multi-generational workforce, health and wellness benefits are weighted equally with salary expectations. This is why it's important for small and large businesses alike to embrace health and wellness benefits to recruit top talent as well as retain valued employees.
While offering these benefits has been shown to improve employee engagement and productivity, it comes with some challenges. This webinar reviews common questions human resources professionals confront when offering health and welfare benefits to employees.
Facilitated by ERISA attorney Larry Grudzien, this webinar covers the following:
- Questions Surrounding Tax
- Reporting Disclosures
- ERISA, COBRA & FMLA
- Workers Compensation
- Affordable Care Act (ACA)
Benefits are a critical piece of an employee compensation package, with health care benefits reigning most important. Whether you're already offering these benefits or considering adding them to your benefits offerings, view our webinar to learn more and remain competitive in the talent marketplace.
How to Administer Wellness Programs in Today's Regulatory Environmentbenefitexpress
Are you struggling to make sense of the recent legislative updates surrounding employer sponsored wellness programs? Perhaps you are trying to decide whether to continue with current wellness plans, modify your plans without guidance from the EEOC, postpone new wellness programs or discontinue them all together.
It’s a complicated landscape ripe with several options for “next steps” for employees and plan sponsors of wellness plans in 2019 — with perhaps the biggest barrier of all being that employers cannot measure the risk of wellness plans at this time.
To help guide you through this maze of options, watch our one-hour webinar on-demand to learn what rules remain after the EEOC’s regulations were found invalid and what rules have to be met in 2019 in order to offer a valid wellness program.
How to administer wellness programs in today's regulatory environment
This webinar covers:
Requirements under HIPAA
Requirements under the Internal Revenue Code
Requirements under ERISA
Requirements under GINA
Requirements under ADA
Requirements under ACA
HIPAA Training: Privacy Review and Audit Survival Guidebenefitexpress
HIPAA Privacy Overview for Employers. Review a helpful checklist of requirements an employer must adopt to stay compliant with HIPAA and to survive an audit by Health and Human Services (HHS).
Webinar | Texas vs. United States - The Repeal of ACA?benefitexpress
Recently a Federal District Court held in Texas, et al. v. United States of America, et al. that the individual mandate in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional, and that the other provisions in the ACA are invalid because they are inseverable from the individual mandate.
Our ACA compliance webinar reviews:
- What the Federal District Court decided.
- The basis for the decision.
- The impact of the decision.
- What may happen over the next months or year.
- What Congress may do to address the situation.
Webinar | From Analysis to Action: How Personalization Can Lower Employer Cos...benefitexpress
Personalization is everywhere – from Amazon to Spotify, and is now the expectation for consumers. Personalization in benefits elections is also the new normal, thanks to decision support tools and data analytics. Modern decision support tools draw on data points including demographics, preferences and medical need, all highly relevant towards personalization ... as opposed to the "one-size fits all" modeler of the past that relied on strict business rules.
Using data to advise clients can be a game changer for a broker. With analytics, you can quantify your benefit plan suggestions based on hard evidence, and advise based on unbiased data versus mere opinion. But where does this data come from? And how do you know which data to use?
This webinar shows how decision support tools can provide data to simplify health benefit decisions, allowing employees to feel more confident in their decisions, leading to lower costs for employers and client retention for brokers as a result.
In this webinar, brokers will learn how decision support analytics can reinforce their role as a trusted adviser by:
• Helping employer clients understand which health plans and programs are being used and which ones are the most cost-effective
• Minimizing the number of employees who are over-insured or under-insured, helping to save on annual and long-term costs for healthcare premiums, leading to better client retention over time
• Supporting healthy employee behaviors, resulting in lower health care expenses overall
FSAs can do some heavy lifting for your benefits plan – they allow employees to save pretax dollars for healthcare costs without the price tag of other financial wellness initiatives.
However, many HR professionals lack a deep understanding of the compliance requirements to offer and administer a well-rounded program for their employees. Engage your employees with a financial wellness benefit that works.
Key webinar takeaways:
- How different types of FSAs interact with benefit plans as a whole
- FSA and reimbursement limits for 2018
- Legal implications of offering an FSA to employees
- Best practices for administering a successful FSA benefit plan
Webinar | COBRA Pitfalls: Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Thembenefitexpress
Leaving the organization isn't the end of the benefits cycle for employees. This webinar focuses on how to avoid one of the most common compliance pitfalls in benefits ... COBRA administration.
Some of the top takeaways were:
• The basics of successful COBRA administration
• Required notices associated with COBRA coverage
• How Medicare interacts with COBRA for employees and dependents
• Penalties for noncompliance
Smooth and successful off-boarding of departing employees is as important as well-planned on-boarding of new hires. Log on to your roadmap for a smooth ride into COBRA compliance.
Webinar | Clients Calling “Mayday”? Design a Benefits Technology Strategy to ...benefitexpress
Benefits administration can be a delicate, and even difficult balancing act for employers. From managing costs and administrative demands, to maintaining compliance, and integrating with workforce wellness plans, it’s not surprising that three in four employers called “mayday” and turned to benefits administration outsourcing in 2017. With the administrative difficulty level rising, and advisory competition increasing, it is now critical to become the partner of choice to relieve this distress. But how?
Join Scott Evans, chief product officer at benefitexpress, this May Day, as he guides benefits advisers through the top considerations for building, buying or borrowing benefits administration technology solutions to offer clients. If you and your clients have benefits technology questions, Scott has answers.
Webinar takeaways include:
• How to assess your readiness: learn and identify the benefits administration business model that is right for you
• Key criteria for evaluating potential benefits technology partners, plus a valuable checklist
• How to create a benefits technology strategy for your business which is seen as an imperative – not a “value-add” – by your clients
• Tips for staying competitive in a changing market, using your solutions portfolio
Webinar | Training the Technique: Advanced ERISA Compliancebenefitexpress
If your organization offers any form of retirement plan, chances are you have questions about ERISA. This advanced compliance training will go beyond the basics of the requirements of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974.
Attend our one-hour training to learn:
- Which employers are affected by ERISA regulations
- Which benefits plans are subject to ERISA
- What documentation employers must provide to prove
compliance
- Penalties for noncompliance
ERISA attorney Larry Grudzien will share industry inside knowledge to help participants ensure total compliance with ERISA regulations.
Factors of Self-Funding: Evaluating the Pros and Consbenefitexpress
In a changing healthcare landscape, employers are increasingly considering taking the funding of their healthcare benefits into their own hands. If you're one of them, this webinar is the one-hour guide you must see.
Participants will learn:
- The legal implications associated with self-funding
- Common administrative pitfalls
- Solving employee issues involved in self-funded plans
- A full overview of laws and regulations governing self-funding
Our compliance expert will weigh in during a compact, one-hour guide.
The Art of the Pitch: WordPress Relationships and SalesLaura Byrne
Clients don’t know what they don’t know. What web solutions are right for them? How does WordPress come into the picture? How do you make sure you understand scope and timeline? What do you do if sometime changes?
All these questions and more will be explored as we talk about matching clients’ needs with what your agency offers without pulling teeth or pulling your hair out. Practical tips, and strategies for successful relationship building that leads to closing the deal.
State of ICS and IoT Cyber Threat Landscape Report 2024 previewPrayukth K V
The IoT and OT threat landscape report has been prepared by the Threat Research Team at Sectrio using data from Sectrio, cyber threat intelligence farming facilities spread across over 85 cities around the world. In addition, Sectrio also runs AI-based advanced threat and payload engagement facilities that serve as sinks to attract and engage sophisticated threat actors, and newer malware including new variants and latent threats that are at an earlier stage of development.
The latest edition of the OT/ICS and IoT security Threat Landscape Report 2024 also covers:
State of global ICS asset and network exposure
Sectoral targets and attacks as well as the cost of ransom
Global APT activity, AI usage, actor and tactic profiles, and implications
Rise in volumes of AI-powered cyberattacks
Major cyber events in 2024
Malware and malicious payload trends
Cyberattack types and targets
Vulnerability exploit attempts on CVEs
Attacks on counties – USA
Expansion of bot farms – how, where, and why
In-depth analysis of the cyber threat landscape across North America, South America, Europe, APAC, and the Middle East
Why are attacks on smart factories rising?
Cyber risk predictions
Axis of attacks – Europe
Systemic attacks in the Middle East
Download the full report from here:
https://sectrio.com/resources/ot-threat-landscape-reports/sectrio-releases-ot-ics-and-iot-security-threat-landscape-report-2024/
JMeter webinar - integration with InfluxDB and GrafanaRTTS
Watch this recorded webinar about real-time monitoring of application performance. See how to integrate Apache JMeter, the open-source leader in performance testing, with InfluxDB, the open-source time-series database, and Grafana, the open-source analytics and visualization application.
In this webinar, we will review the benefits of leveraging InfluxDB and Grafana when executing load tests and demonstrate how these tools are used to visualize performance metrics.
Length: 30 minutes
Session Overview
-------------------------------------------
During this webinar, we will cover the following topics while demonstrating the integrations of JMeter, InfluxDB and Grafana:
- What out-of-the-box solutions are available for real-time monitoring JMeter tests?
- What are the benefits of integrating InfluxDB and Grafana into the load testing stack?
- Which features are provided by Grafana?
- Demonstration of InfluxDB and Grafana using a practice web application
To view the webinar recording, go to:
https://www.rttsweb.com/jmeter-integration-webinar
"Impact of front-end architecture on development cost", Viktor TurskyiFwdays
I have heard many times that architecture is not important for the front-end. Also, many times I have seen how developers implement features on the front-end just following the standard rules for a framework and think that this is enough to successfully launch the project, and then the project fails. How to prevent this and what approach to choose? I have launched dozens of complex projects and during the talk we will analyze which approaches have worked for me and which have not.
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
GDG Cloud Southlake #33: Boule & Rebala: Effective AppSec in SDLC using Deplo...James Anderson
Effective Application Security in Software Delivery lifecycle using Deployment Firewall and DBOM
The modern software delivery process (or the CI/CD process) includes many tools, distributed teams, open-source code, and cloud platforms. Constant focus on speed to release software to market, along with the traditional slow and manual security checks has caused gaps in continuous security as an important piece in the software supply chain. Today organizations feel more susceptible to external and internal cyber threats due to the vast attack surface in their applications supply chain and the lack of end-to-end governance and risk management.
The software team must secure its software delivery process to avoid vulnerability and security breaches. This needs to be achieved with existing tool chains and without extensive rework of the delivery processes. This talk will present strategies and techniques for providing visibility into the true risk of the existing vulnerabilities, preventing the introduction of security issues in the software, resolving vulnerabilities in production environments quickly, and capturing the deployment bill of materials (DBOM).
Speakers:
Bob Boule
Robert Boule is a technology enthusiast with PASSION for technology and making things work along with a knack for helping others understand how things work. He comes with around 20 years of solution engineering experience in application security, software continuous delivery, and SaaS platforms. He is known for his dynamic presentations in CI/CD and application security integrated in software delivery lifecycle.
Gopinath Rebala
Gopinath Rebala is the CTO of OpsMx, where he has overall responsibility for the machine learning and data processing architectures for Secure Software Delivery. Gopi also has a strong connection with our customers, leading design and architecture for strategic implementations. Gopi is a frequent speaker and well-known leader in continuous delivery and integrating security into software delivery.
Transcript: Selling digital books in 2024: Insights from industry leaders - T...BookNet Canada
The publishing industry has been selling digital audiobooks and ebooks for over a decade and has found its groove. What’s changed? What has stayed the same? Where do we go from here? Join a group of leading sales peers from across the industry for a conversation about the lessons learned since the popularization of digital books, best practices, digital book supply chain management, and more.
Link to video recording: https://bnctechforum.ca/sessions/selling-digital-books-in-2024-insights-from-industry-leaders/
Presented by BookNet Canada on May 28, 2024, with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
Accelerate your Kubernetes clusters with Varnish CachingThijs Feryn
A presentation about the usage and availability of Varnish on Kubernetes. This talk explores the capabilities of Varnish caching and shows how to use the Varnish Helm chart to deploy it to Kubernetes.
This presentation was delivered at K8SUG Singapore. See https://feryn.eu/presentations/accelerate-your-kubernetes-clusters-with-varnish-caching-k8sug-singapore-28-2024 for more details.
Search and Society: Reimagining Information Access for Radical FuturesBhaskar Mitra
The field of Information retrieval (IR) is currently undergoing a transformative shift, at least partly due to the emerging applications of generative AI to information access. In this talk, we will deliberate on the sociotechnical implications of generative AI for information access. We will argue that there is both a critical necessity and an exciting opportunity for the IR community to re-center our research agendas on societal needs while dismantling the artificial separation between the work on fairness, accountability, transparency, and ethics in IR and the rest of IR research. Instead of adopting a reactionary strategy of trying to mitigate potential social harms from emerging technologies, the community should aim to proactively set the research agenda for the kinds of systems we should build inspired by diverse explicitly stated sociotechnical imaginaries. The sociotechnical imaginaries that underpin the design and development of information access technologies needs to be explicitly articulated, and we need to develop theories of change in context of these diverse perspectives. Our guiding future imaginaries must be informed by other academic fields, such as democratic theory and critical theory, and should be co-developed with social science scholars, legal scholars, civil rights and social justice activists, and artists, among others.
LF Energy Webinar: Electrical Grid Modelling and Simulation Through PowSyBl -...DanBrown980551
Do you want to learn how to model and simulate an electrical network from scratch in under an hour?
Then welcome to this PowSyBl workshop, hosted by Rte, the French Transmission System Operator (TSO)!
During the webinar, you will discover the PowSyBl ecosystem as well as handle and study an electrical network through an interactive Python notebook.
PowSyBl is an open source project hosted by LF Energy, which offers a comprehensive set of features for electrical grid modelling and simulation. Among other advanced features, PowSyBl provides:
- A fully editable and extendable library for grid component modelling;
- Visualization tools to display your network;
- Grid simulation tools, such as power flows, security analyses (with or without remedial actions) and sensitivity analyses;
The framework is mostly written in Java, with a Python binding so that Python developers can access PowSyBl functionalities as well.
What you will learn during the webinar:
- For beginners: discover PowSyBl's functionalities through a quick general presentation and the notebook, without needing any expert coding skills;
- For advanced developers: master the skills to efficiently apply PowSyBl functionalities to your real-world scenarios.
2. AGENDA
• IRS Updates Guidance on Employer Shared Responsibility, Including 2018 Penalty Amounts
• Proposed Regulations Would Expand Availability of Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance
• IRS Revises Some 2018 Benefit Limits Due to Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and then revises it again
• IRS Clarifies That Male Sterilization and Male Contraceptives Are Not Preventive Care
for HDHP Purposes, Provides Transition Relief
• HHS Finalizes 2019 Benefit and Payment Parameters and Extends Transition Policy
Allowing Certain Noncompliant Policies
• Agencies Issue More Mental Health Parity Guidance, Including Additional FAQs and a New Disclosure Form
• IRS Announces 2019 HSA Contribution Limits, HDHP Minimum Deductibles, and
HDHP Out-of-Pocket Maximums
• IRS Announces ACA Indexing Adjustments for Affordability and Premium Tax Credit Determinations for 2019
• Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family Medical Leave
• DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
3. IRS Updates Guidance on
Employer Shared Responsibility,
Including 2018 Penalty Amount
4. IRS UPDATES
IRS Updates Guidance on Employer Shared
Responsibility, Including 2018 Penalty Amount
The IRS has updated guidance relating to Code § 4980H employer shared responsibility
for applicable large employers (ALEs). Here are highlights:
• 2018 Adjusted Penalty Amounts — the IRS has announced the adjusted penalty
amounts per full-time employee for Code § 4980H failures occurring in the 2018
calendar year — $2,320 under Code § 4980H(a) and $3,480 under Code § 4980H(b)
• Adjustment to Affordability Standard — the 2018 indexing adjustment has been
updated for the required contribution percentage used to determine whether
employer-sponsored health coverage is “affordable” for purposes of employer shared
responsibility (see our article) — the affordability threshold for 2018 is 9.56%
• Expired Transition Relief — no transition relief will be available for 2017 and future
years — transition relief that was available for the 2015 plan year (including months
falling in 2016 for non-calendar-year plans) has now expired
6. IRS UPDATES
Proposed Regulations Would Expand Availability of Short-
Term, Limited-Duration Insurance
• The DOL, HHS, and IRS have jointly issued proposed regulations that would expand
the availability of short-term, limited-duration health insurance
• The agencies are proposing to amend the definition of short-term, limited-duration
insurance so that an insurer may offer any coverage period of less than 12 months,
including any extensions that may be elected by the policyholder
• This extension would restore the previously applicable maximum coverage period —
reversing the October 2016 final regulations that reduced the maximum coverage
duration to any period of less than three months, including any possible extensions
7. IRS UPDATES
Proposed Regulations Would Expand
Availability of Short-Term, Limited-
Duration Insurance
Required notice that must appear in enrollment materials for
short-term, limited-duration insurance have been revised to
require the use of one of two versions depending on whether
the coverage start date is before January 1, 2019.
Both versions of the notice are intended to warn consumers
that short-term, limited-duration policies are not required to
comply with certain federal health insurance mandates,
principally those contained in the ACA.
9. IRS Revises Some Benefit Limits for 2018
• IRS released Revenue Procedure 2018-10 which modifies and supersedes certain
sections of Revenue Procedure 2017-58 and supersedes Revenue Procedure 2017-37
to reflect by new tax law (pub. L no. 115-97 enacted December 22, 2017.
• HSA: As a result, only the HSA family contribution limit has been affected for 2018.
The limit has been decreased from $6,900 to $6,850. All the other contribution limits,
HDHP limits and out-of-pocket limits remain the same for 2018.
• Adoption Assistance: The amount for the adoption credit or the amount excluded for
adoption assistance allowed for an adoption of a child with special needs has been
decreased from $13,840 to $13,810.
• Employee Health Insurance Expense of Small Employers: The dollar amount for
employee health Insurance expense of small employers has been decreased from
$26,700 to $26,600. This used for the tax credit.
10. IRS Revises Some Benefit Limits for 2018
• https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/rp-18-27.pdf
• In Revenue Procedure 2018-27, the treasury department and the IRS have determined
that it is in the best interest of sound and efficient tax administration to allow
taxpayers to treat the $6,900 annual limitation originally published in Rev. Proc. 2017-
37 as the 2018 inflation adjusted limitation on HSA contributions for eligible
individuals with family coverage under an HDHP
• An individual who receives a distribution from an HSA of an excess contribution
(with earnings) based on the $6,850 deduction limit published in Rev. Proc. 2018-18
may repay the distribution to the HSA and treat the
distribution as the result of a mistake of fact due to
reasonable cause under Q&A-37 of Notice 2004-50,
2004-2 C.B. 196
11. Male Sterilization and Male Contraceptives
Are Not Preventive Care for HDHP Purposes,
Provides Transition Relief
12. Male Sterilization and Male Contraceptives
Are Not Preventive Care for HDHP Purposes,
Provides Transition Relief
• https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-18-12.pdf
• In Notice 2018-12, the IRS has clarified that health plans covering male sterilization or
male contraceptives without a deductible, or with a deductible below the statutory
minimum deductible for high-deductible health plans (HDHPs), are not HDHPs under
current IRS guidance regarding requirements for health savings accounts (HSA)
• These benefits are not preventive care under the SSA or under IRS or treasury
department guidance, nor are they preventive services that must be provided without
cost-sharing under health care reform
• Plans that provide these benefits before the HDHP minimum deductible is satisfied are
not HDHPs, even if the benefits are required under state law, and an individual who is
covered under such a plan is not eligible to make or receive HSA contributions
13. Male Sterilization and Male Contraceptives
Are Not Preventive Care for HDHP Purposes,
Provides Transition Relief
• The IRS has provided transition relief for periods before 2020
• Under the relief, individuals will not be treated as failing to qualify as HSA-eligible
merely because they are or were covered by an insurance policy that is not an HDHP
solely because it covers male sterilization or male contraceptives without a deductible,
or with a deductible below the HDHP minimum deductible
15. CMS Extends Transitional Policies
• https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/Regulations-and-
Guidance/Downloads/Extension-Transitional-Policy-Through-CY2019.pdf
• On April 9, 2018, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS")
released a bulletin which extends its transitional policy
to policy years beginning on or before October 1, 2019,
provided that all such policies end by December 31, 2019
• Policies subject to the transitional relief are not considered
to be out of compliance with the certain provisions of the
Public Health Service Act (PHS Act)
16. CMS Extends Transitional Policies
Policies subject to the transitional relief are not considered to be out of compliance with
the following provisions of the Public Health Service Act (PHS Act):
• Section 2701 (relating to fair health insurance premiums)
• Section 2702 (relating to guaranteed availability of coverage)
• Section 2703 (relating to guaranteed renewability of coverage)
• Section 2704 (relating to the prohibition of pre-existing condition exclusions or other discrimination
based on health status), with respect to adults, except with respect to group coverage
• Section 2705 (relating to the prohibition of discrimination against individual participants and
beneficiaries based on health status), except with respect to group coverage
• Section 2706 (relating to non-discrimination in health care)
• Section 2707 (relating to comprehensive health insurance coverage)
• Section 2709 as codified at 42 U.S.C. § 300gg-8
(relating to coverage for individuals participating in approved clinical trials)
18. Agencies Issue More Mental Health Parity Guidance
• The DOL, HHS, and IRS have proposed additional FAQs on mental health parity
implementation, along with a revised disclosure form and other guidance
• The guidance was prompted by the 21st Century Cures Act, which required the
agencies to improve mental health parity compliance by issuing additional guidance
and soliciting feedback on a variety of mental health parity topics, including how to
improve required disclosures
19. Agencies Issue More Mental Health Parity Guidance
FAQs on Experimental Limitations:
• Several FAQs address the application of experimental or investigative treatment exclusions to
mental health or substance use disorder benefits.
• One question focuses on applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapy for autism spectrum
disorder, explains that a medical management standard limiting or excluding benefits based on
whether a treatment is experimental or investigative is a non-quantitative treatment limitation
• The FAQ concludes that a plan violates the parity rules if it operationally applies such a
limitation or exclusion more stringently to mental health benefits by excluding all claims
for ABA therapy
• Another question examines an unconditional exclusion of experimental or investigational
mental health and substance abuse benefits based on a medical management ratings standard
20. Agencies Issue More Mental Health Parity Guidance
FAQs on Drug Limitations:
• One question explains that even though prescription drug dosage limitations (e.g., limits on
buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder) are medical management techniques that result
in numerically expressed limitations, the techniques are nevertheless non-quantitative
treatment limitations
• It concludes that if a plan follows the dosage recommendations in professionally recognized treatment
guidelines to set dosage limits for prescription drugs to treat medical and surgical conditions, it must
follow comparable treatment guidelines, and apply them no more stringently, in setting dosage limits
for prescription drugs to treat mental health and substance use disorder conditions (including
buprenorphine for opioid use disorder)
• Another question considers a plan’s exclusion of prescription drugs for bipolar disorder, and concludes
that a general exclusion of all benefits (including prescription drugs) for a particular condition or
disorder (such as bipolar disorder) is not a treatment limitation for purposes of the parity rules
21. Agencies Issue More Mental Health Parity Guidance
FAQs on Disclosures:
• Two FAQs address out-of-date and otherwise inadequate
mental health provider directories
• One question explains that DOL regulations require SPDs to provide a
general description of a plan’s provider network, including a list
of providers that is up-to-date, accurate and complete
• Another question is a reminder that a hyperlink or URL
for a provider directory may be used in enrollment and
plan summary materials, so long as the DOL’s electronic
disclosure safe harbor requirements are met
22. Agencies Issue More Mental Health Parity Guidance
• Revised Draft Form. The agencies have also revised the draft model disclosure form
(initially released with the June 2017 trove of guidance) that participants, enrollees, and
their authorized representatives may use to request information from their plan or
insurer about their plan’s non-quantitative treatment limitations
• (Plans and insurers are required to disclose the criteria for medical necessity
determinations with respect to mental health and substance use disorder benefits to any
current or potential participant, beneficiary, or contracting provider on request and must
make available the reason for any denial of reimbursement or payment for services to
the participant or beneficiary)
• One question explains that the draft form has been revised in response to comments on
the previous draft, and requests further comments by mid-June
24. HSA Contribution and Coverage Limits for 2019
IRS has just issued Revenue Procedure 2018-30, which provides the 2019 cost-of-living
contribution and coverage adjustments for HSAs, as required under Code Section 223(g).
Coverage Levels 2018 2019
Individual $3450 $3500
Family $6,900 $7,000
Catch-up $1,000 $1,000
Annual HSA Contribution Amounts
25. HSA Contribution and Coverage Limits for 2019
Coverage Levels 2018 2019
Individual $6,650 $6,750
Family $13,300 $13,500
Annual Maximum
Out-Of-Pocket Limits for HDHP
Coverage Levels 2018 2019
Individual $1,350 $1,350
Family $2,700 $2,700
Annual Minimum Deductible
Amount Limits for HDHP
26. IRS Announces ACA Indexing Adjustments
for Affordability and Premium Tax Credit
Determinations for 2019
27. IRS Announces ACA Indexing Adjustments for
Affordability and Premium Tax Credit
Determinations for 2019
• The IRS has announced 2019 indexing adjustments for two key percentages under
the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
• The first percentage, which is the required contribution percentage used to
determine whether employer-sponsored health coverage is “affordable” for purposes
of employer shared responsibility under Code § 4980H, has increased from the
9.56% for 2018 to 9.86% for 2019
• The second percentage, used to determine the amount of household income that
individuals eligible for premium tax credits must contribute toward the cost of
Exchange coverage, will also see small increases — the adjusted percentage,
ranging from 2.08% to 9.86%, varies across household income bands
29. Employer Tax Credit for
Paid Family Medical Leave
The FMLA Tax Credit, as provided under
Internal Revenue Code § 45S, enables
eligible employers to claim a general
business tax credit of up to 25% of the
wages paid to qualifying employees
while they are on family and medical
leave, subject to certain conditions.
30. Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family Medical Leave
• https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/section-45s-employer-credit-for-paid-family-and-
medical-leave-faqs
• On April 9, 2018, the IRS posted a set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and answers
regarding the new employer credit for paid family and medical leave, created by the
2017 tax cuts and jobs
• Qualified employers must have a written policy for employees that provides at least
two weeks of paid FML annually for qualified employees, and no less than 50 percent
of normal wages (prorated for part-time employees)
• The IRS further notes that a qualified employee must be employed for one year
or more and does not receive compensation beyond defined limits; for 2017,
an employee’s income may not exceed $72,000 to claim the 2018 credit
31. Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family Medical Leave
Employee reasons eligible for taking this FML are broad and may include a diverse
population of employees. The IRS specifically addresses the following permitted reasons
for taking Family Medical leave:
• Birth of an employee’s child and to care for the child
• Placement of a child with the employee for adoption or foster care
• To care for the employee’s spouse, child, or parent who has a serious health condition
• A serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions
of his or her position
• Any qualifying exigency, due to an employee’s spouse, child or parent being on
covered active duty (or having been notified of an impending call or order to
covered active duty) in the Armed Forces
• To care for a service member who is the employee’s spouse, child, parent or next of kin
• Any wages paid for leave taken outside of the above reasons will not qualify for the tax credit
32. Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family Medical Leave
• One difference between the rules for the tax credit and
for FMLA leave in general is that, if an employer provides
paid vacation leave, personal leave, or medical
or sick leave (other than paid leave specifically for one or
more of the purposes stated above), that paid leave is
not considered family and medical leave for purposes of
the tax credit
• Moreover, any leave paid by a state or local government
or required by state or local law will not be taken into
account in determining the amount of the tax credit
33. Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family Medical Leave
• Once qualified paid employee family and medical leave is identified,
qualified wages paid may be included for each employee while on leave
for up to 12 weeks per taxable year
• A minimum of 12.5% is applied to qualified wages paid and increases 0.25%
for each percentage point paid to qualifying employee that exceeds 50% of
the employees’ wages, to a maximum of 25%
• Wage amounts deducted on the employer’s tax return must be
reduced by the amount determined as a credit
• In addition, wages included in other general business credits (e.g. Credit for
Increasing Research Activities) must be excluded in determining this credit
34. Employer Tax Credit for Paid Family Medical Leave
• Not all questions concerning written employee policy requirements, the
impact of state and local requirements and controlled group credit reporting
requirements are addressed.
• In addition, employers have expressed concerns on how to quantify wages
paid by the employer’s insurance provider in the event of employee disability
• Furthermore, employers will seek clarification as to whether to include
disability benefits as wages in the credit calculation or simply include
premiums paid on relevant disability insurance policies
36. DOL Releases Final Rules
for Association Health Plans
What happened?
On June 19, 2018, the Department of Labor (DOL) released
final regulations under 29 CFR Section 2510.3-5 that offers
new options for associations to sponsor health plans for
their members.
These new options allow more small businesses to come
together to create large employer plans free from many of the
Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandates applicable to individual
and small group insurance plans.
37. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
Why are these final regulations important?
• Under existing law, multiple employers are treated as a single “employer”
under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) if they
are members of a bona fide group or association of employers
• To qualify as a bona fide group or association, the employer members must
have a “commonality of interest,” which the DOL had narrowly defined
• To satisfy this requirement, the law required the members of an Association
Health Plan (AHP) to be in the same geographic location and industry, thereby
prohibiting national health plans in the same industry or plans with
membership based on common geography but no industry or business ties
38. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
Why are these regulations important?
The new final regulations revises prior DOL guidance regarding what constitutes
a “commonality of interest,” providing that the association members have a
commonality of interest if they are:
• “trade, industry, line of business or profession,” or
• are located in “same state or metropolitan area even if
the metropolitan area includes more than one state
Under ACA, such a plan would be treated as a single large plan.
39. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
Do these final regulations apply to existing AHPs that were formed to comply with
previous guidance?
• No — the final regulations expressly preserve existing AHPs that were formed to
comply with the previous guidance on association coverage under the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
• Some argued that because those AHPs did not design their operations with the
new requirements in mind, they "may not be able to comply with the new conditions
without reducing existing options for affordable healthcare"
• DOL agreed — "AHPs may continue to rely upon the Department's previous guidance,“
and DOL noted, "This final rule provides an additional mechanism for groups or
associations to meet the definition of an 'employer' and sponsor a single ... group
health plan; it is not the sole mechanism"
40. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
To be a valid AHP under the new final regulations, what other requirements
must it meet, besides the commonality of interest?
Purpose/Sponsorship:
• The sponsoring group or association must have at least one substantial business
purpose unrelated to offering and providing health coverage
or other employee benefits to its members and their employees; however,
the primary purpose can be to offer health coverage to members
• A safe harbor under the final regulations deems a substantial
business purpose to exist where the group or association would be a
viable entity even in the absence of sponsoring an employee benefit plan
41. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
To be a valid AHP under the new final regulations, what other requirements
must it meet, besides the commonality of interest?
Organizational Structure:
• A group or association must have a
formal organizational structure with a
governing body as well as by-laws or
other similar indicia of governance
establishing the legal form in which
the group or association operates
42. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
To be a valid AHP under the new final regulations, what other requirements must it meet,
besides the commonality of interest?
Control:
The functions and activities of the group or association must be controlled by its members, and the
group or association’s members that participate in the group health plan must control the plan.
Control must be present both in form and in substance and is a facts and circumstances test. Factors
that will be considered include:
• whether members regularly nominate and elect directors, officers, trustees, or other similar
persons that constitute the governing body or authority of the employer group or association
and plan
• whether members have authority to remove directors, officers, trustees, or other similar persons
with or without cause
• whether participating members have the authority to approve or veto decisions or activities that
relate to the formation, design, amendment, and termination of the plan, such as material
amendments to the plan, including changes in coverage, benefits and premiums
43. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
To be a valid AHP under the new final regulations, what other requirements must it
meet, besides the commonality of interest?
Eligibility:
• Eligible AHP participants include employees of a current employer member of the
group or association, former employees of a current employer member of the
group or association who became entitled to coverage under the group’s or
association’s group health plan when the former employee was an employee of the
employer, and beneficiaries of such individuals (e.g., spouses and dependent
children)
44. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
Can an association consider claim experience in determining whether an employer is eligible to join
the association for coverage or charge them more for premiums?
It Depends:
• In applying the final regulations, HIPAA nondiscrimination provisions will have to be met
• AHPS are not permitted to separate experience-rate employer members, but must treat all
businesses within a particular category the same regardless of the health factors of their employees
or their claims experience
• Separate groups can be created and separately rated, provided that the different classifications are
legitimate and not based on health factors
• Where an AHP implements any permitted distinctions in premiums as between its various employer
member groups (e.g., based on geographic location, worker classification, etc.), careful consideration
should be given to ensure that those distinctions may not be deemed to be based on health factors
45. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
Can working owners without common law employees participate in an AHP?
Yes. Individual "working owners" may participate in AHPs. A "working owner" is an individual that
is both an employer and an employee of a group or association member that:
• has an ownership right in the trade or business that is a group or association member
• earns wages or self-employment income from the trade or business that is a group or
association member for providing personal services to such trade or business, and either ...
o works on average at least 20 hours per week or 80 hours per month providing personal
services to the trade or business that is a group or association member
o has wages or self-employment income from the trade or business that is a
group or association member that at least equals the working owner's cost
of coverage for participation
46. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
What benefit rules apply to AHPs?
• AHPs are required to comply with the ACA and ERISA rules applicable to large group
health plans; and to the extent they are fully insured, state mandated benefit laws
will also apply
• While AHPs are not required to provide essential health benefits or minimum value
coverage, they are subject to other significant benefit mandates, including, for example,
no pre-existing condition exclusions, coverage of adult dependent children to age 26,
coverage of preventive care with no cost-sharing and enhanced patient protections
and claim and appeal rights
47. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
Are AHPs subject to state rules regulating Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements
(MEWAs)?
• Yes — in the preamble to the final regulations, DOL indicates that these final
regulations do not modify existing state authority to regulate MEWAs
• Such state regulation will prevent self-funded AHPs in a number of states
48. DOL Releases Final Rules for Association Health Plans
What is the effective date of these final regulations?
• September 1, 2018 — for fully insured AHPs
• January 1, 2019 — for existing self-insured AHPs complying with the DOL’’ prior
rules that choose to qualify as AHPs under the final regulations
• April 1, 2019 — for new self-insured AHPs formed pursuant to the final regulations
49. What are the Pros and Cons of Association Health Plans?
Pros:
Exemption from various Affordable Care Act requirements — The final rule allows unrelated small
employers and self-employed individuals to join together for the purpose of providing health insurance
coverage to their employees. The AHP coverage is exempt from various requirements of the Affordable Care
Act (“ACA”), the most notable of which is the requirement to cover essential health benefits (“EHBs”).
Reduced reporting and disclosure requirements — AHPs that meet the requirements of the final rule are
treated as a single employer plan for purposes of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as
amended (“ERISA”). This means that the AHP will need only a single ERISA plan document and a single
summary plan description (“SPD”). In addition, the AHP will need to file a single Form 5500 annual report
and a single Form M-1. This differs significantly from current law under which each employer member is
treated as maintaining its own health plan and having its own reporting and disclosure requirements.
Economies of scale — The AHP structure will provide employer members greater bargaining power and
reduced administrative costs. The ability to spread the administrative costs of the AHP over the employer
members may be significant.
50. What are the Pros and Cons of Association Health Plans?
Cons:
• AHPs are MEWAs — the single biggest impediment to forming an AHP may be that the
arrangement will be a multiple employer welfare arrangement (“MEWA”)
• Sponsors of AHPs will need to exercise care to ensure compliance with those standards,
including those established by the ACA.”
• The drawback of being a MEWA is that under ERISA, states may regulate both fully insured
and self-funded MEWAs
• In some states MEWAs are illegal
• For AHPs that operate in a single state, MEWA status may not be a significant impediment.
However, for AHPs that operate in a number of states, MEWA status could pose a significant problem
51. What Are the Pros and Cons of Association Health Plans?
Cons:
AHPS are subject to ERISA and other laws that apply to group health plans — the preamble provides that an
“AHP sponsored by a bona fide group or association under this final rule is a group health plan and an
employee welfare benefit plan under ERISA. Accordingly, the AHP is subject to all ERISA provisions applicable
to group health plans and employee welfare benefit plans, including Title I of ERISA. AHPs must comply with
the full array of laws that apply to an ERISA single employer plan such as:
• Fiduciary responsibility rules
• Prohibited transaction rules
• ERISA disclosure requirements including SPD, SMMs and SBCs
• Form 5500 filings
• Form M-1 filings
• COBRA
• Mental Health Parity
• ACA mandates (such as coverage for kids to age 26, bans on preexisting condition exclusions, free
preventive care, and no annual or lifetime dollar limits on essential health benefits)
52. What Are the Pros and Cons of Association Health Plans?
Cons:
• An AHP must also comply with HIPAA portability, privacy, and security rules
• Small employers may become subject to Mental Health Parity, COBRA, and other requirements that apply to
large employers
• Taxation of health coverage and benefits — the preamble is silent on how the taxation of health coverage
under Code Sections 104, 105, and 106 apply to AHPs
• Liability concerns — the preamble clarifies that compliance with applicable legal requirements rests with the
bona fide group or association that sponsors the AHP — if the AHP fails to comply with applicable law, it
appears that in most cases the liability for such failure will rest with the AHP sponsor — another issue to be
resolved is what happens if an AHP fails to meet some or all of the requirements of the final rule
• Legal uncertainty — given that AHPs are a new creation, they will inevitably face legal challenges, creating
uncertainty regarding their long term viability …
o For example, the Attorneys General of Massachusetts and New York have already indicated that they
intend to challenge the final rule on the theory that it allows some plans to avoid compliance with
various provisions of ACA The future of AHPs may rest on how the various states decide to regulate them
53. Final Thought?
• There are a multitude of compliance obligations that attach to AHPs under
various state and federal laws, including the fiduciary, reporting and disclosure
obligations under Title I of ERISA
• A MEWA’s status alone has significant state and federal legal implications
• A legally compliant and properly administered AHP requires much more than
off-the shelf documentation and a group insurance policy
• Before joining an AHP, an employer should consider all of these issues discussed