Under the Health Care Reform Act, health flexible spending arrangements under cafeteria plans are limited to $2,500 in salary reduction contributions beginning in 2013. Employers with plan years that were not calendar years have been wondering how the limit would be applied. The IRS has now issued guidance in the form of Notice 2012-40 with
Understanding Employee Benefits and key developments in the employee benefits field and items of interest to our clients. MORE
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FAQs Issued on Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008
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The Departments of Labor, Treasury and Health and Human Services have the responsibility to administer and enforce the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008. The Departments recently issued two sets of FAQs, describing the guidance issued under the Act and restating some of that guidance in an accessible Q & A format.…
FAQs Issued on the Summary of Benefits in Coverage
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The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury have jointly issued another set of FAQs on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), the health care reform law. These are part nine of FAQs issued on different PPACA topics. This particular set discusses the Summary of Benefits and Coverage or SBC, about …
IRS Issues Guidance on W-2 Reporting of Health Care Coverage
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The IRS issued recently FAQs relating to W-2 reporting of employer-provided health care coverage, a health care reform requirement that employers must first meet for the 2012 calendar year. We have previously discussed these requirements [Link to earlier health care reform posts]. These FAQs largely restate prior guidance.
The IRS also released an article on …
Short Term Disability Plan as a Payroll Practice
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I blogged recently about an Eighth Circuit decision where the court concluded that a deferred compensation agreement with a single employee did not constitute an ERISA plan. I warned employers that courts do not always accept an employer’s characterization of a plan or program as being covered by ERISA. Another example of this phenomenon is …
Texting Can Cause HIPAA Violations
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The Office for Civil Rights, which is the arm of the Department of Health and Human Services that enforces HIPAA privacy and security rules, recently announced the settlement of an enforcement action against a small cardiothoracic surgery practice. The practice reportedly posted protected health information (PHI) on an internet-based publically accessible calendar and transmitted PHI …
What is a Trade or Business and Why Does It Matter?
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If an employer withdraws from a multiemployer plan and is assessed withdrawal liability, all members of the employer’s controlled group are liable for that assessment. The controlled group rules look at the extent of common ownership among various trades or businesses, whether or not incorporated. The determination of controlled group status can be complicated and …
Bad Things Can Happen to Employers Who Do Not Follow the Terms of Their Group Health Insurance Policies
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Blue Cross of Northeastern Pennsylvania (“Blue Cross”) insured New Life Homecare, Inc. (“New Life”) under a group health insurance contract. The insurance contract required New Life to enroll at least 75% of its eligible participants in the plan and provided that no more than 15% of the eligible employees could reside more than 20 miles …
Withdrawal Liability – Seller Beware
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I previously blogged on a case where a purchaser who did not try to assume withdrawal liability in a purchase transaction learned that it could nevertheless be responsible for that liability as a successor employer. In another recent case, a seller who tried to structure a transaction so that the buyer assumed the withdrawal liability …
Agreement With Single Employee is Not an ERISA Plan
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If an arrangement is subject to ERISA, state law claims relating to that arrangement are preempted. In some situations, therefore, employers try to argue that a particular arrangement is subject to ERISA. In a recent decision involving a state law breach of contract claim, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals determined that a deferred compensation …