Karl J. Ruth Jr.Apr 142 minAmerican Rescue Plan Act’s Employment-Related ProvisionsPresident Joe Biden signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) into law on March 11, 2021. The law generally provides financial...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Mar 111 min3 Voluntary Benefits Trends to Watch in 2021 Voluntary benefits have always been great tools for rounding off employee benefits offerings. And that value isn’t lost on employers—at...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Feb 161 minEEOC Issues FAQs on Mandatory Vaccinations for COVID-19 The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently added nine new answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) to its existing...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Jan 191 minNon-grandfathered Plans Must Cover COVID-19 Vaccine Without Cost-sharing Beginning in 2021On December 11, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Pfizer Inc.’s COVID-19...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Jan 131 minFinal Rule Allows Greater Flexibility for Grandfathered Plans Under the ACAOn December 15, 2020, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury (Departments) published a final rule that...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Dec 17, 20201 minEmployee Benefits Plan Limits for 2021Many employee benefits are subject to annual dollar limits that are periodically updated for inflation by the IRS. The IRS typically...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Dec 14, 20201 minFinal Rule on Health Care Transparency IssuedThe Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury (Departments) issued a final rule that imposes new...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Oct 15, 20201 minMedicare Part D Notices Are Due today - October 15, 2020Each year, Medicare Part D requires group health plan sponsors to disclose to individuals who are eligible for Medicare Part D and to the...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Oct 7, 20201 minACA Pay or Play Penalties Will Increase for 2021The IRS recently updated its frequently asked questions (FAQs) on the pay or play penalties to include increased penalty amounts for the...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Sep 29, 20201 minQSEHRA and Transportation Plan Limit Projections for 2021The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (aka “Tax Reform”) enacted December 22, 2017, changed the measure of inflation to the average chained CPI-U...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Sep 22, 20203 minHealth Care FSA Limit Projected to Increase for 2021In 2013, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) put a cap on Health Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA) salary reductions, subject to Consumer...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Sep 15, 20202 minDeadline Approaching for Medicare Part D NoticePrior to the Medicare Part D annual enrollment period, and no later than October 14, 2020, employers that provide prescription drug...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Sep 14, 20201 minIRS Announces HSA and HDHP Limits for 2021The IRS released Revenue Procedure 2020-32 to provide the inflation-adjusted limits for health savings accounts (HSAs) and high...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Aug 10, 20201 minReminder: COVID-19 Guidance for Section 125 Midyear Election ChangesThe IRS released Notice 2020-29, which provides temporary flexibility for midyear election changes under a Section 125 cafeteria plan...
Karl J. Ruth Jr.Jun 22, 20201 minUpdated Model COBRA Notices AvailableThe Department of Labor (DOL) recently issued new model notices for group health plan administrators to use to comply with COBRA...
