September 25, 2020
Late Payments & Cancellations in the Time of COVID-19 A Survival Guide – by Emily Saunders With the onset of the COVID pandemic, we have all experienced delays with the mail. Made worse by an increase in shipping as people begin adapting to working from home, mail workers increasingly off the job due …
September 16, 2020
The FMCSA Publishes Four Key Changes to HOS Rules The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) recently published a final rule, which updates hours-of-service (HOS) rules in an effort to provide greater flexibility to commercial motor vehicle drivers and increase safety on America’s roadways. Specifically, the FMCSA announced four key changes to …
September 3, 2020
Executive Order Directs IRS to Defer Certain Payroll Tax Obligations September 2020 Human Resources Bulletin On August 8, 2020, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive memorandum that directs the U.S. Department of the Treasury to defer certain payroll tax obligations for employees in order to lighten their financial burden during this ongoing …
August 28, 2020
Medicare Part D Notice of Creditable (or Non-Creditable) Coverage September 2020 Benefits Brief Plan sponsors of group health plans providing prescription drug coverage to individuals who are eligible for Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage are required to satisfy certain notice requirements. Background Individuals must enroll in Medicare Part D prescription drug …
August 25, 2020
Critical Overlooked Steps How to Prepare for Hurricane Season In addition to standard preparation measures for hurricanes – including covering windows, trimming trees and shrubs, installing a back-up generator, and securing unfastened furniture and items – two critical steps are often overlooked. To truly be prepared for hurricane season, residents of hurricane-prone regions …
August 21, 2020
Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires health insurance issuers to spend a minimum percentage of premium dollars on medical care and health care quality improvement, which is intended to lower the cost of care. This percentage is known as “medical loss ratio” (MLR). In the large group insurance market, the …
August 13, 2020
Voluntary Plans: A Safe Harbor from ERISA’s Application August 2020 Benefits Brief Commonly, the term “voluntary plan” is used to refer to insurance coverage that is offered to employees on a voluntary basis with employees covering the full cost of the premium. Voluntary plans may involve group insurance coverage, such as dental insurance, …
August 12, 2020
Increased ACA Affordability Percentages for 2021 July 21, 2020 Last week, on July 21, 2020, the IRS released Rev. Proc. 2020-36, which announced the 2021 indexing adjustments for two important percentages under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Affordability Percentage Increased to 9.83%. Under the employer shared responsibility provisions (ESRP) of the ACA, …
June 19, 2020
California Paid Family Leave (PFL) Extended On June 27, 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed California’s 2019-20 state budget, which included an expansion of the state’s family temporary disability insurance program administered through the Employment Development Department (EDD). Senate Bill (SB) 83 provides certain workers with up to eight weeks, up from six weeks, …
June 19, 2020
PCORI Fee Deadline Just Around the Corner The Affordable Care Act requires health insurers and sponsors of self-funded group health plans (including health reimbursement arrangements) to pay a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee. Originally, the law provided that the PCORI fee would not be assessed for plan years ending after September 30, …
