Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Getting “back to normal” as the COVID-19 pandemic has eased has not been simple for anyone. In terms of plan administration, the continued tolling of employee benefit plan deadlines, including those related to continuation coverage under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), has kept plan administrators firmly planted in a “COVID-19 world,” even as […]
The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals (which covers Michigan employers) recently issued a long-awaited decision about the appropriateness of interest rate assumptions used by union pension funds to calculate withdrawal liability. The court affirmed a district court’s opinion holding the Ohio Operating Engineers Pension Fund’s use of the “Segal Blend” violated the Employee Retirement […]
The Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) enforces certain arbitration agreements involving federal law, including some employment disputes and claims against employers under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). But is an arbitration agreement that prohibits an individual from seeking relief provided by federal statute still enforceable? The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals […]
Health plans will have to start covering COVID-19 vaccines shortly after their approval, regardless of whether they are delivered by an in-network provider, under regulations finalized by three federal agencies.
Three lawsuits against corporate retirement benefit plans involving the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) have been, and a fourth may be, granted certiorari by the U.S. Supreme Court for its next term, a relatively large concentration of these cases in the High Court’s recent history of hearing ERISA matters.
No one likes going to the hospital, or paying bills, but paying bills from the hospital can be confusing for even the most astute patients. Deciphering an explanation of benefits (EOB) from a health insurance company and trying to determine what you owe and to whom can cause some serious headaches. (Which hopefully don’t lead […]
Many 401(k) plan sponsors seek to reduce their potential fiduciary liability by electing to be a Section 404(c) plan. Under Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Section 404(c), a fiduciary is not liable for losses in the plan resulting from the participant’s selection of investments in his or her own account, provided that the participant […]
More and more companies are adding workplace financial wellness programs – and for good reason. Employees who aren’t worrying about financial problems on the job tend to be more focused, productive workers. A new survey says 83% of employers now offer financial wellness programs (up 20% from two years ago), and 14% plan on offering […]
Things are happening, and they portend an explosion of benefits litigation. Yes, this once-sleepy corner of the employment law forest is buzzing with news, and it came on March 1 from our very own U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals—which covers Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas—in an en banc decision, which means all the appeals court […]
A disability plan participant’s state-law privacy lawsuit against the plan’s claims administrator was dismissed by a federal district court, which found it was preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).