Legal Alerts

EEOC Issues Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Related to Wellness Programs

By Stacy Barrow - January 21, 2021

EEOC Issues Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Related to Wellness Programs Since 2019, employers faced uncertainty regarding the status of wellness program incentives under the ADA and GINA. On January 7, 2021, the EEOC issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Wellness Programs Under the ADA and GINA that addresses this issue. The proposed rules deviate [Read More]

Congress Passes a Second COVID-19-Related Stimulus Package

By Stacy Barrow - December 24, 2020

After weeks of negotiations, Congress overwhelmingly passed a second COVID-19 stimulus package – the COVID-Related Tax Relief Act of 2020 (COVIDTRA) and the Taxpayer Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020 (TCDTR), both part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA, 2021).  President Trump signed the bill into law on December 27, 2020.  The [Read More]

IRS Maintains Health FSA Contribution Limit for 2021, Adjusts Other Benefit Limits

By Stacy Barrow - October 28, 2020

On October 26, 2020, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2020-45, which maintains the health flexible spending account (FSA) salary reduction contribution limit from 2020, which is $2,750, for plan years beginning in 2021. Thus, for health FSAs with a carryover feature, the maximum carryover amount is $550 (20% of the $2,750 salary [Read More]

IRS Issues Affordability Percentage Adjustment for 2021

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released Rev. Proc. 2020-36, which contains the inflation-adjusted amounts for 2021 used to determine whether employer-sponsored coverage is “affordable” for purposes of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) employer shared responsibility provisions and premium tax credit program. As shown in the table below, for plan years beginning in 2021, the [Read More]

U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Final Rules Allowing Employer-Sponsored Health Plans to Decline to Cover Contraceptives Due to Moral or Religious Objections

On July 8, 2020, the United States Supreme Court upheld the Final Rules issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that exempt all employers with a religious objection to contraception, and all non-profit and non-publicly traded for-profit employers with a moral objection to contraception, from complying with the previous contraceptive coverage requirements [Read More]

Final S.1557 Rule and Supreme Court Title VII Decision

As HHS Finalizes Its Updated §1557 Rules, the United States Supreme Court Rules Title VII Protects Individuals From Discrimination Due To Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity On June 12, 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) released its Final Rule under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act which, among other things, [Read More]