The Affordable Care Act added IRC sections §6055 and §6056 which requires insurers, applicable large employers and self-insured plans to provide annual health information returns to the IRS and statements to employees. (See ErisaALERTs 2014-04 and 2014-09 for background information.) The regulations require that the employee statements be provided by January 31 and reported to […]
6055, 6056, ACA, compliance, reporting and disclosureIn 2015, the IRS announced that it was eliminating the five year remedial amendment cycle for individually designed plans and that determination letters for such plans would only be available for initial plan qualification and as permitted by the IRS. Earlier this year, the IRS announced that determination letters for individually designed plans would no […]
compliance, Determination Letter, QualificationErisaALERT 2014-11 – What is the transitional reinsurance fee? The Affordable Care Act established a three-year (2014, 2015 and 2016) transitional reinsurance program to stabilize premiums in the individual market inside and outside of the Marketplaces. Who must pay the transitional reinsurance fee? A contributing entity must make reinsurance contributions on behalf of its enrollees […]
ACA, compliance, HCR, transitional reinsurance feeErisaALERT 2014-09 – ACA’s shared responsibility provisions impose penalties on individuals who do not maintain minimum essential coverage (MEC) and on plan sponsors who do not offer minimum value, affordable coverage. The way the IRS will know if an individual has MEC and if an employer offers minimum value, affordable coverage is via the §6055 […]
6055, 6056, ACA, compliance, Disclosure, HCR, ReportingThe IRS has issued Notice 2014-19 and posted Answers to Frequently Asked Questions Regarding the Application of the Windsor Decision and Post-Windsor Published Guidance to Qualified Retirement Plans on its website. ErisaALERTs 2013-04 and 2013-06 discussed government guidance issued as a result of the United States v Windsor (the Supreme Court decision that holds Section 3 […]
compliance, DOMA, IRS, WindsorThe IRS issued guidance regarding tax treatment of certain employee benefits for same gender marriages, making ERISA compliance a little more complicated. HHS also issued guidance relating to Medicare and DOL issued guidance relating to FMLA as it relates to same gender marriages. The Supreme Court decision in U.S. v Windsor that holds Section 3 […]
compliance, DOL, DOMA, FMLA, HHS, IRSEmployee benefit compliance is often viewed as a necessary evil; it is tedious, boring and complicated but if your plans are selected for audit, the process can be a nightmare if you are not prepared. A recent Towers Watson Retirement Plan Governance Survey revealed that 73% of respondents indicated regulatory complexity will be among the […]
2012 archive, compliance, DOL, ERISA, IRSMichelle’s Law goes into effect for group health plans on the first day of the plan year on or after October 9, 2009. Michelle’s Law is a federal law that prohibits a group health plan from terminating a dependent’s health coverage if the dependent requires a medically necessary leave of absence or a reduction in […]
compliance, ERISA, Michelle’s lawMarch, 2006 Small Health Plans Must Comply With HIPAA Security Rules by April 20, 2006 WHAT: The HIPAA Security Rule applies to all electronic protected health information (ePHI) created, received, maintained or transmitted by a covered entity. Covered entities are required to implement reasonable and appropriate security measures to protect against reasonably anticipated threats or hazards […]
compliance, enforcement, HIPPAMarch, 2006 Small Health Plans Must Comply With HIPAA Security Rules by April 20, 2006 WHAT: The HIPAA Security Rule applies to all electronic protected health information (ePHI) created, received, maintained or transmitted by a covered entity. Covered entities are required to implement reasonable and appropriate security measures to protect against reasonably anticipated threats or […]
compliance, HIPAA, small plans(c) 2015 Erisa Diagnostics - We focus on benefits, so you can focus on business