On Jan. 17, 2020, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a final rule increasing the civil monetary penalties for violations of laws enforced by HHS, including the HIPAA privacy and security rules. HHS is required to adjust these penalties for inflation each year to improve their effectiveness and maintain its deterrent…
On December 16, 2019, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published final regulations on “regular rate of pay†for overtime pay purposes under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSAâ€). The final regulations address common employer-provided benefits as well as other workplace practices, which were not specifically addressed in previous…
In a bipartisan effort, the U.S. Congress agreed on a spending package to fund the federal government which included important changes to federal laws affecting employer-sponsored group health and welfare benefit plans. The legislation was signed into law by the President on December 20, 2019. The law repeals the following taxes under the Affordable Care…
On September 30, 2019, the IRS published proposed regulations to clarify the application of the employer mandate under the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) and certain nondiscrimination rules under the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”) Section 105(h) to health reimbursement arrangements (“HRAs”) integrated with individual health insurance coverage (individual coverage HRAs, or “ICHRAs”). Notably, the proposed regulations…
On Thursday, May 23, 2019, the Senate Health Committee proposed a bipartisan bill called the Lower Health Care Costs Act. This bill sets out to address surprise medical billing, reduce the cost of prescription drugs and the overall cost of delivering health care, and improve transparency. The proposed bill is the latest move federal officials…
Beginning in May of last year, the Trump administration began searching for ways to curb out- of-control prescription drug costs—referring to the initiative as American Patients First. This effort is finally seeing some traction, with the administration publishing its first final rule on the matter. Drug companies will now be “… required to disclose to…
On Friday, Nov. 15, 2019, the Trump administration released its final rule regarding hospital price transparency. This final rule will take effect Jan. 1, 2021, a year later than originally proposed. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) had been listening to feedback on a proposed version of the rule for the past four…
As the debate over amending health insurance market rules continues, proponents of changing the law have proposed reducing the health benefits provided by non-group plans as a potential way to lower premiums in the market. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) prescribes 10 categories of essential health benefits that non-group and small-group policies must cover, and…
A new Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of short-term, limited duration (STLD) health plans for sale through two major national online brokers finds big gaps in the benefits they offer. Through an executive order and proposed new regulations, the Trump Administration is seeking to encourage broader use of short-term, limited duration health plans as a cheaper…
Several states have lodged a legal challenge to the entire Affordable Care Act (“ACAâ€) on the basis that the lack of an Individual Mandate tax makes the remaining provisions unconstitutional. While the Administration is not intervening, several other states are, defending the ACA’s sustainability without the Individual Mandate tax. No resolution to the legal questions…