Header graphic for print
Employee Benefits Counsel Legal Insights into the Developments that Impact the Employee Benefits Community

Category Archives: Benefits & Wellness

Subscribe to Benefits & Wellness RSS Feed

Agencies Issue Final Rule on Contraceptive Coverage

By Ilyse Schuman The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Internal Revenue Service have issued a final rule that adopts without change interim final regulations that exempt group health plans and group health insurance coverage sponsored by certain religious employers from having to cover certain preventive health services under provisions of the… Continue Reading

Posted in Agency Rulemaking, Benefits & Wellness, Healthcare Reform

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) Issues MHPAEA Survey Report

By Adam J. Peters The U.S. GAO has issued a November 2011 report summarizing study results on employers affected by the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Act of 2008 (the MHPAEA).  The report analyzes trends in health insurance coverage based on information gathered from direct responses by a random sample… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness, Benefits Counseling

Reports Provide Insight into Employer-Provided Healthcare Costs, Efforts to Stem Expenses

By Ilyse Schuman Two recently-released healthcare studies indicate that the rise in employer-provided healthcare coverage costs is part of a long-term trend, and that employers are taking affirmative steps to counter this escalation. The first survey, conducted by the Mercer consulting firm, suggests that while healthcare costs have increased over the years, the pace of… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness, Health and Welfare Plans, Healthcare Reform

Agencies Delay SBC Application Date, Issue New Guidance on MHPAEA

By Ilyse Schuman The Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services (HHS) have issued a new set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) announcing the delay of the Affordable Care Act’s summary of benefits and coverage (SBC) requirements for insurers and health plans, and providing guidance on the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness, Health and Welfare Plans, Healthcare Reform

Federal Funds for Workplace Wellness Programs

By Russell D. Chapman The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently announced the availability of $10 million to advance workplace wellness programs for employers.  Initiated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the funds will be awarded through a competitive contract to an organization with expertise in working with both small and large… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Bill Would Extend COBRA Benefits to Same-Sex Spouses, Domestic Partners and Their Dependents

Last week Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA) reintroduced the Equal Access to COBRA Act of 2011 (H.R. 2310), legislation cosponsored by 47 others that would extend COBRA continuation health coverage to covered employees’ same-sex spouses or domestic partners and their dependent children. Under existing law, up to 36 months of continuing health care coverage under COBRA… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Proposed Legislation to Provide Tax Relief for Domestic Partner Health Coverage

By Russell D. Chapman In early June, a bipartisan group of House members led by Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA) introduced the Tax Parity for Health Plan Beneficiaries Act of 2011 (H.R. 2088), which would extend the income tax exemption for employer-provided health care benefits to domestic partners and other non-spouse dependents of covered employees.  According… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Wellness Program Survives Class Action Challenge

By Russell D. Chapman In Seff v. Broward County, a closely-watched class action case, a U.S. district judge in Florida recently dismissed a challenge to a “participation only” wellness program under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  In 2009, Broward County implemented a wellness program, administered confidentially by an outside wellness consultant, in an effort to… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Lessons Galore from Eye-Popping $4.3 Million HIPAA Penalty

For the nearly eight years since the HIPAA Privacy Rule went into effect in April 2003, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) did not impose a single civil monetary penalty for HIPAA violations. The story behind HHS’s first penalty — a whopping $4.3 million imposed on February 22, 2011, against Cignet Health… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Painkiller Abuse: A Prescription for Employers

Substance abuse is a problem that plagues all workplaces.  The abuse of controlled substance painkillers and other prescription medications has spread so widely that such drugs are now considered the second most commonly abused drug after marijuana.  Healthcare organizations are particularly vulnerable to workers who abuse controlled substances, as employees may have access to drugs that… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Tax Break: IRS Allows Breast Pumps As Deductible Medical Expense

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently reversed course and announced that breast pumps and other lactation supplies will now be considered a tax-deductible medical expense.  This will allow employees to use money stored in their Flexible Spending Account (FSA) to purchase breast pumps on a pre-tax basis without the hassle of a prescription. The ruling, issued… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Legislating Wellness: Proposed Bills to Support Workplace Wellness Programs

As many legislative sessions kick off around the country, interest remains high among lawmakers to encourage businesses to institute wellness programs as a means of tackling increasing health care costs and improving the health of Americans.  According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), bills supporting wellness initiatives have been increasingly popular in the… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

New Class Action Wave Against Wellness Programs?

This week, the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Florida certified a plaintiff class in a case involving an employer’s wellness program. In Bradley Seff v. Broward County, the County of Broward, Florida (“Broward”) was sued by an employee seeking declaratory, injunctive and equitable relief, compensatory damages, costs and attorney’s fees, claiming that… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Employer Bans on Smokers: The Next Smokeout?

While the upcoming Great American Smokeout encourages smokers to use November 18th as a day to quit smoking or make a plan to quit, employers can use the occasion as an opportunity to review whether they want to implement tobacco-free policies and the potential legal issues involved in doing so.  In recent years, many employers… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

EEOC Issues Final GINA Regulations

Nearly a year after the employment provisions of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) took effect, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued a final rule (pdf) implementing these sections. Title II of GINA – which took effect on November 21, 2009 – prohibits the use of genetic information in making employment decisions, restricts… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Medical Costs of Obesity Severely Underestimated

Previous studies seriously underestimated the medical costs of obesity in the United States.  According to new research published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, approximately $168 billion or nearly 17% of the U.S. medical costs stem from obesity.  This is double the amount of previous estimates and stands in stark contrast to an influential… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

EBSA Clarifies GINA Provisions for Insurance Providers and Group Health Plans

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has issued guidance in the form of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) that explains how the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) impacts employer-provided group health plans and insurance providers. Among other things, Title I of GINA prohibits group health plans and health insurance issuers from discriminating based… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Retiree Health Insurance Obligation Survives CBA Expiration

In a decision that highlights the need for caution and foresight when drafting provisions of a collective bargaining agreement, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled this week that an employer violated federal labor law when it stopped providing premium-free health insurance coverage to its retirees between the ages of 55… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Massachusetts DOMA Ruling On Hold

Last month’s landmark ruling in Gill v. Office of Personnel Management that declared Section 3 of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional has been temporarily stayed pending an appeal, and the judgment has been modified to clarify that it applies only to the named plaintiffs.  The U.S. Department of Justice has 60 days… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness

Recently Proposed Revisions to HIPAA Regulations: What Employers Really Need to Know

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a voluminous Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on July 14, 2010, containing dozens of proposed amendments to three sets of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) regulations: the Privacy Rule; the Security Rule; and the Enforcement Rule. The proposed amendments are directed principally… Continue Reading

Posted in Benefits & Wellness