Regulation

The IRS has released long-awaited final regulations that clarify market rate of return issues for cash balance and other hybrid plans. The new rules, effective for the first plan year that begins on or after Jan. 1 2016, sponsors of hybrid plans a clearer path forward.

The Sixth Circuit’s ruling in Moyer makes clear that administrators of ERISA-governed plans with contractual time limits on when a participant must initiate judicial review of a denial of benefits should err on the side of caution.

Commentary: Consider that employers nationwide spend billions of dollars to give their employees access to medical care and other important insurance coverage. While most businesses offer health and welfare benefits to remain competitive for talent, they end up creating a valuable by-product in the process.

They promised they would be coming and now they have. The Internal Revenue Service has issued draft instructions to help employers and plan sponsors comply with the Affordable Care Act’s 2015 reporting requirements.

Commentary: Open enrollment time means employer clients will be reviewing fee disclosures. Columnist John Ludwig discusses several steps plan sponsors should take when reviewing the disclosures for accuracy and to determine if fees are fair and reasonable.

Ever since final rules under the Affordable Care Act dictated that outcomes-based wellness programs must offer reasonable alternatives to employees unable to achieve the program’s health benchmarks, employers have continued to worry over the effectiveness of their health improvement efforts.

Despite the ever-changing world, ERISA remains strong and steady. The average American worker is far better off because of ERISA, which has held up remarkably well over the past four decades.

Earlier this week, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn signed a new law that is intended to prevent workplace discrimination against pregnant women by offering guidance on reasonable accommodation measures that all employers in the state are expected to follow.

The Affordable Care Act’s employer shared responsibility requires large employers to offer group health plan coverage or face the prospect of having to pay money to the government. As a result, more and more employers are considering these strategies to help reduce or eliminate their exposure to penalties.

The case, EEOC v. Orion Energy Systems, serves as a reminder for advisers and their employer clients, when putting together a wellness plan, to pay careful attention to how the EEOC defines liability.