On Dec. 16, 2020, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued additional answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) about how employers should comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other federal fair employment laws while also observing all…

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) imposes a fee on health insurance issuers and self-insured plan sponsors in order to fund comparative effectiveness research. These fees are widely known as Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fees, and were originally scheduled to…

Well-being refers to wellness in all aspects of life, including, but not limited to, physical health, mental health, social health and financial health. The concept of well-being can have implications on an employee’s overall quality of life, health and happiness.…

The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) final rule on defining and delimiting the exemptions for executive, administrative, professional, outside sales and computer employees (EAP employees) became effective Jan. 1, 2020. Among other things, the final rule updated the standard salary…

On Oct. 29, 2020, the Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury (Departments) issued a final rule regarding transparency in coverage that imposes new transparency requirements on group health plans and health insurers in the…

The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is a federal tax credit available to employers that hire individuals from certain “targeted groups” that have consistently faced significant barriers to employment. Initially enacted in 2007, the WOTC was originally set to expire…

Internal Revenue Code Section 132(f) allows employers to offer a qualified transportation benefit program to their employees on a tax-free basis. Under this type of program, employees can choose to have money withheld from their taxable compensation to pay or…

Tufts Health Plan and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care have been working on plans to integrate the two organizations since the announcement of their intent to combine last year. Beth Roberts, current senior vice president of Harvard Pilgrim’s Commercial business, will…

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released Notice 2020-79, containing cost-of-living adjustments for 2021 that affect amounts employees can contribute to 401(k) plans and IRAs, most of which remain unchanged. The following limits increased for 2021: The annual limit for…

On Oct. 27, 2020, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2020-45 (Rev. Proc. 20-45), which announced that the health FSA dollar limit on employee salary reduction contributions will remain at $2,750 for taxable years beginning in 2021. An employer may continue…

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released final 2020 forms and instructions for reporting under Internal Revenue Code (Code) Sections 6055 and 6056. 2020 Form 1094-B and Form 1095-B (and related instructions) will be used by providers of minimum essential coverage…

The chart below provides a brief overview of each candidate’s health care platform, planned COVID-19 response and stance on the open U.S Supreme Court seat, so that you can better understand how this election may affect the employee benefits landscape.…