News & Insights

Every year self-funded plan sponsors are subject to the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (PCORI) fee. The fee per individual covered is $2.66 for plans ending after September 30, 2020, and before October 1, 2021. For plans years ending after Septembers 30, 2019 and before October 1, 2020 the fee...

Since the March 11 passage of the American Rescue Plan Act, employers have been scrambling to understand the requirements related to the COBRA premium subsidy available to assistance eligible individuals (AEIs). The subsidy also is available for AEIs enrolled in mini-COBRA or state continuation...

Following an eight-year class action antitrust legal battle, the Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) Association and its affiliates agreed to a $2.67 billion settlement. The lawsuit charged that the various Association plans agreed not to compete with each other and to limit competition among themselves...

Effective January 1, Missouri minimum wage increased from $9.45 to $10.30 per hour for all private, non-exempt businesses. This rate will continue to increase by $0.85 each year through 2023. This change will not apply to public employers or retail and service businesses with less than $500,000 in...

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued new workplace safety guidance to help prevent and manage the spread of COVID-19. The guidance emphasizes the importance of mask wearing, social distancing and risk mitigation. Employees and employers are encouraged to work together to...

Again this year, the IRS extended the deadline for employers to meet the Affordable Care Act (ACA) employee reporting obligations. Recipient 2020 information returns must be received by March 2, 2021, rather than January 31. The IRS must receive paper forms by February 28, and those filing...

If the proposed EEOC wellness rules are accepted by the Biden administration, most wellness programs that make disability-related inquiries or require a medical examination may only offer a “de minimis” award in order to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or Genetic Information...

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released proposed rules on January 7 that would address the level of incentives employers could offer employees to encourage participation in a wellness program. 

The rise in fraudulent unemployment claims throughout the country has soared this year. Criminals, using stolen personally identifiable information (PII), are submitting online claims hoping to cash in on the chaos and uncertainty within companies and government offices created by the pandemic.

The annual Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee for plans ending between October 1, 2020, and October 1, 2021, is $2.66. This is an increase from the 2020 rate of $2.54.