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 rules were expected to bring some long-awaited clarity to the uncertainty resulting from a judge’s ruling in American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) v. EEOC. The judge in that case vacated the EEOC’s existing rules as of January 1, 2019, stating the EEOC did not sufficiently support its position allowing wellness discounts of up to 30% of the cost of self-only health coverage.
For now, the hope that the new EEOC rules would align with long-standing wellness incentive rules allowed under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountable Act (HIPAA) is sidelined. The Biden administration issued a regulatory freeze on all recently proposed or published rules to allow new presidential appointees time to review and comment.
Bukaty Companies will continue to monitor the issue and suggest employers seek legal guidance before implementing wellness incentives.