As employers struggle with the cost of providing health coverage to employees, more businesses are turning to private health insurance exchanges. Inspired by public exchanges under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), in a private exchange, a company’s employees or retirees can compare and select from a variety of health plans. The employer contributes the same
Cadillac Tax delayed, survives repeal
The Cadillac Tax is one of the least popular parts of the Affordable Care Act. In a nutshell, the law creates a 40 percent tax on the cost of health insurance premiums to the extent they exceed certain threshold amounts — currently $850 a month ($10,200/year) for individual coverage and $2,325 a month ($27,500/year) for
Recent case provides guidance for ESOP transactions
A recently decided Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals case provides employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) fiduciaries and others with an example of how not to undertake an ESOP transaction.
When an employee stock ownership plan purchases the stock of a closely held corporation, the duty of a fiduciary is to act solely in the
With remand, Supreme Court punts on contraceptive accommodation case
On May 16, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to rule on a challenge to the Affordable Care Act’s contraceptive mandate as applied to nonprofit religious organizations.
In Zubik v. Burwell (2016 WL 2842449, U.S., No. 14-1418, 5/16/16), the court sent back to the lower courts seven decisions that held that the ACA’s accommodation for
After Treasury denial, Central States pension plan calls for government bailout
In reaction to the U.S. Treasury Department’s recent rejection of its proposed pension rescue plan, the Central States pension plan’s sponsor is calling on Congress to find a solution to its pending insolvency.
The Treasury Department rejected the Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Plan’s application on May 6, 2016, because the proposed suspension
EEOC releases final rules on employer wellness program incentives
On May 16, 2016 the EEOC issued final rules amending the regulations and interpretive guidance implementing Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) with respect to employer wellness programs. These changes clarify that employers may use incentives to encourage participation in wellness programs
Plan compliance reviews: What are they, and why are they important?
Employee benefit plans and executive compensation arrangements are subject to a staggering amount of regulation. The laws, regulations and other guidance regarding these plans and arrangements are complex and often confusing. Audits and enforcement actions by governmental agencies against plan sponsors and fiduciaries — as well as class-action lawsuits by plan participants — have become