In Prouty v. The Hartford Life & Acc. Ins. Co. & C&S Wholesale Grocers Inc., 997 F. Supp. 2d 85, 88 (D. Mass. 2014), the plaintiff asserted an ERISA claim against her former employer and the issuer of her employer’s group life insurance plan, claiming that both breached their fiduciary duties by failing to provide
Premium Reimbursement Arrangements – Employers Beware
The Department of Labor (DOL) has just published a series of FAQs regarding premium reimbursement arrangements. Specifically, the FAQs address the following arrangements:
An arrangement in which an employer offers an employee cash to reimburse the purchase of an individual market policy.
Where an employer provides cash reimbursement for the purchase of an
U.S. Supreme Court’s Rejection of Moench Presumption: Fifth Third Bancorp. vs. Dudenhoeffer
Background
Fifth Third Bancorp (the “Company”) is a public company which maintained a 401(k) plan containing an employee stock ownership plan (“ESOP”) component. The Company matched employee contributions by contributing employer stock to the ESOP, which invested its funds primarily in Company stock. When the Company’s stock value fell, former employees and ESOP participants filed
Employer Action Item – Health Care Reform
Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, beginning in 2015, certain large employers who do not offer affordable health insurance that provides minimum value to their full-time employees may be subject to significant penalties. Please refer to our article titled “Health Care Reform: Employers Should Prepare Now for 2015 to Avoid Penalties”
IRS GUIDANCE: EMPLOYEE INCOME TAX CORRECTION FOR SAME-SEX SPOUSAL HEALTH COVERAGE AFTER UNITED STATES V. WINDSOR
On June 27, 2014, the IRS released Information Letter 2014-0012, which contains guidance for employees who have had the value of same-sex spousal coverage under employer health plans — which until recently was required to be included in gross income — reported on their Forms W-2.
BACKGROUND
Historically, the employer cost of opposite-sex
EEOC Pregnancy Discrimination Enforcement Guidance Implicates Contraception Coverage Concerns
On July 14, 2014, the EEOC issued new Enforcement Guidance on Pregnancy Discrimination and Related Issues. The immediately-effective Guidance sets forth the EEOC’s policies with regard to its enforcement of pregnancy-based employment discrimination prohibitions under Title VII — as clarified by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 — and other federal laws.
With regard
New Regulations Permit the Purchase of Longevity Annuities by Qualified Retirement Plans
Under the directive of providing individuals with additional lifetime income options, the IRS issued final regulations on July 2, 2014, permitting the purchase of longevity annuity contracts. The regulations apply to participants in certain types of retirement plans and IRA owners and allows them to purchase a “qualifying longevity annuity contract” (QLAC) with a portion
SUPREME COURT RULES THAT ACA’S CONTRACEPTIVE MANDATE VIOLATES RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
Last week the Supreme Court ruled, 5-4, in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., et al., that closely held corporations cannot be required to provide contraceptive coverage as mandated by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) because the requirement violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA). At issue in the case were regulations
DOL Proposes Changes to Model Notices and Procedures
The Department of Labor (DOL) has published proposed regulations containing amendments to the COBRA notice provisions. The amendments are intended to align the model general and election notices with the Affordable Care Act provisions already in effect and to ensure that the DOL will have flexibility to modify the model notices going forward.
The proposed
REMINDER! VIRTUALLY ALL EMPLOYERS MUST FURNISH “MARKETPLACE” NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES BY OCTOBER 1, 2013
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires employers to furnish employees a notice of the availability of coverage through public health insurance exchanges, i.e., the “Marketplace”. The Department of Labor requires that employers give employees the notice by October 1, 2013. As highlighted in our earlier blog post, Department of Labor Technical Release 2013-02