- A bipartisan bill introduced in December 2025 would amend ERISA to treat pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) as fiduciaries when providing services to employer-sponsored group health plans.
- If enacted, the legislation would impose fiduciary duties, require detailed compensation disclosures, and restrict contractual indemnification provisions that shift fiduciary risk to plans.
- Employers may gain increased transparency
Suzanne G. Odom
Suzanne G. Odom is a principal in the Greenville, South Carolina, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She focuses her practice on ERISA plans, employee benefits, and executive compensation matters.
Sue has worked extensively with all types of employer-sponsored retirement and welfare benefit plans, including pension, profit sharing, 401(k), 403(b), and 457(b) plans, ESOPs, and health, accident, disability, Section 125, flexible spending, and other welfare plans. Her clients include large and small for-profit companies across all industry sectors, non-profit corporations, and governmental entities.
As a result of Sue’s vast number of submissions and compliance matters, she has developed a close and professional working relationship with both the IRS and Department of Labor Representatives. Her practice is centered on providing her clients with solid and proactive fiduciary and business advice that assists them in avoiding the time and expense of employee benefits litigation.
Sue prides herself on her ability to think outside the box and work with clients to deliver the best business solutions possible.
A Fiduciary’s Next Steps After Trump’s August 2025 Executive Order: Opening the 401(k) Door to Alternative Investments
Introduction
On August 7, 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued an Executive Order designed to broaden access to alternative investments, such as private equity, commodities, real estate, and certain digital assets, for participants in 401(k) and other defined contribution retirement plans. The initiative is framed as an effort to “democratize” investment opportunities that were historically…
Is the One Big Beautiful Bill Act an Employee Benefits Crystal Ball?
- Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives attempt to deliver on President Trump’s campaign promises in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (BBB or the Act), which passed the House by a razor-thin margin of 215 in favor and 214 opposed on May 22, 2025.
- BBB shows favoritism of Health Savings Accounts and Health
Potential Shifts in Employee Benefits: A Guide for Employers Under Trump
As we prepare for another change in Administration in the White House, it is crucial for employers and plan sponsors to stay informed and prepared. While much of what lies ahead is speculative, understanding these possible changes can help employers navigate the uncharted waters of employee benefits. Following is an overview of potential changes we…
Health Plan Coverage Mandate for Over-the-Counter Contraception Proposed by Biden Administration
With just a couple of weeks before election day, the Biden Administration announced on October 21, 2024, that it was issuing proposed rules designed, in part, to require health plans to cover over-the-counter contraception without cost sharing, including birth control, the morning-after pill, and the male condom. The proposed rules are the latest in a…
Should We Submit Missing Participant Data to the DOL with the Plan’s Form 5500?
If the U.S. Department of Labor’s Notice of Proposed Information Collection Request, issued on April 15, 2024, becomes final, fiduciary retirement plan committees may be asked to evaluate the important question of whether the plan should voluntarily submit missing participant data to the DOL before filing the next Form 5500. The DOL is seeking…
What Employers Need to Know about the Mental Health Parity Proposed Regulations
On July 25, 2023, the tri-agencies of the Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services (the Departments) issued a compendium of guidance designed to facilitate compliance with the Nonquantitative Treatment Limitation (NQTL) comparative analysis requirements added by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA, 2021) as they relate to the Mental Health Parity and…
What the End of the COVID-19 Pandemic Means for Employee Benefit Plan Deadlines and Coverage
President Biden announced that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) and the National Emergency declared by President Trump in 2020 will end on May 11, 2023. The PHE relief issued in response to the pandemic affected group health plan coverage requirements related to COVID-19 prevention and treatment. The National Emergency relief suspended deadlines that…
SECURE 2.0 Series Part 1: More Roth, More Catch-Up, and Catch-Up As Roth
The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0) contains several provisions that allow the federal government to have its cake (more tax dollars) and eat it too (more retirement savings, easing Social Security challenges). With SECURE 2.0, we find more Roth, more catch-up, and catch-up as Roth.
More Roth
Named after the late Delaware Senator…
SECURE (2.0) At Last!
On December 29, 2022, President Biden signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, a massive omnibus spending bill that will keep the government funded through the end of its September 30, 2023, fiscal year. Included in Division T of the Act is the bipartisan legislation dubbed the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0). Containing voluminous…