A Texas federal court just shook the foundation of HIPAA’s reproductive health privacy protections — but the Supreme Court may have the final word. In a sweeping decision, Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk vacated key provisions of the 2024 Reproductive Health Rule, stripping away national safeguards on disclosing reproductive health information. Yet, a recent SCOTUS ruling in
UPDATE – Departments issue nonenforcement policy statement!
Related Links
- A Bit of Mental Health Parity Relief for Employers Sponsoring Group Health Plans
- Departments’ Nonenforcement Policy
Article
On May 15, 2025, the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services issued their anticipated nonenforcement policy regarding the 2024 Mental Health Parity regulations. As expected, nonenforcement is applicable “only with respect to
Make America Healthy Again: New Executive Order Revisits Group Health Plan Price Transparency
Health Plan Hygiene Part 3 – Best Practices for TPA Evaluation, Selection, and Contracting
A health plan’s fiduciaries are responsible for administering the health plan. Because most employers are not in the business of administering health benefits, they outsource the day-to-day health plan administration to a third-party health plan administrator (TPA). This outsourcing does not mean the employer is off the hook for their fiduciary obligations under ERISA. Even
Health Plan Hygiene Part 2: ERISA Fiduciaries – That May Mean You!
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) regulates most private employee benefit retirement and welfare plans. This statute’s purview is vast; it governs employer-sponsored defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans and an array of welfare plans.
Under ERISA, a plan fiduciary is an entity that exercises authority or control over the management
“Final” Section 1557 Nondiscrimination Regulations – Round 3: Impact on Employer Health Plans
Background
Section 1557 is the non-discrimination provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Section 1557, which has been in effect since 2010, is intended to prevent discrimination in certain health programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance. In May of 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office of Civil Rights
Health Plan Sponsors in the Crosshairs?
America’s cultural wars may be opening up a new front, and group health plans may be caught in the fray. Since the US Supreme Court decision in Dobbs ended almost fifty years of constitutional protection for abortion rights and gave states the authority to regulate abortion, lawmakers (or citizens) have either enacted new prohibitions on
Self-Insured Health Plans: Adjusted PCORI Fee Announced for 2024
As discussed in a previous blog, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is an independent nonprofit research organization that funds comparative clinical research, among other things. PCORI is funded through annual fees — provided for in the Affordable Care Act — paid by insurers of fully insured health plans and sponsors of self-insured health
Retail Industry: Mental Health, Other Benefits Trends
High-stress, demanding retail positions where constant customer demands are front and center can leave employees feeling overwhelmed and burnt out, resulting in lower productivity and higher turnover for employers.
Increasing societal awareness of mental health issues, and a general push by employees to recognize their lives outside of the workplace, has fueled a growing call
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