The No Surprises Act, which was tucked into the year-end spending bill, protects patients from getting slapped with surprise bills after visits to the emergency room or their regular medical providers, leaving any payment disputes up to their plan and provider to resolve.
A recent article in Law360 covers three key takeaways from the legislation that employers should know, with McDermott partner Judith Wethall weighing in.
Can employers make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory?
Yes, with some exceptions. Experts say employers can require employees to take safety measures, including vaccination. That doesn’t necessarily mean an employee would get fired if they refuse, but they might need to sign a waiver or agree to work under specific conditions to limit risk.
With vaccine rollout underway in the United States, McDermott partner Michelle Strowhiro outlines considerations for employers in a recent article for The Associated Press.
The Democrats have control of all three levers of power—the Senate, the House and the presidency—for the first time since the early years of the Obama administration.
How will President Biden use this new concentration of power to shape healthcare policy?
A recent article in Medscape outlined seven key healthcare actions that Biden could pursue, with McDermottPlus consultant Rodney Whitlock weighing in.
On January 7, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued proposed guidance regarding employer-sponsored wellness programs and the level of incentives employers may offer employees who participate in these programs in the form of two proposed rules. On January 20, 2021, the Biden administration ordered agencies to immediately withdraw most unpublished rules, including the EEOC proposed rules. Agencies may not issue any new regulations until they can be reviewed and approved by agency or department heads appointed or designated by President Biden.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, which became law on December 27, 2020, makes significant changes to the employee retention tax credits available under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the CARES Act). The changes are generally designed to increase the availability, scope and amount of the credits. Significantly, employers that received a Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan (or that were related to employers that received a PPP loan) may be able to claim the credit, including retroactively for periods beginning as early as March 13, 2020.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act (the Act) was signed into law by the president on December 27, 2020, and includes significant health and welfare benefits provisions that affect group health plans and health insurance issuers. The Act is the most comprehensive single piece of legislation to impact group health plans since the Affordable Care Act.
The COVID-19 pandemic that ravaged 2020 spurred workers to take advantage of telemedicine and mental health benefits more frequently, and demand for those services isn’t expected to wane in the near future, experts say.
A recent article in Law360 examined three ways the pandemic had an impact on employee benefits over the past year, with McDermott partner Jacob Mattinson weighing in.
In September, the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (Self-Isolation) (England) Regulations 2020 came into effect in the United Kingdom. The Regulations, together with earlier updates from the Government of the United Kingdom, require office workers who can work “effectively” from home to do so over the winter. What’s more, potential criminal liability attaches to any employer failure to comply with the Regulations.
The Consolidated Appropriations Act provides tax relief for workers who socked away pre-tax money into flexible spending accounts (FSAs) for 2020 and couldn’t use it because of the coronavirus pandemic. Now employees may be able to carry over all of their unused funds to use later. Even ex-employees might get more time to spend down unused money instead of forfeiting it.
In a recent article in Forbes, McDermott partner Jacob Mattinson speaks to the employer perspective on FSA carryovers.
As the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are administered in the United States, employers have much to consider with regard to mandating the vaccine for their employees.
Subscribe
