On April 15, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) aimed at addressing the cost of prescription drugs. This EO, titled “Lowering Drug Prices by Once Again Putting Americans First,” outlines specific directives designed to reduce drug prices and improve access for US patients. Of particular note for sponsors and providers of employer health plans, the EO tasks the US secretary of labor with proposing regulations to improve employer health plan fiduciary transparency into direct and indirect compensation received by pharmacy benefit managers.
Understanding and Navigating Compliance With NIH Grant DEI Policies
On April 21, 2025, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) issued a notice regarding its policy to require all US grant recipients to certify that:
- They do not, and will not during the term of receiving funds from the NIH, operate any programs that advance or promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA); or discriminatory equity ideology (collectively, DEI) in violation of federal anti-discrimination law; and
- They do not engage in, and will not during the term of this award engage in, a discriminatory prohibited boycott.
Members of McDermott’s Employment and Health & Life Sciences Groups created a document to help NIH grant recipients evaluate where any company policies and practices need to be changed prior to providing the above-referenced certification.
5 Trends in Health Plan Regulations to Watch in New Trump Administration
With a new presidential administration, the changing regulatory landscape regarding health benefits – often, the second-largest expense for a business after salaries – has been top of mind for HR executives. Much of the early commentary focused on contested “red state/blue state” issues, such as gender-affirming care. The president’s ever-growing list of executive orders now gives us additional hints about the health benefits items that have attracted the administration’s interest and driven changes in health plan regulation trends.
In this HR Executive article, Sarah Raaii and Alden Bianchi discuss five key health plan regulation trends that HR executives should watch under the new administration.
IRS Announces 2026 Limits for Health Savings Accounts, High-Deductible Health Plans, and Excepted Benefit HRAs
The Internal Revenue Service recently announced cost-of-living adjustments to the applicable dollar limits for health savings accounts, high-deductible health plans, and excepted benefit health reimbursement arrangements for 2026. All of the dollar limits currently in effect for 2025 will change for 2026, with the exception of one limit.
DOJ Secures Its First-Ever Conviction in a Criminal Antitrust Labor Market Trial
On April 14, 2025, a federal jury convicted a home health agency executive in a wage-fixing conspiracy under the Sherman Act, marking the US Department of Justice’s first-ever criminal antitrust labor market trial conviction. This conviction marks a significant milestone in antitrust enforcement, highlighting the government’s commitment to addressing labor market wage-fixing and no-poach agreements, and underscores the need for companies to ensure compliance with antitrust laws to avoid legal risks.
