As reported by CNN, Republican leaders plan a vote Thursday to repeal and replace much of Obamacare. Republican leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives issued two bills to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) through the budget…

Senate Bill 22, if passed in the current form, would provide immunity from civil liability to an employer who discloses employment information regarding misconduct, work history, and competency about a worker upon request of a prospective or current employer. Please…

On January 13, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a budget resolution for fiscal year 2017 to begin the process of repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The budget resolution—which was approved by the U.S. Senate on the preceding…

Each year, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET) conduct a survey to examine employer-sponsored health benefit trends. This summary reviews the main points of the 2016 survey, including: Health Insurance Premiums Worker Contributions Plan…

On Dec. 31, 2016, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction temporarily blocking enforcement of the Section 1557 non-discrimination rules under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). ACA Section 1557 is the first…

Group health plan sponsors who offer prescription drug benefits to any Medicare-eligible individual are required to disclose to CMS whether their prescription drug coverage is creditable or non-creditable. This disclosure is required whether the health plan’s coverage is primary or…

On Dec. 16, 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released its final Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2018. This rule describes benefit and payment parameters under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), applicable for the 2018…

On Dec. 13, 2016, the 21st Century Cures Act (Act) was signed into law. The Act allows small employers that do not maintain group health plans to establish stand-alone health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), effective for plan years beginning on or…

On Nov. 22, 2016, a federal judge in Texas issued a preliminary injunction, halting the enforcement of the Department of Labor’s (DOL) new overtime rule until further notice. The rule, which was set to take effect on Dec. 1, 2016,…

On November 8th, 2016, Republican candidate Donald Trump won the presidential election. In addition, Republicans retained control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives. This means that the vacancy left in the U.S. Supreme Court by the death…

The IRS has again determined that some employers, insurers and other providers need additional time to gather and analyze the information and prepare the 2016 Forms 1095-B and 1095-C to be furnished to individuals. Therefore, Notice 2016-70 provides an additional…

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released final 2016 forms for reporting under Internal Revenue Code (Code) Sections 6055 and 6056. Forms 1094-B and 1095-B are used by entities reporting under Section 6055, including self-insured plan sponsors that are not…