5500 Issue

[Guest Gibson]

Association of professionals sponsors a MEWA, pursuant to which benefits are funded through adopting employer (and employee) contributions. Each adopting employer therefore sponsors an ERISA welfare benefit plan. No adopting employer has more than 20 participants, so no 5500 is required if ech plan is considered unfunded, fully insured or a combination. I think the separate arrangements can be considered fully insured because benefits are paid exclusively through an insurance contract (each adopting employer must sign a participation agreement), and premiums are paid directly to the insurance carrier (the MEWA). Does anyone have any insight into this?

Also, assuming that the arrangements are exempt from the 5500 filing requirement, does this obviate the requirement of the MEWA to provide each adopting employer with the information required to complete a Schedule A (ERISA 103(a)(2))? Thanks

[GBurns]

Before you get to the 5500 issue you should first realize that you most likely dont have a MEWA and it might not even be legal. Because the promoter said that it is a MEWA does not make it a MEWA.

I suggest that you check with your state Dept of Insurance for registration of the MEWA (which is required of many MEWAS) and also check the DOL web site for their recent publication on MEWAS available in their Library under Publications under the Pension and Welfare Benefits Admin section of Special Reports.

This guide was put out because of the large number of plans that were claiming to be either MEWAs or ERISA but were not, worse they were not even legal.

You might also want to check the Florida DOI website regarding the recent action against NATP (and its 24 aliases) that was a similar plan to what you are describing. Also check Texas and Maryland regarding SAI. Also NJ regarding purported MEWAs, union and ERISA plans.

[Guest Gibson]

It's MEWA that is licensed in the state in which it offers coverage.