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All News > COVID-19

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The CARES Act Paid Leave Door May Be Open, But the Path to Recovery Remains Narrow and Uncertain for Most Government Contractors
Miller & Chevalier Link to more items from this source
Mar. 1, 2024

"[M]ost federal contractors know that it can be challenging to recover increased costs for paid leave stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic under Section 3610 of the [CARES] Act.... A recent Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) decision provides claimants with some reason for hope by confirming that the ASBCA has Contract Disputes Act (CDA) jurisdiction over appeals from a contracting officer's denial of Section 3610 claims.... [E]stablishing jurisdiction is only the first step, and the path to recovering paid leave costs remains narrow and highly dependent on the facts of each case."

Tags: CARES Act  •  COVID-19  •  FMLA and Other Leave

Text of IRS Publication 969: Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans (PDF)
Internal Revenue Service [IRS] Link to more items from this source
[Official Guidance]
Feb. 8, 2024

23 pages; Rev. Jan. 5, 2024. "For use in preparing 2023 returns.... What's New: ... Notice 2023-37 addresses the announced end of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic ... Notice 2023-37 also clarifies whether certain items and services are treated as preventive care under section 223(c)(2)(C)."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Cafeteria Plans  •  HSAs  •  Health Plan Information for Employees

Draft IRS Publication 969: Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans (PDF)
Internal Revenue Service [IRS] Link to more items from this source
[Official Guidance]
Feb. 7, 2024

24 pages; Feb. 6, 2024. "For use in preparing 2023 returns.... What's New: ... Notice 2023-37 addresses the announced end of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic ... Notice 2023-37 also clarifies whether certain items and services are treated as preventive care under section 223(c)(2)(C)."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Cafeteria Plans  •  HSAs  •  Health Plan Information for Employees

Court Awards Minimal ERISA Penalties for Plan's Failure to Furnish Documents During COVID-19
Thomson Reuters Practical Law Link to more items from this source
Feb. 6, 2024

"In determining whether ERISA penalties should be awarded, the district court grouped the claimant's requested documents by category, which it analyzed in turn.... In a ruling that was largely favorable to the employer/plan sponsor, the district court in this case expressly referenced the [DOL's] COVID-related 'outbreak period' rules -- which suspended the deadlines for some plan compliance obligations." [Zavislak v. Netflix, Inc., No. 21-1811 (N.D. Cal. Jan. 31, 2024)]

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Administration

Philadelphia COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Ordinance Ending
OneDigital Link to more items from this source
Dec. 21, 2023

"The COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave Ordinance, which requires [businesses with 25 or more employees] to provide up to 40 hours of additional paid sick leave to eligible employees when they are unable to work for certain COVID-19 reasons, will expire on December 31, 2023. However, covered employers will still be required to keep all compliance records for this law for two years (through December 31, 2025)."

Tags: COVID-19  •  FMLA and Other Leave  •  Local Regulation

Philly's Paid Sick Leave Law for COVID-19 Ends December 31
Philly Voice Link to more items from this source
Dec. 13, 2023

"A city rule that requires employers to provide up to 40 hours of additional compensated time off for the sickness expires on New Year's Eve."

Tags: COVID-19  •  FMLA and Other Leave  •  Local Regulation

Text of Draft IRS Publication 969: Health Savings Accounts and Other Tax-Favored Health Plans (PDF)
Internal Revenue Service [IRS] Link to more items from this source
[Official Guidance]
Dec. 7, 2023

"For use in preparing 2023 returns.... What's New: ... Notice 2023-37 addresses the announced end of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic ... Notice 2023-37 also clarifies whether certain items and services are treated as preventive care under section 223(c)(2)(C). S"

Tags: COVID-19  •  Cafeteria Plans  •  HSAs  •  Health Plan Information for Employees

IRS Clarifies Prior Guidance on COVID-19 Testing and Treatment for HDHPs
Sequoia Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
Aug. 10, 2023

"After 2024, covering COVID-19 testing and treatment under an HDHP without participant cost-sharing, could impact a participant's Health Savings Account (HSA) eligibility. Notice 2023-37 also provides that COVID-19 testing will not be considered preventative care for purposes of HSA eligibility as of the Notice's publication date (June 23, 2023)."

Tags: COVID-19  •  HSAs  •  Health Plan Design

IRS Issues Guidance on Expenses Related to COVID-19 and Preventive Care
Miller Johnson Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
July 28, 2023

"[F]or plan years ending after December 31, 2024, a high-deductible health plan will no longer be permitted to provide coverage for COVID-19 testing and treatment under the HDHP before the minimum HDHP deductible is met without jeopardizing a participant's HSA eligibility.... Notice 2023-37 ... clarified that the preventive care safe harbor does not include screening (i.e., testing) for COVID-19, effective as of June 23, 2023 ... [T]his clarification will not be relevant for HDHPs/HSAs until the first plan year ending after December 31, 2024."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Administration

COVID Testing and Treatment Are No Longer 'Preventive' Starting in 2025
HUB International Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
July 13, 2023

"IRS Notice 2023-37 [provides] that COVID testing and treatment are not preventive care. This means they can only be provided under a high deductible health plan ('HDHP') on a first dollar basis by plans which plan years end no later than December 31, 2024. HDHPs that continue to cover these services on a first dollar basis will cause their participants to be ineligible to contribute to health savings accounts (HSAs)."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Design

IRS Issues Guidance on COVID-19 Relief for HSA-Qualifying HDHPs
Willis Towers Watson Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
July 7, 2023

"Employer plan sponsors of HSA-qualifying HDHPs that currently cover COVID-19 testing and/or treatment prior to the satisfaction of the minimum annual HDHP deductible should amend the terms of the plan to no longer do so for plan years ending after December 31, 2024."

Tags: COVID-19  •  HSAs  •  Health Plan Design

Determining COBRA Election and Payment Deadlines at the End of the COVID-19 Outbreak Period (PDF)
Thomson Reuters / EBIA Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
July 6, 2023

"If a participant experiences a qualifying event and is provided a COBRA election notice on or before July 10, 2023, the individual's 60-day period to elect COBRA begins to run on July 10, 2023 (making the deadline September 8, 2023).... Although not expressly addressed, it appears that if a qualifying event occurs on or before July 10, 2023, and the COBRA election notice is provided after that date, the COBRA election deadline would be measured from the provision of the notice."

Tags: COBRA  •  COVID-19

Post-Pandemic Realities: The Retirement Outlook of the Multigenerational Workforce (PDF)
Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies Link to more items from this source
July 6, 2023

"Today's workers are navigating the extended hangover of the pandemic as well as new disruptions that pose a threat to their lifestyles and livelihoods. Many workers are confronting short-term employment and financial challenges that have implications for their ability to save and invest for their future retirement. A concerted effort is needed among policymakers, employers, and workers themselves to put them back on the road towards a financially secure retirement."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Retirement Plan Design

IRS Issues Guidance on HDHP Relief for COVID-19 Services and Preventive Care
Groom Law Group Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 28, 2023

"[C]alendar year HDHPs must subject COVID-19 testing and treatment to the deductible beginning with the 2025 plan year. This gives HDHPs more than a year to transition to applying the deductible to these services. However, non-calendar year HDHPs will have less time since the relief will only apply until the end of the 2023 plan year. This is because a 2024 non-calendar year plan year will end after December 31, 2024."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Design

COVID-19 Health Plan Relief Winds Down
Mercer Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 28, 2023

14 pages. "This updated slide deck describes agency guidance on which COVID-19 coverage mandates expired once the public health emergency ended on May 11, and how to calculate key plan and participant deadlines before and after the outbreak period ends on July 10. The slides also describe employer actions that the agencies encourage but do not require, such as steps to lessen the impact of Medicaid redeterminations on employees and their families."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Design

For HDHPs, IRS Confirms Pre-Deductible COVID-19 Testing Coverage Will End Next Year
Proskauer Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 28, 2023

"The IRS's recent guidance on COVID-19 testing and treatment marks another (time-limited) eligible expense that plan sponsors will need to track as they monitor the scope of permissible expenses that can be covered under an HDHP before a participant satisfies the IRS minimum deductible."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Design

Special Rule Allowing Reduced Cost COVID-19 Testing and Treatment for HSA Plans Sunsets Next Year; Sunset Does Not Apply to COVID-19 Vaccines
Lockton Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 27, 2023

"For calendar year plans, this means that reduced-cost COVID-19 testing and treatment can be covered by an HDHP through Dec. 31, 2024. For non-calendar year plans, the relief applies through the plan year that ends in 2024."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Design

COVID-19 Coverage Without a Deductible Ends Next Year
Journal of Accountancy Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 26, 2023

"[Notice 2023-37] puts a deadline on the relief described in Notice 2020-15, issued in March 2020, by saying it applies only to plan years ending on or before Dec. 31, 2024."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Administration  •  Health Plan Design

Text of IRS Notice 2023-37: Expenses Related to COVID-19 and for Preventive Care, for Purposes of High Deductible Health Plans (PDF)
Internal Revenue Service [IRS] Link to more items from this source
[Official Guidance]
June 23, 2023

"[T]his notice modifies prior guidance regarding benefits relating to testing for and treatment of COVID-19 that can be provided by a health plan that otherwise satisfies the requirements to be a high deductible health plan (HDHP) ... Specifically, this notice provides that the relief described in Notice 2020-15 ...  applies only with respect to plan years ending on or before December 31, 2024.

"This notice also clarifies ... that the preventive care safe harbor ... does not include screening (i.e., testing) for COVID-19, effective as of the date of publication of this notice [June 23, 2023]. This notice also provides that items and services recommended with an 'A' or 'B' rating by the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) on or after March 23, 2010, are treated as preventive care for purposes of section 223(c)(2)(C), regardless of whether these items and services must be covered, without cost sharing, under Public Health Service Act section 2713."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Design

California State Grant Program for COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave
Jackson Lewis Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 16, 2023

"Eligible businesses may use the funds to reimburse for [supplemental paid sick leave (SPSL)] provided between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2022. Businesses will be required to provide proof of employee payroll records that verify all SPSL provided by the business was pursuant to the state requirements"

Tags: COVID-19  •  FMLA and Other Leave  •  Local Regulation

Colorado Amends Paid Sick Leave Law; Public Health Emergency Leave for COVID-19 Ends this Week
Seyfarth Shaw LLP Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 8, 2023

"In addition to the HFWA's original covered absences, once effective, the amended list of covered reasons for use of paid sick leave will include absences related to bereavement leave and certain closures or evacuations due to inclement weather, loss of power, or other unexpected events. The SB 23-017 amendments go into effect on August 7, 2023."

Tags: COVID-19  •  FMLA and Other Leave  •  SECURE 2.0

Massachusetts Division of Insurance Provides Special Enrollment Period for Loss of COBRA Coverage
The Wagner Law Group Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 6, 2023

"In response to the anticipated ending of the outbreak period on July 10, 2023, the Massachusetts Division of Insurance, on April 10, 2023, issued Special Bulletin 2023-09 to ... commercial health insurers, to address the implications of the ending of the National Emergency with respect to COBRA.... This Bulletin does not apply to self-insured group health plans, and it is still too early to determine the extent to which regulators in other jurisdictions will take similar action."

Tags: COBRA  •  COVID-19  •  Local Regulation

The Impact of the (Official) End of the COVID-19 National Emergency
Bond, Schoeneck & King Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
June 1, 2023

"Prior to July 10, 2023, plan sponsors should begin to review and revise their health plan design and related documents with their plan administrators and legal counsel. To the extent that plan documents and participant communications were modified to reflect the temporary National Emergency deadlines, plan sponsors should evaluate whether the documents need to be revised to reflect the end of the National Emergency."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Administration

COVID-19 Health Plan Relief Winds Down (PDF)
Mercer Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
May 30, 2023

"This slide deck describes agency guidance about which COVID-19 coverage mandates will expire once the public health emergency ends on May 11, and how to calculate key plan and participant deadlines before and after the outbreak period ends on July 10. The slides also describe employer actions that the agencies encourage but do not require, such as steps to lessen the impact of Medicaid redeterminations on employees and their families."

Tags: COVID-19  •  Health Plan Administration

Selected State Health Developments, First-Quarter 2023
Mercer Link to more items from this source
[Guidance Overview]
May 24, 2023

"New laws in Arkansas and Tennessee allow for family leave insurance. Illinois now requires all workers to earn paid leave they can use for any reason, starting in 2024. A recent San Francisco ordinance institutes paid military leave, while changes to existing paid leave laws occurred in Puerto Rico and two Minnesota cities.... Telehealth access gained traction in several states, including Idaho, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming. More than a half dozen states passed prescription drug laws ... Illinois and New York were among states issuing insurance coverage mandates."

Tags: COVID-19  •  FMLA and Other Leave  •  Health Plan Design  •  Local Regulation

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