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BenefitsLink Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter
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[Guidance Overview]
Determining What's Affordable under Health Reform
"A large employer generally is subject to an assessable payment if any full-time employee is certified to receive an applicable premium tax credit or cost-sharing reduction and either (1) the employer does not offer to its full-time employees (and their dependents) the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential coverage; or (2) the employer offers its full-time employees (and their dependents) the opportunity to enroll in minimum essential coverage that either is unaffordable or does not provide minimum value."
(Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)
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[Guidance Overview]
October 15th Deadline for Providing Medicare Part D Creditable Coverage Notice (PDF)
"Employers sponsoring group health plans that provide prescription drug coverage to employees or dependents who are Medicare eligible (e.g., age 65 or older, disabled under Social Security or who have end stage renal disease) are required to issue a Medicare Part D Creditable Coverage Notice to such individuals."
(Dow Lohnes PLLC)
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[Guidance Overview]
IRS Requests Comments on Health Coverage Affordability Safe Harbor for Employers (PDF)
"Beginning in 2014, employers may be assessed a 'shared responsibility' penalty if the health coverage they offer to certain employees is 'unaffordable.' The IRS recently issued Notice 2011–73, which solicits comments about a potential 'safe harbor'' for determining whether an employer's health coverage is 'affordable' for purposes of this penalty. Comments are due by December 13, 2011."
(Buck Consultants, LLC)
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[Guidance Overview]
Denver's Proposed Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance Moves Forward
"[E]ven though the new proposed ordinance attempts to exempt employers that already provide vacation or personal time off (PTO) in an amount equivalent or greater than the mandated nine (or five) days of leave benefits, employers must allow the vacation or PTO 'under the same conditions as paid sick and safe time'—meaning that if the other leave benefits require prior notice and/or documentation, this new leave bank must be provided in addition."
(Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart PC)
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Annual Notice Requirements for Employer Group Health Plans
"Since most employers operate their health plans on a calendar year basis, this is a good time of year to review the annual participant notice requirements for employer group health plans."
(Miller, Johnson, Snell & Cummiskey C.L.P.)
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Benefits in General; Executive Compensation
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[Guidance Overview]
Noncompete As Condition for Option Exercise in Texas
"Distancing itself from earlier precedent, the Supreme Court of Texas recently concluded that an employer could require an employee to give a covenant not to compete in exchange for allowing the employee to exercise stock options, if the noncompete were reasonable as to time, scope of activity, and geographical area."
(Utz, Miller & Eickman, LLC)
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PwC Releases Results from Human Resource Services 2011 Global Equity Incentives Survey
"Since 2009, performance-based equity has surpassed all other equity vehicles as the compensation vehicle of choice. Sixty-one percent of Restricted Share Units (RSUs) granted in 2011 had performance metrics attached to the vesting schedule; only 39% had service-based (i.e. time-based) vesting. Forty-three percent of Restricted Shares (RS) granted had performance metrics attached to the vesting schedule."
(PLANSPONSOR.COM)
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Lifestyle Benefits Are Becoming More Important to Employees
"'The big focus now is on offering people pleasers,' explains Marie Dufresne, a Dallas-based senior principal with Hay Group. She defines these pleasers as offerings that cost the employer little to nothing, but save the employee on something that they would be paying for anyway, or perhaps couldn't quite afford."
(Workplace Management: free registration required)
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Press Releases
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