[Official Guidance]

Text of IRS, HHS and DOL Final Regs: Amendments to Excepted Benefits
"Consistent with the 2013 proposed regulations, these final regulations eliminate the requirement under the HIPAA regulations that participants pay an additional premium or contribution for limited-scope vision or dental benefits to qualify as excepted benefits.... [It] is the Departments' view that the final regulations do not undermine the inclusion of pediatric vision or dental coverage as essential health benefits. The requirement that issuers in the small group market offer coverage of essential health benefits is not changed, and that rule does not apply to large or self-insured plans.... These final regulations clarify that limited-scope vision or dental benefits do not have to be offered in connection with a separate offer of major medical or 'primary' group health coverage under the plan, in order to meet the statutory criterion that such benefits are 'otherwise not an integral part of the plan.' ... As with the 2013 proposed regulations, these final regulations provide that, for an [employee assistance program (EAP)] to constitute excepted benefits, the EAP must satisfy four requirements.... The first requirement of the 2013 proposed regulations and these final regulations is that the EAP does not provide significant benefits in the nature of medical care.... The second requirement of these final regulations is that for an EAP to constitute excepted benefits, its benefits cannot be coordinated with the benefits under another group health plan.... The third requirement of the 2013 proposed regulations and these final regulations for EAPs to constitute excepted benefits is that no employee premiums or contributions may be required as a condition of participation in the EAP. Finally, as with the 2013 proposed regulations, the final regulations provide that an EAP that constitutes excepted benefits may not impose any cost-sharing requirements.... These final regulations apply to group health plans and group health insurance issuers for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2015." (U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Department of Labor [DOL], and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS])