Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter

March 5, 2018

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Jobs

Senior Pension Administrator
Aldrich Solutions LP
in OR, WA

Pension Plan Administrator
The Kenneth D. Anderson Company, Inc.
in MA

Account Manager
The Standard
in CA

Health Care Manager
Washington Fire Commissioners Association
in WA

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[Guidance Overview]

The Problem with Parking (and Other Fringe Benefits) Under Tax Reform (PDF)
"Employers do have some choices ... [1] Stop paying for employee parking [or] start charging employees for parking or mass transit [or] treat amounts paid for parking /mass transit as wages and report on Form W-2.... [2] Establish a 'qualified transportation plan' [which] allows employees to pay for their own parking on a pre-tax basis through a salary reduction election.... [3] Employers who currently pay for parking may be able to renegotiate their lease and as a part of that renegotiation get 'free parking.'
Boutwell Fay LLP

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IRS Provides Sample Invoice for Section 4980H Penalties
"Notice CP220J will instruct how to make payment, if any is due. Note: ALEs will not be required to include the employer shared responsibility payment on any tax return that they file nor will they be required to make payment before the notice and demand for payment is received."
Compliance Dashboard

Agencies Release Proposed Regs on Short Term, Limited Duration Insurance
"The federal government; however, expects that a relatively low percentage of individual market enrollees will shift to STLDI plans, and that only 10% would have been subsidy-eligible had they maintained their Marketplace coverage. In addition, increasing the duration of STLDI reduces the risk of a gap in coverage for people who become seriously ill while covered."
Marathas Barrow Weatherhead Lent LLP, via HCTrends

Plan Design Considerations & Innovations: Are Benefits a Popularity Contest?
"The survey asked participants to rate 30 plan management strategies based on market acceptance and effectiveness.... Responding employers generally considered highly accepted strategies as highly effective, and there was a strong correlation between almost all acceptance levels and the corresponding effectiveness levels. The notable exception was voluntary products, which were viewed as significantly less effective than accepted. Private exchanges stood out as the least effective and least accepted strategy."
Chelko Center for Benefits Management

Exploring Beneficiaries' Satisfaction with their Vision Insurance Plans (PDF)
14 presentation slides. "Vision insurance beneficiaries are highly satisfied with their insurance provider and the care they receive from their plans. This is largely because beneficiaries find their plans straightforward and easy to use. These plans also deliver important preventive care that allows beneficiaries to take care of their eyesight and health. Not only do these plans deliver crucial -- and high-quality -- care, they do so at an affordable price."
America's Health Insurance Plans [AHIP]

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Employer Contributions Help Drive HSA Deposit Growth
"Growth in health savings account (HSA) deposits continued at a rapid rate last year, with a 22 percent increase in assets from 2015 to 2016 ... HSAs now hold close to $37 billion in assets ... [In] 2016, employer contributions accounted for 26 percent and employee contributions accounted for 46 percent of all HSA contributions."
Ascensus

Reports Find Risk of Non-ACA-Compliant Plans to Be Higher Than Federal Estimates
"[Three recent] studies suggest that the proposed rules -- combined with the repeal of the individual mandate penalty and other federal policy changes -- will lead to higher premiums in ACA markets, a higher number of uninsured people, a higher number of people without minimum essential coverage, and higher federal spending. These analyses run counter to much of the data and projections included in the proposed rules, suggesting that the rules, if finalized, would have a greater impact than the federal government estimates."
Katie Keith, in Health Affairs

Compliance Deadlines and Reminders for Second Quarter 2018
"Making a guest appearance in the reporting and disclosure grid for Q2 are changes to the ERISA disability claims procedures that are effective April 2, 2018. Although not a reporting or disclosure responsibility per se, [this list includes a reminder for] plan sponsors of the deadline for implementing changes to how claims involving disability determinations are handled.... Here are potential action items for the second quarter of 2018 (through June 30)."
Lockton

Benefits in General

Fifth Circuit Changes Standard of Review of Health Plan Administrator Factual Findings
"Since 1991, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ... [has required courts] to show deference to the factual findings of a benefit plan administrator, regardless of whether the benefit plan conferred such authority on the administrator.... The other circuits only show deference to the factual findings of plan administrators if the benefit plan specifically provides for such deference.... [A]fter more than three years of litigation, the majority of the Fifth Circuit panel agreed to overrule its decision[.]" [Ariana M. v. Humana Health Plan of Texas, Inc., No. 16-20174 (5th Cir. Mar. 1, 2018)]
Your ERISA Watch

It's Probably Time to Re-Bid Your Benefits Contracts
"[M]ake sure the organization is able to negotiate a competitive contract for the services it needs. Know what you want and need ... and what you don't.... Don't let size limit options.... Get it in writing.... Leverage internal resources."
Society for Human Resource Management [SHRM]

Executive Compensation
and Nonqualified Plans

Section 162(m) Changes Require Some Planning
"What new processes will be required to determine and track covered employees? ... What changes in compensation practices can be made? ... Should the design of compensation plans be modified? ... ? Are you now a 'public company' subject to 162(m)? ... Don't let the 'tax tail wag the dog.' "
Wilkins Finston Friedman Law Group LLP

Selected Discussions
on the BenefitsLink Message Boards

HRAs for HCEs
Client wants to establish an accrual account into which the company would make annual contributions. The purpose would be to reimburse executives for health insurance premiums (or to pay those premiums directly to the insurance company) upon retirement from the company. This account would be funded during employment, but would reimburse the HCI during retirement. In effect, the client wants to provide an executive benefit that would pay for post-retirement health insurance premiums on a tax-free basis. (I know they can do this on a taxable basis through a 457(f) plan). Is this considered a "self-insured" medical reimbursement plan under Code section 105? Or would it be considered a "fully-insured" health plan? It appears that this type of arrangement would be required to meet the discrimination testing under 105(h). But if it's considered fully insured, I'm unclear as to whether discrimination testing is still required. Also, what about the application of the ACA to these types of plans? There were some proposed regs stating that fully insured plans would have to comply with 105(h) discrimination testing; were they finalized?
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America's Health Insurance Plans [AHIP]

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BenefitsLink Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter, ISSN no. 1536-9595. Copyright 2018 BenefitsLink.com, Inc. All materials contained in this newsletter are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of BenefitsLink.com, Inc., or in the case of third party materials, the owner of those materials. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notices from copies of the content.

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