29 pages; Dec. 17, 2021. "As safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines become available, CMS is issuing this toolkit to help health insurance issuers and Medicare Advantage plans identify the issues that need to be considered and addressed in order to provide coverage and reimbursement for vaccine administration. Because COVID-19 vaccines will be federally purchased, this toolkit primarily focuses on vaccine administration."  MORE >>

"Employers had been set to collect premiums from Washington employees starting on January 1, 2022, but with this announcement, state leaders have 'strongly encourage[d]' employers to 'pause on collecting premiums.' "  MORE >>

"On the evening of December 17, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit dissolved the Fifth Circuit's stay of the federal [OSHA] COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which imposes 'vaccinate or test' requirements for private employers. Within two hours, a broad coalition of 26 trade groups filed the first of several emergency appeal applications to the U.S. Supreme Court requesting a stay pending Supreme Court review. OSHA then granted employers a limited grace period to comply with the ETS' requirements....

"[T]he same day, the Eleventh Circuit upheld the nationwide injunction against the vaccinate mandate applicable to federal contractors, pending further review. Although this situation remains fluid, employers subject to the OSHA ETS should consider preparing for compliance on the revised timetable, as should federal contractors with 100 or more employees."

[In Re: MCP No. 165, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Interim Final Rule: COVID-19 Vaccination and Testing; Emergency Temporary Standard 86 Fed. Reg. 61402, Nos. 21-7000, 21-4027, et al. (6th Cir. Nov. 17, 2021; emergency petition filed S. Ct. Dec. 17, 2021); Georgia v. Biden, No. 21-14269 (11th Cir. Dec. 17, 2021)]  MORE >>

"[C]onsistent trends point toward soft benefits' growing even more popular to help combat the effects of current events, and they may look more like the following: Loosen the reigns with PTO ... More flexibility for working hours and location ... Increases in employee recognition ... Allow employees to explore their creativity."  MORE >>

"Older employees are working longer ... That can pose problems for employees over the age of 65 who contribute to a health savings account (HSA) during the six-month period before enrolling in Medicare, or whose employers made HSA contributions for them during this period.... [Employers should] understand that they may have to issue revised Form W-2 wage statements for older employers who have fallen into the HSA/Medicare trap."  MORE >>

"From 2019 to 2020, [there was] some shift towards more [alternative payment models (APM)] and capitation payment, but [fee for service (FFS)] payments held steady at 39.3% of reimbursements. It should not be surprising that reimbursement structures did not change much since 2020 was the height of the COVID-19 pandemic."  MORE >>

"The cost to employers for absent workers due to COVID-19 is estimated to total over $78.4 billion over the past 22 months ... This is over a $25 billion increase since a previous analysis conducted ... in April 2021 and consistent with average losses approaching $1 billion per week. [The] assessment includes potential sick leave wages, short-term disability payments and spending on employee benefits."  MORE >>