"Many COVID-19 PHE flexibilities and policies have already been made permanent or otherwise extended for some time. However, HHS continues to review the flexibilities and policies implemented during the COVID-19 PHE to determine whether others can and should remain in place, even for a temporary duration, to facilitate jurisdictions' ability to provide care and resources to Americans. Still, others will expire. [This Fact Sheet includes] a list of some of the changes people will see in the months ahead."  MORE >>

"[U]ntil the public health emergency and national emergency are expressly declared to be expired by the President, the temporary relief still applies. [A] chart summarizes the impact to group health plans and how employers can begin preparing for these anticipated changes."  MORE >>

"The Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program will require rebates to the Medicare Trust Fund in cases of price increases that exceed inflation, particularly brand name drugs, which make up 80 percent of all prescription drug spending.... CMS is seeking comment from the public on ... [1] the process to determine the number of drug units for rebatable drugs; [2] reduction of rebate amounts for certain Part B and Part D rebatable drugs in shortage and in cases of severe supply chain disruptions; [3] the process to impose civil monetary penalties on manufacturers of Part D rebatable drugs that fail to pay rebates; [and] [4] assuring accuracy of the inflation rebate payments[.]" [Also see: [1] fact sheet; [2] Medicare Part B Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate guidance memo; and [3] Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate guidance memo.]  MORE >>

"Starting in 2025, covered employees can receive up to 12 weeks of leave insurance benefits to deal with a serious personal health need, bond with a new child, care for a seriously ill relative or address needs correlating with military deployment. The [Time to Care Act of 2022] officially goes into effect June 1, 2023[.]"  MORE >>

"Staropoli argued that the Benefits Executive misled her into believing she had coverage for Charles because it withdrew premiums from her paycheck and listed Charles as a covered dependent on the company's benefits portal. [The Third Circuit held that reliance] on these facts is unreasonable as a matter of law because they cannot be reconciled with the unqualified plan language." [Staropoli v. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co; JP Morgan Chase Bank NA, No. 21-2500 (3d Cir. Feb. 7, 2023)]  MORE >>

"Unlike the current temporary policy, the Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act [HR 824] would let all employers offer excepted-benefit stand-alone telehealth arrangements to all employees (including benefit-eligible optouts), not just those ineligible for benefits."  MORE >>

"Lifestyle spending accounts (LSAs) are a flexible solution that offers employees a 'subsidy' to meet covered expenses -- like fitness, social memberships, emergency savings, and stress management services, home internet service, food delivery service, tutoring costs for children, summer camp costs, new appliances, new tires and car repair services, and so on. And LSAs offer three powerful incentives to employees and employers alike."  MORE >>

"Adding ERISA preemption to the [ACA's] waiver program or adding a waiver to the ERISA statute would offer modest assistance to state cost-control reform efforts without undermining the ACA or ERISA's protections ... Although past proposals have failed to pass in Congress, the endurance of the ACA and the bipartisan recognition of state health care cost control's urgency present an opportunity to try again."  MORE >>

"[EBSA Interpretive Bulletin 2022-01 specifies that] employee benefit plan sponsors can engage an independent auditing firm immediately after the accountant disposes of the publicly traded securities of the plan sponsor."  MORE >>