"Although many plan obligations are tied either to the calendar year or the plan year, there are two [ACA] items that arise annually during the summer months: the Patient-Centered Outcome Research Institute Fee (PCORI) and Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) rebates."  MORE >>

"The year 2023 has brought additional changes and compliance hurdles, including the end to the 3-year-long COVID-19 pandemic, and with it comes the end to the infamous 'outbreak period' as of July 10, 2023.... [P]lan sponsors have ... notice and disclosure obligations to plan participants and qualified beneficiaries regarding the end of the extended deadlines for COBRA election and premium payments as well as the HIPAA special enrollment due dates ... in addition to the ongoing annual compliance deadlines."  MORE >>

"Employees seeking leave, changes to their work schedule, or other accommodations at work due to illness, injury, or ongoing medical treatments may have legal protections available to them under multiple laws.... Employers evaluating requests related to an employee's illness or injury should start with the following considerations in addition to reviewing other federal, state, and local leave and disability laws."  MORE >>

29 pages. "This guide compares domestic and international mandated leave programs.... The international programs included in this guide are based on leave mandates in ... 40 countries ... The domestic programs represent paid family and medical leave (PFML) programs in U.S. jurisdictions that have passed paid leave laws."  MORE >>

"The DOL recently released its Spring Regulatory Agenda for 2023, and it includes several important health and welfare plan initiatives for this year. [This article provides] a summary of some of the more notable items that plan sponsors should be aware of, along with the DOL's proposed schedule of rulemaking."  MORE >>

"The plaintiffs, who all had taken military-related leave, sued their municipal employer under USERRA claiming disparate treatment because the city did not grant them the same benefits it provided for employees on paid administrative leave.... In finding for the employees, the court cited three factors as determinative -- the duration of the leave, the purpose of the leave, and the ability of employees to choose when to take the leave." [Myrick v. City of Hoover, Alabama, No. 22-11621 (11th Cir. Jun. 8, 2023)]  MORE >>