"Available data show that very few businesses claim the 45F credit, indicating that the credit has only a minimal impact on encouraging employers to provide child care.... GAO estimated that 169 to 278 corporate business returns claimed a total of between $15.7 million and $18.8 million in the credit on their 2016 returns. For context, this represents less than 1% of corporate tax returns." [IF12379 Sep. 4, 2025]  MORE >>

29 pages. Topics: [1] One Big Beautiful Bill HSA and health plan provisions; [2] Other health benefit developments; [3] New agency guidance; [4] Health benefits litigation; [5] Open enrollment update for 2026.  MORE >>

"The answer depends upon where the information came from, who has it now, and why they have it. The privacy rules only apply to 'covered entities' -- that is, health plans, health care clearinghouses, and health care providers that transmit health information in electronic form in connection with any of the transactions covered by the HIPAA administrative simplification regulations.... [I]nformation that an employer uses or discloses in performing plan administration functions is affected by the privacy rules."  MORE >>

"Consumers under the age of 30 have always been eligible for catastrophic plans through HealthCare.gov, but [this guidance] will allow individuals of any age to apply for an exemption to enroll in catastrophic health coverage if the individual is ineligible for APTC or CSRs.... HHS plans to begin streamlining this process for consumers ineligible for APTC due to income and expand to consumers who are over 250% of the FPL and are only ineligible for CSRs."  MORE >>

"Effective January 1, 2026, the amendment to RSA 275 introduces employee leave in New Hampshire, granting employees at workplaces with 20 or more employees up to 25 hours of unpaid, job protected leave annually to attend certain medical appointments related to childbirth, postpartum care, and pediatric care for their children within the first year of birth or adoption."  MORE >>

"Maryland’s Time to Care Act (TTCA) establishes a paid family and medical leave (PFML) insurance program. Contributions ... will now begin Jan. 1, 2027. Starting no later than Jan. 3, 2028, covered employees may take up to 12 weeks of leave in a rolling 12-month period, with another 12 weeks possible for employees who experience a serious health condition and need to bond with a new child."  MORE >>

"Although the district court dismissed the participants' ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claim, it allowed their claim that the disputed surcharges violated ERISA's nondiscrimination requirements to proceed.... The court observed that to allege a fiduciary breach claim (under ERISA Section 502(a)(2)), the participants needed to allege losses to the plan itself -- not merely to individual participants ." [Fisher v. GardaWorld Cash Service Inc., No. 24-0837 (W.D.N.C. Aug. 28, 2025)]  MORE >>

"A federal trial court has held that a health plan's exclusion of coverage for gender-affirming mastectomies or breast reductions for female to male transgender or non-binary/gender neutral minors, while covering such procedures for boys with gynecomastia, violated [ACA] Section 1557[.]" [L.B. & M.B. v. Premera Blue Cross, No. 23-0953 (W.D. Wash. Apr. 18, 2025))]  MORE >>

"20 percent of individuals with employment-based health benefits account for roughly 80 percent of overall spending.... One percent of enrollees account for 29 percent of spending. While the average spending for this group is $206,000 per person and median spending is $150,000, everyone in this group used at least $96,000 in health care services.... The prevalence of chronic conditions is relatively high among people who use a lot of health care services."  MORE >>

"Employers are budgeting for only a fraction of expected cost increases.... Employers are open to alternative network arrangements in pursuit of cost control.... Novel therapeutics present a challenge.... Employers are prepared to scale back solutions that cannot demonstrate a hard return on investment (ROI) or high value to employees."  MORE >>

"While covering these drugs may serve employees' needs and potentially increase satisfaction with their employee benefits package ... many employers hesitate to offer new coverage from a cost perspective alone. A 2025 article ... reports a notable increase in the average representation of GLP-1 drugs used for weight loss in total annual claims for employers, increasing from 8.9 percent in 2024 to 10.5 percent in 2025. Overall, 36 percent of employers are providing GLP-1 coverage for both diabetes and weight loss (up from 34 percent in 2024)."  MORE >>

"The DOL framed the agenda as 'a set of high-priority actions designed to reduce unnecessary burdens on employers and employees.' A release from DOL indicated that regulatory actions on ESG, independent contractors, and pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) would be of highest importance. A new proposal on independent contractors could be imminent, according to the agenda."  MORE >>

"Most employers today opt for active enrollment, but the best option for your business depends on the specific characteristics of your organization and employee population. Here's a useful breakdown of the pros and cons to help your organization make the best decision to use active or passive open enrollment."  MORE >>