23 pages. "An employer who makes sick payments directly to its employees will treat such payments as regular wages. The employer will withhold and remit the proper taxes and report the proper amounts on the employee's Form W-2. These rules become more complex when the payer of sick pay is a third party (for example, a Health and Welfare Fund)."  MORE >>

"On December 31, the DOL announced ... that it is now expanding DFVC to the Form M-1, which is a required filing for multiple employer welfare arrangements (MEWAs), including such arrangements that are not group health plans but provide benefits that consist of medical care (non-plan MEWAs). Certain 'Entities Claiming Exemption' (ECEs) are also required to file an M-1 if they claim they are not a MEWA due to a statutory exemption for arrangements based on collective bargaining agreements -- DFVC is available for those entities as well."  MORE >>

Seventeen 2026 compliance guides cover common employee health and welfare benefits issues and strategies for employers, including COBRA, HSAs, domestic partner issues, HIPAA, ICHRA, and more.   MORE >>

"Colorado lawmakers recently changed the state's paid family and medical leave (FAMLI) program to reduce the premiums and add an extra twelve weeks for employees who are parents of a child receiving inpatient treatment in neonatal intensive care. The new rules [took] effect on January 1, 2026."  MORE >>

"The court held that a claimant's prior short-term disability (STD) claim file was not part of the administrative record for purposes of reviewing the denial of LTD benefits and that the plaintiff failed to establish a sufficient basis for broad extra-record discovery into the insurer's alleged conflict of interest." [Stallman v. First Unum Life Ins. Co. , No. 23-20975 (D.N.J. Dec. 29, 2025)]  MORE >>

"Taken together, these decisions reinforce that employers and insurers face meaningful ERISA exposure when they accept LTD premiums without clearly enforcing or disclosing EOI requirements. At least at the pleading stage, prolonged premium collection, ambiguous plan administration, and compartmentalized enrollment systems can support claims for waiver, estoppel, and fiduciary breach -- despite plan language disclaiming agency relationship." [Hamilton v. Logic20/20, Inc., No. C24-916RSL (W.D. Wash. Dec. 29, 2025); Hamilton v. Logic20/20, Inc., No. C24-916RSL (W.D. Wash. Dec. 29, 2025)]  MORE >>

"Americans are turning to AI tools to navigate the notoriously complex and opaque U.S. health care system.... Users turn to ChatGPT to decode medical bills, spot overcharges, appeal insurance denials, and when access to doctors is limited, some even use it to self-diagnose or manage their care.... More than 5% of all ChatGPT messages globally are about health care. "  MORE >>

"The new year could see multiple circuits release first-of-their-kind opinions in [ERISA] cases. The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is poised to be the first appellate court to address the explosion of litigation centering on 401(k) contributions forfeited by departing workers. The First Circuit has the chance to hand down the initial appellate ruling in a recent series of cases targeting employers that charge higher health-care plan fees to employees who smoke. The Fourth Circuit is also primed to weigh in on an emerging legal theory targeting employers that remove workers from their pension plans by purchasing annuities from a controversial insurance company."  MORE >>