"Direct‑to‑consumer platforms like TrumpRx.gov, Hims, Lilly Direct, and NovoCare now offer [GLP-1s] between $149 and $449 per month, cash pay. The obvious question: can we reimburse employees through an HRA for purchases made through these channels? In most cases, yes. But the compliance advice most employers receive says otherwise, and the reason is worth understanding."  MORE >>

"For a variety of legal, structural, and practical reasons, employers seem to struggle to determine which benefit plans are covered by ERISA and which are not. This isn't because employers are careless or uninformed; it's because ERISA is one of those laws where the line between 'covered' and 'not covered' is skewed by how benefits are actually bought and administered."  MORE >>

"If your plan (or any of its business associates) creates, receives, maintains, or transmits information that qualifies as Part 2-protected substance use disorder (SUD) patient records, then your plan should treat the Part 2-related NPP revisions as mandatory content requirements that are enforceable as of February 16, 2026."  MORE >>

"The fight surrounds efforts by [one nonprofit] to make the contents of a widely used industry billing manual public, in the belief it's essential for patients and employers to understand what they're being charged. The American Hospital Association, which sells the manual and holds a copyright on it, is suing ... arguing that it amounts to copyright infringement.... The manual contains standardized billing codes and instructions that hospitals and insurers use to process payments and essentially serves as the backbone of the modern billing system." [American Hospital Assoc. v. PatientRightsAdvocate.org, Inc., No. 25-15137 (N.D. Ill. complaint filed Dec. 12, 2025)]  MORE >>

"The complaint alleged Apex Management Group I Inc.... operated a multiple employer welfare arrangement that provided essential minimum coverage health plans to hundreds of small employers ... In its complaint, the [DOL] alleged Apex and [one of its owners] acted as fiduciaries to each plan, violated their fiduciary duties, and engaged in prohibited transactions by causing the plan assets of some of the plans to be used to pay claims of other plans, comingling assets of unrelated plans, and causing plans to pay undisclosed and excessive compensation to Apex -- all in violation of ERISA." [Sonderling v. Apex Management Group I, Inc., No. 24-3609 (N.D. Ill. Apr. 28, 2026)]  MORE >>

"At a House Ways and Means Committee hearing, lawmakers targeted pricing and market power while executives pointed to cost pressures and reimbursement gaps."  MORE >>

"Accountable plans remain the most tax-efficient way for nonprofits to reimburse employee business expenses. When properly structured and implemented, these plans allow reimbursements to be excluded from employees' taxable income and save payroll taxes for the organization.... Qualifying expenses commonly include business-related travel, meals, lodging, transportation, professional dues, continuing education, and necessary tools or supplies. Home office expenses may qualify in limited circumstances, but only when they're directly tied to the employer's business needs and not personal use."  MORE >>

"DOL will prioritize investigations of the most egregious violations, provide advance notice of the agency's ERISA interpretations, commit to completing investigations within reasonable timeframes, and require senior leadership to review significant enforcement matters. Agency leadership believes these principles will promote 'transparency, consistency, and the rule of law.' [FAB 2026-01] doesn't explain how DOL will apply these principles to investigations and enforcement actions that are already in progress."  MORE >>

"Cost containment remains the dominant focus in workforce benefits.... Employers are taking more steps to address [healthcare] affordability, but most are doing so selectively ... Leave strategies are becoming more streamlined.... Retirement benefits continue to mature steadily. Employer matching, automatic features, and incremental plan design refinements are becoming more common, signaling long term investment rather than rapid change.... Employers are expanding wellbeing programs more selectively."  MORE >>