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US Airways, Pilots Union Near Cost-Cutting Accord; Contract Would Reduce Pay by 17.5%

Excerpt: US Airways and its pilots union are close to reaching a $300 million cost-cutting agreement, a key part of a restructuring plan that the airline says it needs to help it emerge from bankruptcy.

Changes to the 2016 IRS Form 1095-C According to the Draft Instructions

"Part II presents the largest challenge with the Form 1095-C.... Lines 14, 15, and 16 of part II largely remain unchanged.... Line 14 has two new codes that won't be relevant to most employers.... It is vital that the Form 1095-C has accurate codes inserted for each employee for all 12 weeks.... Part III should only be completed by an employer who sponsors a self-insured plan in which the employee or another individual enrolled."

Changes to the 2016 IRS Form 1094-C According to the Draft Instructions

"First, and most importantly, the deadline for the Form 1094-C will be three or four months earlier in 2016 compared to 2015....[T]he penalty for the failure to file a correct information return (in this case the Form 1094-C) generally is $260 for each return for which a failure occurs.... [E]mployers no longer have the protection of the good faith effort standard in 2016.... One area that caused particular confusion in 2015 and is reemphasized in the instructions is the need for each applicable large employer member to file its own Form 1094-C."

Employers Unable to Submit Forms 1094-C and 1095-C to IRS Due to AIR System Being Down

"Over the past few days Accord Systems has experienced significant trouble trying to submit the Forms 1094-C and 1095-C to the [IRS ACA Information Returns (AIR) system] on our clients' behalf. While we have experienced difficulties in previous years, 2019 has presented a host of unique problems.... The remainder of this article summarizes what we learned and discusses what an employer should do in light of the March 31, 2020 deadline to electronically submit the Forms 1094-C and 1095-C to the IRS."

Senior Executives Balk on Providing Child Care Benefits, According to HR Professionals

"According to a recent ... survey, 8 out of 10 human resources (HR) professionals report difficulties convincing senior executives that investing in childcare benefits for workers is beneficial.... HR professionals say that lack of knowledge about employees' needs is a contributing factor to the executives' uncertainty about embracing enhanced childcare benefits."

Fiduciary Duties for Health and Welfare Plans: Duty to Administer Plan According Its Written Terms

"Maintaining a plan document is a core ERISA requirement. Plan administrators must administer the plan according to the plan document. While plan participants and even plan administrators may not agree with the plan language, this is still the controlling language of the plan and failure to follow it can result in a breach of fiduciary duty, among many other issues."

High-Deductible Plans Surge, According to CDC

"Enrollment in HDHPs reached 47 percent of the commercially insured, pre-Medicare population in 2018, representing a 3.3-percentage-point increase from 2017 ... according to a quarterly survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).... The findings appeared contrary to a recent survey of large employers, which offer the largest share of HDHPs. [One] annual survey ... found the share of employers expecting to offer only HDHPs in 2019 was 30 percent among the 170 companies surveyed, compared with 39 percent in 2018 -- the first decline in seven years. Similarly, [a second] survey found enrollment in HDHPs dipped to 28 percent of covered workers in 2017 from 29 percent in 2016."

CMS Did Not Always Accurately Authorize Financial Assistance Payments to Qualified Health Plan Issuers in Accordance With Federal Requirements During the 2014 Benefit Year (PDF)

27 pages. "[OIG] estimated that CMS authorized improper financial assistance payments totaling almost $434.4 million for 461,127 policies that were not in accordance with Federal requirements and authorized potentially improper financial assistance payments totaling almost $504.9 million for 183,983 policies during the 2014 benefit year."

Practice Note on Actuarial Practices Relating to Preparing, Reviewing, and Commenting on Rate Filings Prepared in Accordance with the ACA (PDF)

25 pages. "This document is intended to provide information to actuaries preparing, reviewing, or commenting on rate filings in accordance with Section 2794 of the Public Health Service Act. Specific changes from one year to the next are not considered in this practice note. Rather, it is meant to provide information on the main issues related to filing ACA-compliant plan rates, reflecting the requirements under the ACA."

Text of HHS OIG Audit Report: Not All Internal Controls Implemented by the Federal, California, and Connecticut Marketplaces Were Effective in Ensuring That Individuals Were Enrolled in Qualified Health Plans According to Federal Requirements

"The deficiencies in internal controls that we identified may have limited the marketplaces' ability to prevent the use of inaccurate or fraudulent information when determining eligibility of applicants for enrollment in QHPs.... These deficiencies occurred because [1] the marketplaces did not have procedures or did not follow existing procedures to ensure that applicants were enrolled in QHPs according to Federal requirements or [2] the marketplaces' eligibility or enrollment systems had defects or lacked functionality."