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McKee Foods Wins Preemption Challenge to Tennessee Pharmacy Law

"The law's 'any-willing-provider' requirement -- which limits a plan's ability to exclude pharmacies from its network -- has an 'impermissible connection' with benefit plans governed by [ERISA], [the district court judge] said  ... because it dictates the scope of provider networks eliminates plans' 'discretion to shape benefits as they see fit'[.]" [McKee Foods Corporation v. BFP Inc., No. 21-0279 (E.D. Tenn. Mar. 31, 2025)]

Bloomberg Agrees to Buy Bureau of National Affairs for About $990 Million

BNA, which publishes the Daily Labor Report and U.S. Law Week, will 'significantly grow Bloomberg's presence in Washington' and its research will contribute to coverage and analysis of employment, health care, labor, accounting, intellectual property and telecommunications, Bloomberg said.

Eleventh Circuit Panel Can't Displace Disputed ERISA Rule, Judge Says

"Workers seeking denied benefits from ERISA-covered plans typically must show they've first raised the issue through the plan's internal appeals process before filing suit.... [C]ourts within the Eleventh Circuit also extend this requirement to plaintiffs alleging statutory violations of ERISA.... [Judge Adalberto Jordan] was quick to provide a roadmap for elevating the issue to the Supreme Court or the full Eleventh Circuit[.]" [Bolton v. Inland Fresh Seafood Corp. of Am., Inc., No. 22-4602 (N.D. Ga. Dec. 5, 2023; on appeal to 11th Cir. No. 24-10084, argued May 13, 2025.]

Agencies Ask to Pause Lawsuit Challenging MHPAEA Regs

"The Trump administration is requesting a D.C. federal court pause an employer group's lawsuit over a Biden-era rule to strengthen mental health coverage as it considers modifying or rescinding the policy." [ERIC v. HHS, No. 25-0136 (D.D.C. complaint filed Jan. 17, 2025; HHS motion for abeyance filed May 12, 2025)]

UnitedHealth Inks $69 Million Deal Over Wells Fargo 401(k) Funds

"UnitedHealth Group Inc. agreed to pay $69 million to settle a class action challenging the use of Wells Fargo & Co. target date funds in its $15 billion 401(k) plan. The deal is 'the largest-ever ERISA settlement alleging breach of fiduciary duty for failure to remove underperforming investment options,' according to a motion ... seeking its approval." [Snyder v. UnitedHealth Group, No. 21-1049 (D. Minn. proposed settlement filed Dec. 13, 2024)]

Appeals Court to Address Novel ERISA Issue in Argent Trust Dispute

"Argent Trust Co. convinced the Seventh Circuit to hear an immediate appeal of a decision allowing an employee stock ownership plan participant to seek plan-wide relief for an allegedly improper transaction, despite being denied class status.... The decision flouted federal class action rules and marked the first time a 'conflicted plaintiff' has been allowed to bring representative claims on behalf of a plan, Argent said." [Argent Trust Co. v. Lysengen, No. 24-8016 (7th Cir. Jun. 13, 2024)]

Qualcomm Is First Employer Ordered to Defend Use of 401(k) Plan Forfeitures

"Qualcomm Inc. must defend how it manages 401(k) assets forfeited by former employees, a California federal judge said in the first substantial decision addressing a new series of ERISA cases targeting several large companies." [Perez-Cruet v. Qualcomm Inc., No. 23-1890 (S.D. Calif. May 24, 2024)]

Employers May Win U.S. Health Law Exemption to Switch Insurers

Excerpt: The U.S. is weighing whether to allow employers to avoid the requirements, even with a new insurer, as long as benefit levels stay the same[.]

Health Law's Demise May Permit Best Plan

"If the health-care law is killed by the courts or Congress, its opponents will celebrate a Pyrrhic victory. They'll defeat something they don't like, but leave us all in the lurch -- at risk of losing our lives or our shirts if we get sick while uninsured. Defeating the new health-care law can represent a real victory only if we replace it and our entire health-care system with something that insures us all at reasonable cost. The Medical Security System, which I proposed in my 2007 book, 'The Healthcare Fix,' is what's needed."

Pending New York Drug Prices Law Would Test Supreme Court Decision Allowing State Regulation of PBMs Despite ERISA

"New York's pending bill will provide an early signal of how willing states are to take on PBMs and other health-care businesses since the Supreme Court ruling. Widening states' power to regulate medical costs or incentives could embolden lawmakers to test new approaches that ERISA might have blocked before."