When the COVID-19 public health emergency and national emergency were declared in 2020, no one anticipated they would still be in place in 2023. On January 30, 2023, the President announced the intent to end the emergencies on May 11, 2023. The impact of the emergencies on employer-sponsored benefits affected certain coverages, reimbursements, and timelines. … Continued
Enrolling in Medicare does not cause COBRA to start. Under the federal rules, COBRA must be offered to persons enrolled in the employer’s health plan only if they lose coverage because of certain specific events. Termination of employment is an example of a COBRA qualifying event. Becoming eligible for Medicare, or enrolling in Medicare, is not a … Continued
Recently, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued the instructions for Forms 1094/1095 for the 2017 tax year, announced PCORI fees for 2017-18, and announced cost-of-living adjustments for 2018. The IRS provided additional guidance on leave-based donation programs’ tax treatment and released an information letter on COBRA and Medicare. Here’s a recap of these actions for … Continued
The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) requires group health plans to provide notices to covered employees and their families explaining their COBRA rights when certain events occur. The initial notice, also referred to as the general notice, communicates general COBRA rights and obligations to each covered employee (and his or her spouse) … Continued
As we mentioned in the first edition of this mini-series on the Federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA), “marketplaces” or “exchanges” created by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) did not make COBRA obsolete. Rather, COBRA is still going strong. And while the general rule of COBRA is not necessarily … Continued
Employers subject to COBRA can also be subject to a DOL audit of the documents, procedures and processes related to those benefits. As the DOL increases their quota for audits, employers prepare for the daunting task. Read full article here…
Employers subject to COBRA can also be subject to a DOL audit of the documents, procedures and processes related to those benefits. In March 2012, the IRS provided a plan for COBRA audits and published a guide on audit techniques for examiners to determine an employer’s COBRA compliance.
Perhaps you have heard that the DOL expressed its goal to audit all employee benefit plans by the end of 2015. A daunting task, yes, but most agree the task is logistically impossible. Are you prepared for a DOL audit? Are you prepared for the work that is involved and the fines for non-compliance?
Employers should consider taking a serious look at their group health plans, not only for compliance with the PPACA, but also with the long standing mandates for group health plans – ERISA, HIPAA, COBRA and others laws.
December usually brings a number of releases from the regulatory agencies and 2013 has carried on that tradition. Read more on recent notices, W-2 reporting, marketplace extensions, and projected figures for 2015.
