Insights

Construction stakeholders and insurers are, by and large, failing to capture project-level incident and claims data. If you don’t have a clear picture of your own risks and the construction industry’s biggest risks, how can you truly manage risk?

On April 26, 2024, the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it published a final rule strengthening privacy protections for information relating to reproductive healthcare. The agency proposed the rule on April 23, 2023, which we covered in the April 25, 2023, edition of Compliance Corner. The final rule prohibits the use or disclosure of PHI by individuals, covered entities (which includes group health plans), or their business associates (collectively, “regulated entities”) for ei

On May 1, 2024, the DOL, HHS, and Treasury (the departments) issued an FAQ regarding implementation of the No Surprises Act in light of the August 24, 2023, decision in Texas Medical Association, et al. v. U.S. HHS, et al. (TMA III) (see our August 15, 2023, and October 24, 2023, editions of Compliance Corner for coverage of this case). Specifically, the FAQ extends enforcement relief related to calculating equivalent in-network rates for out-of-network services covered under No Surprises Act p

On April 29, 2024, the DOL announced a final rule to rescind the 2018 Association Health Plan (AHP) rule that created alternative criteria that could be used to determine whether a group or association of employers without a commonality of interest could establish an AHP for the primary purpose of providing benefits. We covered the DOL’s proposed rule in our January 3, 2024, edition of Compliance Corner. The intention of the 2018 AHP rule, in part, was to increase access to quality health cover

HHS has published a final rule expanding protections under Section 1557 of the ACA, which prohibits discrimination in certain health programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability in any health program activity that receives federal financial assistance and other covered entities. The Section 1557 regulations that took effect in 2016 under the Obama administration expanded the scope of Section 1557 prohibitions by including discrimination based upo

On April 23, 2024, the DOL released the final Retirement Security Rule (the 2024 final rule) defining who is an investment advice fiduciary for purposes of ERISA and the Code. The DOL also issued final amendments to class prohibited transaction exemptions (PTEs) available to investment advice fiduciaries. The 2024 final rule follows and largely resembles a proposed rule issued on November 7, 2023. Please see our November 7, 2023, edition of Compliance Corner regarding the proposed rule. The 202

On April 25, 2024, Gov. Moore approved SB0485/HB0571 modification bills, which delay implementation of Maryland’s family and medical leave insurance (FAMLI) program, sometimes referred to as Time to Care Act of 2022. Implementation has faced several delays and modifications since inception, most recently as reported in our May 9, 2023, edition of Compliance Corner. Most notably, contributions will now begin July 1, 2025 (previously October 1, 2024). Benefits will now be available to eligible em

Not necessarily. However, as with most things related to Form 5500 reporting, ultimate decision-making authority in this regard will rest with the plan administrator. The Form 5500 filing requirement for health and welfare plans subject to ERISA is straightforward: all such plans with 100 or more plan participants on the first day of the plan year must file Form 5500 for that plan year, including all applicable insurance information on Schedule A. Schedule A reporting can be a challenge for pla

On April 11, 2024, in Ryan S. v UnitedHealth Group, Inc., et al., the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (Ninth Circuit) filed a decision reversing a Middle District of California District Court dismissal of a class action suit brought under ERISA by a beneficiary (Ryan S.) of a group health plan insured, managed, and administered by UnitedHealthcare (UHC). The lawsuit, which alleged a MHPAEA violation and breach of an ERISA fiduciary duty, was remanded for further proceedings. Between 2017 and 201