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Kryptonite is a fictional substance that causes the mighty Superman to lose all his strength. According to a recent release from the U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration (“DOL”), cryptocurrency might carry similar dangers for otherwise strong and healthy 401(k) plan accounts. That is, in DOL’s view, the benefits of cryptocurrency in 401(k)

Remember the DOL/Treasury relief that tolled the COBRA election and payment deadlines for up to one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic (referred to below as “Tolling Relief”)? If you have been wondering whether, under that relief, a qualified beneficiary may wait one year to elect COBRA and then wait another year to make their

The IRS just released some new supplemental guidance on the COBRA premium subsidy in the American Rescue Plan Act (“ARP”). IRS Notice 2021-46, released July 26, 2021 provides additional color on a handful of discrete subsidy issues that had been addressed in earlier guidance but still caused some confusion. The guidance, in Q&A format, addresses:

Over the last few months, employers and plan administrators have concentrated on identifying qualifying individuals eligible for COBRA premium assistance under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”), sending out proper notices, and collecting election forms. Now that the dust has settled on the first round of election notices, employers and plans have

One important question that arises when determining whether an individual is eligible for the COBRA premium subsidy under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”) is whether the employee has experienced an involuntary termination of employment.  (See our prior blogs on the ARP subsidy, here.) The IRS’s recent Notice 2021-31 (the “Notice”) provides

As mentioned in our earlier posts, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”) provides a 100% COBRA premium subsidy for continuation coverage between April 1 and September 30, 2021 for certain assistance eligible individuals (“AEIs”).  As employers and plan administrators prepare to educate AEIs about this subsidy, they cannot overlook another necessary notice: 

Immediate Action Required

As discussed in our prior posts, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARP”) requires that plan administrators distribute new COBRA notices advising individuals of their possible rights to a COBRA premium subsidy.  Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Labor released new COBRA premium subsidy model notices and FAQs explaining how that is to be done.

New COBRA election notices must now be used for all qualifying events. Also, special COBRA election notices explaining ARP rights to individuals who terminated before April 1, 2021 must be provided by May 31, 2021. Notice of termination of the availability of the subsidy might have to be provided within the next few days (depending on when an individual’s COBRA premium subsidy expires).

Plan administrators and employers have to act swiftly to ensure compliance with ARP’s COBRA notice obligations.  Read below for more details about the notices and next steps.