Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed in part and vacated in part a Texas federal district court order revoking the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the drug mifepristone, which is used as part of a two-drug regimen to induce abortion. The Fifth Circuit vacated the district
Understanding Recent Litigation on Medication Abortion: A Guide for Health Plan Sponsors
Last Friday, the United States Supreme Court stayed a federal district court order that suspended the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the drug mifepristone, which is used as part of a two-drug regimen to induce abortion. This decision means that mifepristone will remain available subject to current FDA dispensation guidelines while the appeal of the district court’s decision proceeds through the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (and potentially the Supreme Court). Although the Supreme Court’s decision returns mifepristone access to the status quo for the time being, it creates a number of questions for employers and other benefit plan sponsors with respect to abortion coverage in group health plans, which we discuss below.
Update: Big Headline, Small Impact – Legislation Ends COVID-19 National Emergency
Important Update: Based on informal comments from the U.S. Department of Labor, it appears that the tolling of benefit plan deadlines will end on July 10, 2023, as described in our earlier blog on this subject, notwithstanding the legislation that was signed on Monday ending the COVID-19 National Emergency on April 10th
It’s Over: DOL, Treasury, and HHS Confirm End of (Most) COVID-19 Rules for Health Plans
Update: On April 10, 2023, President Biden signed into law legislation ending the COVID-19 National Emergency prior to the previously announced May 11, 2023 date. See our blog on this new development here. The legislation does not impact the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.
Earlier this week, the Departments of Labor, Treasury,
The Long-Awaited End of the Tolling of Plan Deadlines due to COVID-19
The Biden Administration recently announced that the COVID-19 National Emergency will end on May 11, 2023. This means that the requirement to extend various benefit plan deadlines due to the COVID-19 pandemic will end as well.
By way of brief background, early during the pandemic, the U.S. Departments of Labor and Treasury adopted relief pursuant
IRS Permanently Extends Deadlines for ACA Reports to Individuals
On December 15, 2022, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) published final regulations that make permanent certain relief and changes relating to the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) reporting requirements. Specifically, the final regulations (1) include an automatic 30-day extension for providing Forms 1095-B and 1095-C to covered individuals and employees, which would otherwise be due on
The Greatest Gift of All…Tri-Agencies Issue Welcome Relief on Prescription Drug Reporting
Just three short days before the December 27th deadline for health plans and issuers to report prescription drug and health care spending information to the government, on December 23, 2022, the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services (the “Departments”) issued undoubtedly welcome reporting relief for health plans and issuers facing difficulty
After Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization: Impact on Employee Benefits
Employers and other group health plan sponsors are left with much to consider following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overruled the Supreme Court’s prior landmark decisions in Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Those cases solidified a federal constitutional right to obtain an
There’s More! Tri-Agencies Provide Clarifying Guidance on Group Health Plan Coverage of Over-the-Counter At-Home COVID-19 Tests
A few short weeks ago we told you in a blog post that, with only four days’ notice, the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and HHS (the Departments) required that, starting January 15, 2022, group health plans cover FDA-approved over-the-counter (OTC) at-home COVID-19 tests without participant cost-sharing, preauthorization, or medical management, regardless of whether a health
COBRA Election and Payment Periods: Does One Year of “Tolling” Really Mean One Year?
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