Summary COVID-19 has dominated the agenda for health and welfare benefits in 2020. From suspended deadlines to mid-year election changes to enhanced cost-free coverage, the pandemic has resulted in significant changes to the design and operation of many health and welfare plans. As the year comes to a close, employers should consider whether they have [&hellip… Continue Reading »
Changes are imminent for the Affordable Care Act and a range of other laws and regulations affecting the health care industry. Ballard Spahr attorneys established a Health Care Reform Initiative in 2008 to monitor and analyze health care reform developments. This Health Care Reform Dashboard was a product of that initiative. We intend to continue following [&hellip… Continue Reading »
The U.S. Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services have collectively released amended interim final regulations addressing internal claims and appeals and the external claims review requirements under health care reform. The new regulations amend initial claims review guidance issued by the Departments on July 22, 2010. (Click here to read our legal [&hellip… Continue Reading »
In a new technical release, the government agencies responsible for implementing various health care reform requirements (the U.S. Departments of Labor, the Treasury, and Health and Human Services) have extended the reprieve that they previously granted with respect to certain rules affecting health benefit claims and appeals. Last year, these agencies announced that they would [&hellip… Continue Reading »
Today, the IRS released Notice 2010-62, which provides that employers will not be required to report the cost of group health plan coverage on Form W-2 issued for 2011. Employers will welcome this notice, which will allow them additional time to modify their payroll systems and procedures to address this new health care reform reporting [&hellip… Continue Reading »
The three federal agencies that have published regulations on health care reform provisions (U.S. Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services) have furnished additional guidance on certain issues of particular importance to employers and other group health plan sponsors. A new set of Frequently Asked Questions and Answers addresses specific questions that many [&hellip… Continue Reading »
The U.S. Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services have released guidance on how employer-sponsored self-funded group health plans can satisfy the new external claims review requirements arising from the federal health care reform legislation. The new guidance, which supplements initial claims review guidance issued by the Departments on July 22, 2010, is [&hellip… Continue Reading »
The recent health care reform legislation requires a group health plan to maintain an internal claim and appeal process that meets certain standards and to provide for an external appeal process. The U.S. Departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services have jointly released regulations that address these subjects. Internal Claims and Appeals The [&hellip… Continue Reading »
