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New health reimbursement account rules provide alternative path to Affordable Care Act compliance

By Greg Daugherty and Porter Wright on
Seemingly unfazed by the recent setbacks with the Association Health Plan regulations, the Departments of Treasury, Labor and Health and Human Services have released new health reimbursement (HRA) regulations that could reshape the group health plan landscape by providing employers with potentially cheaper options than traditional group health plan coverage for satisfying Affordable Care Act … Continue Reading

Association health plans: Proposed DOL rules create potential opportunity for associations and small employers

By Porter Wright on
On Jan. 5, 2018, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a proposed rule that would make it easier for small businesses to join together to purchase health insurance. This is not a completely new concept. Unrelated small employers can join together to purchase health insurance today. Under current guidance, however, these types of plans are … Continue Reading

IRS Notice 2016-4 extends due dates for 2015 information reporting under the ACA

By Porter Wright on
The IRS yesterday released IRS Notice 2016-4, which extends the due dates for certain 2015 information reporting under the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”). This notice relates to due dates for the 2015 information reporting requirements (i.e., both furnishing to individuals and filing with the IRS) for insurers and self-insuring employers. Specifically, Notice 2016-4 extends the … Continue Reading

The Supreme Court rescues Obamacare one more time

By Porter Wright on
President Obama might want to invite Chief Justice John Roberts to the White House for a “thank you” dinner! The United States Supreme Court today issued an opinion in King v. Burwell that upholds the Obama administration’s interpretation of language in the Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) that concluded government subsidies to underwrite the cost … Continue Reading

Supreme Court revisits Obamacare

By Porter Wright on
Veteran observers of the United States Supreme Court regularly and wisely advise not to make too much out of the questions asked by the justices during oral argument as a predictor of ultimate outcome.  Having said that, the first reaction of those who follow these oral arguments (often including some of those veteran observers) invariably … Continue Reading

Obamacare takes an unexpected hit!

By Porter Wright on
A federal Court of Appeals panel in Washington, D.C. today released a decision that, if upheld, would strike down one of the main pillars of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) and in the minds of many observers lead to unpredictable consequences. In a 2-1 decision in Halbig v. Burwell, the three-judge federal appeals panel reversed a … Continue Reading

The first progeny of the Hobby Lobby decision

By Porter Wright on
As we noted in a previous blog entry, the United States Supreme Court recently ruled in two companion cases, Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores and Conestoga Wood Specialties v. Sebelius (referred to hereafter as Hobby Lobby) , that regulations issued under the Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) that compel closely held corporations to provide contraception … Continue Reading

The health care reform shared responsibility excise tax missing link: employer rights

By Porter Wright on
Back in 2011, I mentioned a missing link in the health care reform Section 4980H shared responsibility employer excise tax scheme. 42 U.S.C. Section 18081 requires the establishment of an appeals and redeterminations process for penalty assessments, and acknowledges a problem with the provision itself. It requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to … Continue Reading

Corporations get religion — and maybe lose contraception coverage

By Porter Wright on
The United States Supreme Court held in a 5-4 decision issued on Monday that regulations issued under the Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) that compel closely held corporations to provide contraception coverage for their employees violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (the “RFRA”). Two cases actually are involved in this opinion, including Sebelius v. … Continue Reading

The $36,500 per employee, per year, per mistake PPACA penalty

By Porter Wright on
And the gloves are off! The IRS has threatened employers with PPACA penalties of $36,500 per employee, per year, nondeductible. Makes those $2,000 and $3,000 penalties look like small potatoes, right? The targets of this particular Q&A are employers who maintain “non-integrated” “employer payment plans.” These are new terms, which include reimbursement plans such as … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit retiree health care case to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court

By Porter Wright on
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a Sixth Circuit retiree health care case, M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett. The issue is: Whether, when construing collective bargaining agreements in Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA) cases, courts should presume that silence concerning the duration of retiree health-care benefits means the parties intended those benefits … Continue Reading

Health reimbursement accounts failed to satisfy collective bargaining agreement provisions: is the Sixth Circuit handcuffing employers?

By Porter Wright on
We have a new Sixth Circuit decision regarding “vested” retiree health care benefits that is likely to be of concern to many employers, United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing Energy, Allied Industrial And Service Workers International Union, AFL-CIO-CLC v. Kelsey-Hayes Company. You may recall that in the last significant Sixth Circuit decision on this … Continue Reading

Join us April 29 for our Employment Relations Seminar: Keeping Your Workplace Healthy, Wealthy and Wise

By Porter Wright on
  Join Porter Wright’s Employment Group for our Spring Employment Relations Seminar -Keeping Your Workforce Healthy, Wealthy and Wise – on Tuesday, April 29, 2014 in Cleveland. Topics include: Keeping Pace: Learn the Latest in Employment Law presented by Tracey L. Turnbull De-Stress: Effectively Managing Mental Stress Claims in Workers’ Compensation Cases presented by Fred … Continue Reading

NLRB classification of athletes as employees highlights a health care reform land mine

By Porter Wright on
Employers have always been concerned about the potential for worker reclassification, but health care reform and a recent NLRB decision take this issue to an entirely new level.  “Large” employers who offer coverage will be required to offer coverage to “all” of their “full-time workers,” defined as at least 95% of employees working 30 hours … Continue Reading

October 1, 2013 Health Care Reform Exchange Notice Deadline for All Employers Subject to the FLSA

By Porter Wright on
As a reminder, under health care reform, all employers to which the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) applies, not just “applicable large employers,” are required to distribute health care exchange notices to their employees by October 1, 2013. Given that health care reform is chock full of big penalties, it puzzled me that I couldn’t find a penalty for failure to provide this notice. Last week, the DOL published Frequently Asked Questions that confirmed, “there is no fine or penalty under the law for failing to provide the notice.” Nonetheless, health care reform involves so many inter-related statutes, pages of guidance, government agencies and interested parties that we encourage employers to comply to demonstrate good faith, and to avoid potential alternative theories of liability.… Continue Reading

Health Care Reform Surprise: Obama Administration Delays Enforcement of Employer Mandate For One Year

By Porter Wright on
In a surprising but generally welcome move, the Obama administration has moved to delay the enforcement of the employer mandate to provide health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”), which otherwise was scheduled to go into effect in 2014. This delay in enforcement formally was announced in a statement released July 2, … Continue Reading

Health Care Reform Update: Planning Now for Significant 2014 Deadlines

By Porter Wright on
The Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) makes sweeping changes to the current health insurance landscape. Though some of these changes are already in force, the most significant provisions of the ACA become effective on January 1, 2014. This includes the "pay or play mandate," the individual coverage mandate, and certain significant taxes and fees that are imposed on employers.… Continue Reading

Employer Excise Taxes Under Health Care Reform – Contraceptive Coverage Mandate, New Proposed Regulations and HHS Due Process and Privacy Report Deadline Was 1/1/13

By Porter Wright on
As you may have heard, the U.S Supreme Court denied Hobby Lobby an injunction against the PPACA contraceptive coverage mandate. Employers who maintain health care plans are required to pay excise taxes for failure to comply with a particular aspect of the law, regardless of whether coverage is affordable. … Continue Reading
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