Read various news articles and updates related to employee benefits and group insurance from United Benefits Advisors.

Deep Dive into Qualifying Events and Special Enrollment Periods Attend this month's webinar to learn how the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regulates employee benefit contribution levels and the timing of enrollment elections.
DOL Announces 2024 Penalties for Health & Welfare Plan Compliance Errors
FAQs on Implementation of Transparency in Coverage Regulations (ACA Part 61)
February saw a potential industry-changing lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and its plan fiduciaries asserting a breach of fiduciary duties and mismanagement of Johnson & Johnson's prescription drug benefits program, costing its ERISA plans and employees millions of dollars in the form of higher payments for prescription drugs, as well as higher premiums, deductibles, coinsurance, and copays, resulting in lower wages or limited wage growth. A UnitedHealthcare company, Change Healthcare, was the target of a cyberattack potentially impacting more than 100 million members. Instructions for this June's RxDC reporting have been updated, moving certain data from vendor aggregating into plan sponsor responsibility. The 2025 Employer Shared Responsibility indexed penalties have been released.
Under Section 204 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA), referred to as "The No Surprises Act" (NSA), all employer-sponsored health plans must satisfy certain transparency requirements by reporting annual prescription drug and health care spending data (often referred to as the Prescription Drug Data Collection (RxDC) report). The RxDC report is not only about prescription drugs. It also collects information about spending on health care services and premiums paid by members and employers. The instructions for 2024 announce the end to the non-enforcement period for the disaggregated reporting requirement, meaning some group health plans may need or want to report data at the employer level rather than relying on aggregated reporting by pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) or other vendors, including third party administrators (TPAs) and administrative services only providers (ASOs) as permitted in prior years. Plan sponsors need to prepare now and watch for information requests from vendors assisting with their RxDC reporting.
HR Elements | February 2024 1. Dear HR Manager 2. Workplace Culture | Cultivating a Culture of Connection 3. Employee Benefits | Adapting Benefits for Generation X's Distinct Needs