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HIPAA Compliance and Prospective and Existing Clients ( September 2003 )
Professional Employer Organizations ("PEOs") often encounter health information pertaining to the employees of prospective clients, or to their co-employees. This article explores how HIPAA's new privacy rules impact PEOs both in the client in-take process, and after the PEO has become a co-employer. -
Employers Have New USERRA Obligations ( March 2005 )
President Bush recently signed the Veterans Benefit Improvement Act (VBIA) of 2004. One of VBIA's key provisions allows employees on military leave to continue coverage in their employer's health plan for up to 24 months instead of 18, as before. Another key provision requires employers to annually provide employees with notice of their rights, benefits and obligations under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). -
IRS Authorizes Grace Periods for Employer-Sponsored FSA Accounts ( June 2005 )
On May 18, 2005 the IRS issued Notice 2005-42 which significantly impacts reimbursement deadlines for health care expenses under employer-sponsored flexible spending accounts (FSA's). FSAs are an employee benefit by which employees voluntarily set aside a portion of their pre-tax compensation to cover anticipated health care expenses for the following year. The IRS previously utilized a "use it or lose it rule" whereby employees automatically forfeited any unused monies remaining in their FSA accounts at the end of the plan year. -
IRS Allows Employers to Provide Grace Period For Flexible Spending Accounts ( August 2005 )
On May 18, 2005, the Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2005-42 which permits employers to adopt a grace period of up to 2½ months after a plan year for participants in flexible spending accounts ("FSAs") to use FSA funds which were unused during that plan year. -
HR's Role in HIPAA Security Compliance ( May 2005 )
Suffering "HIPAA Privacy Rule fatigue," many human resources and benefits professionals have passed the compliance baton for the HIPAA Security Rule to their colleagues in the Information Technology (IT) Department. Letting IT grapple on its own with the HIPAA Security Rule most likely will mean that your organization will not meet the April 21, 2005, compliance deadline for covered health plans with annual receipts exceeding $5 million, or even the April 21, 2006 compliance deadline for covered health plans falling below that threshold. -
The HIPAA Privacy Rule: Is Your Health Plan Ready? ( March 2005 )
HIPAA was intended to apply only to electronic records and not paper records. However, the final rule indicates that the HIPAA privacy rule applies to "all individually identifiable health information transmitted or maintained by a covered entity regardless of form." -
New Rules Defining Dependents Will Impact Employee Benefits ( March 2005 )
Congress recently passed the Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004 (“WFTRA”). This new law amended the definition of dependent found in Section 152 of the Internal Revenue Code. The law takes effect for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2005. -
Health Savings Accounts — Are They The Cure For Employers' High Medical Plan Costs? ( September 2004 )
Employers are searching for new medical plan options to allow them to better manage runaway medical costs, which have in recent years outstripped inflation. Employers are also searching for vehicles that will force employees to become better consumers of medical services and that will permit employees to take some responsibility for their retiree medical costs. -
EEOC Announces Relief For Employers Providing Retiree Health Benefits ( July 2004 )
On April 22, 2004, the EEOC approved a final rule that would permit employers to provide lesser benefits to retirees who are eligible for Medicare than to retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare. This final rule would provide employers the opportunity to maintain certain retiree health programs, such as Medicare bridge programs and Medicare carve-out programs, with reduced risk of violating the EEOC's policy on the Age Discrimination in Employment Act ("ADEA"). -
The popularity of medical FSAs and the prevalence of EAPs means that many employers, even those with fully-insured medical, dental, and vision plans, will need to address compliance with the HIPAA Privacy Rule before the April 14, 2004 compliance deadline. Employers who have failed to bring their medical FSA or their FSA into compliance with the HIPAA Privacy Rule may then discover a costly Achilles' heel.
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