Tag: benefits

DOL Supports State Laws Barring Low Stop-loss Attachment Points

State laws barring stop-loss policies with low attachment points are not preempted by ERISA, the U.S. Department of Labor said in Technical Release 2014-01. Ten states have passed such laws, many of them since the advent of the Affordable Care Act. When small groups self-insure, they are subject to proportionately larger impacts from particular expensive claims, have […]

After Pondering King, SCOTUS Stalls on Reform Subsidies

The U.S. Supreme Court has not yet acted on a request to hear a case that seeks to eliminate health insurance premium subsidies in the states that refused to set up their own health insurance exchanges. The High Court discussed whether to hear King v. Burwell on Oct. 31; however, its Nov. 3 orders from […]

Fewer Exec Compensated with Pensions or SERPs

Nearly three-quarters of newly hired corporate executives are now treated like their rank-and-file when it comes to retirement benefits, with few being offered the traditional “top-hat” defined benefit plan that used to be as common as a company car and stock options for senior managers. In making this transition away from DB plans, however, some […]

Third EEOC Wellness Lawsuit Draws Industry Ire

An employer group criticized the latest legal challenge to an employee wellness program filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The commission alleges that Honeywell International, Inc.’s biometric testing incentive for employees and their spouses violates the Americans with Disabilities Act and Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. “This is an outrageous development, and one that […]

It’s PPA Restatement Time! … Wait, What’s That?

By Brandy Cross, Milliman Have you heard about PPA restatements but aren’t sure what’s required? Let’s start with some background on the process, and then describe steps that retirement plan sponsors should take to implement it. All plans that use a preapproved plan document must be restated before April 30, 2016. Failure to amend by this date will […]