On August 3, 2022, retirement plan sponsors welcomed IRS Notice 2022-33 (“Notice”), which extends the deadline for adopting amendments to comply with the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (“SECURE Act”), Section 104 of the Bipartisan American Miners Act (“Miners Act”), and certain provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”).  For most plans, the amendment deadline is delayed three years to December 31, 2025, but some…

The recently published final regulation implementing last year’s massive multiemployer pension plan bailout contains a very thin silver lining, but overall, more bad news for already overburdened employers. Last year, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) issued its interim final rule on the process for eligible troubled Multiemployer Pension Plans (MEPPs) to apply for and obtain Special Financial Assistance (SFA) under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA).  On July 8, 2022, the PBGC…

In a decision of great import to the New York City hospitality industry, a federal court has held that a New York City statute mandating payment of severance benefits to certain covered hotel service employees was not preempted by ERISA. RHC Operating, LLC v. City of New York, 1:21-cv-09322-JPO (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 30, 2022). Background Like other major centers of tourism, the hotel industry in New York City was decimated by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in…

Last year about this time, we wrote of how far we had come collectively in the world of employee benefits roughly one year after the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic.  We reveled at how we kept on keeping on, what we were able to accomplish in the face of unprecedented everything, and admirably pivot with every new challenge.  Now, two years out, and with some additional resources in our benefits and public health toolkits, we…

The normal difficulties that employers have adhering to the technical requirements of COBRA have been exacerbated during the past two years as COBRA rules were changed to recognize the complications accompanying the COVID-19 pandemic.  This added complexity is particularly worrisome as an employer’s simple oversight in administering COBRA can result in ERISA penalties, an excise tax, unintended self-insurance of medical claims, and litigation, including class-action lawsuits. To better mitigate their exposure, employers should know these…

As employers and insurers continue to establish programs to enable participants in group health plans to receive at-home COVID-19 tests at no cost, even without a prescription, the Department of Labor (DOL) has issued additional guidance and an updated FAQ providing further clarification and flexibility to insurers and plan sponsors in providing coverage to eligible individuals.  This additional guidance is effective February 4, 2022. As a recap, effective January 15, 2022, all insurers and…

In fulfillment of President Biden’s promise to make at-home COVID tests more available for all of us, two significant action steps have now occurred: Every U.S. household has access to free at-home COVID-19 tests. As of January 18, 2022, any individual with a residence in the United States may request up to four (4) at-home COVID test kits.  There is no cost to register or for the kits themselves. At-home COVID-19 testing is available…