HR Compliance / Legislation Updates

Group Health Plan Guide to COBRA

The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) gives workers and their families who lose their health benefits due to job loss, reduction in hours, death, divorce, and other life events the right to choose to temporarily continue health benefits provided by their group health plan.

This guide includes:

Employers required to offer COBRA
Plan types subject to COBRA
Qualified beneficiaries who should be offered COBRA
Length of COBRA coverage
Required notices
M&A considerations
COBRA premium payments

Download the Group Health Plan Guide to COBRA for a high-level overview of the federal requirements of COBRA continuation coverage.

Do You Know Where Your Employees Are? Managing Taxes for a Growing Remote Workforce

Read Time: 5 Minutes

Remote work remains a growing focus of employers with employees increasingly seeking jobs that permit remote or hybrid work arrangements. Though the flexibility and benefits of remote work for employees is highly desired, it comes with some additional considerations and potential tax complications for the employer... Keep Reading

WEBINAR

Risks and Rewards of Offering Tax-Favored Accounts

Tuesday, May 14, 2024

2PM EST

Attend this month's webinar to learn about the benefits and risks of offering tax-favored accounts.

Gain insights into:

The differences and similarities between flexible spending arrangements (FSAs), health savings accounts (HSAs), and health reimbursement accounts (HRAs)
The applicability of tax-favored accounts to certain group health plans
The benefits and drawbacks of offering tax-favored accounts

Be able to answer these questions:

What are the eligibility rules for these plans?
How does the ACA affect tax-favored accounts?
How do leaves of absence and COBRA affect participation in tax-favored accounts?

Registration Code: UBA410EW

Benefits Check-up: 6 Compliance Issues Affecting Your Clients’ Health

Source: Mineral
Read Time: 6 Minutes

A health plan is more than a product or service; it’s a relationship. All productive and healthy relationships—especially in the benefits space—rely on trust. When an employer extends trust in a broker or insurance carrier to purchase something as critical as healthcare—for people as critical as their workers and families—we’re obligated to raise all factors that affect that purchase... Keep Reading

Question of the Week

Q: Are there questions or topics we should avoid during the hiring process? How can we be sure we don’t accidentally get into one of those topics?

A: You should avoid asking questions that could be viewed as discriminatory or that infringe on a candidate’s privacy. Essentially, you want to avoid any questions that are not directly related to the candidate’s ability to perform the job. These would include questions about race, national origin, citizenship status, religious affiliation, disabilities, pregnancy (or desire to become pregnant in the future), sexual orientation or gender identity, past illnesses (including use of sick leave or filing of workers’ comp claims), age, genetic information, or military service. You should also consider state laws that might apply, like prohibitions on asking for salary history or requesting that a candidate connect with you on social media so you can see what they post.