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2022 State Individual Mandates and Reporting Requirements

In the last two years, some jurisdictions have enacted their own individual mandate, similar to the repealed federal individual mandate that requires residents to have minimum essential coverage. These mandates also include various reporting requirements for employers to help the state reconcile which individuals were covered.

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Washington Long-Term Care Services and Supports Act – Payroll Tax for Washington Workers Delayed Until July 2023

Background Washington state passed the Long-Term Care (LTC) Services and Supports Act in 2019. This bill quickly became known as the “LTC payroll tax law” as it requires Washington workers to pay a tax of 0.58% on W-2 payroll amounts to fund the state’s LTC program. Employers do not pay the tax; it is funded […]

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Strategic Business Perpetuation – A Look at ESOPs from the Surety’s Perspective

Inevitably, every business owner will have to address the question of, “What’s next?” This can be a complicated and difficult question to answer when it comes to perpetuating a business. Business owners these days have enough on their plates as they navigate an ever-changing and demanding business landscape.

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Supreme Court Blocks OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard For Employers

The Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has issued a stay that effectively blocks the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) which would have required employers with 100 or more employees to implement a workplace vaccine or testing requirement. At the same time, the court allowed the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) vaccination mandate for certain health care workers to move forward.

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What is Fiduciary Liability, and Does My Organization Need It?

When I talk to clients about fiduciary liability, many assume that I am referring to their ERISA bond, which is actually crime coverage protecting a plan from fraudulent activities and theft of assets, and a requirement of ERISA plans. A fiduciary liability policy provides much different coverage than an ERISA bond without any overlap in coverage.

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Guidance Released for Health Plan Coverage of Over-The-Counter COVID-19 Tests

On January 10, 2022, the Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services (HHS), and Treasury (“The Departments”) released Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Part 51, in response to the Biden Administration’s directive to issue guidance requiring group health care plans and insurers to provide coverage of over-the-counter (OTC) in-home COVID-19 diagnostic tests.

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IRS Releases Updated PCORI Fees

In Notice 2022-4, the IRS provided the adjusted PCORI fees for plan years ending in October 2021 through September 2022. Employers who sponsored self-funded medical plans that ended sometime during 2021 are required to report and pay the ACA Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fees no later than July 31, 2022.

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Court Rules OSHA Vaccination Mandate
Emergency Temporary Standard Can Move Forward

The Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has overturned an earlier court ruling that had blocked OSHA’s vaccine mandate Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). The new ruling means that private employers with at least 100 employees will need to implement a mandatory vaccination program unless the U.S. Supreme Court intervenes.

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W-2 Health Insurance Reporting Review

It is close to that time of year again when large employers need to remember to include the cost of health care coverage in employee W-2s. The ACA requires employers to report the “aggregate cost” of certain types of employer provided health coverage on an employee’s W-2.

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2021 Employer Reporting Update– Permanent Extension to Provide Employee Forms and End of Transition Relief for Reporting Errors

The IRS has released the 2021 Forms 1094 and 1095, and proposed regulations that permanently change the deadline for employers to provide copies of the Form 1095 to employees. The proposed rules also eliminate the IRS’s “good faith” penalty relief for reporting errors, making accurate reporting more important than ever.

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Keeping Up With Clinical Risk Management:
2020’s Most Challenging Joint Commission Standard

Each year, The Joint Commission (TJC) releases their findings on the requirements most frequently identified as “not compliant” during surveys of various accreditation programs. Although fewer surveys were conducted over 2020 due to COVID-19, TJC was able to identify key requirements where healthcare organizations failed to comply with National Patient Safety Goals (NPSGs) and accreditation standards.

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Third-Party Storage Facility Product Risk Management

Just-in-time inventory management is a strategy employed by many businesses to decrease storage costs with much success. Now with ongoing supply chain disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations are once again looking to increasingly warehouse essential items to provide a buffer.

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