On July 20, 2023, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury (Departments) released a letter calling on employers who sponsor group health plans to extend their HIPAA special enrollment periods beyond 60 days for individuals who lose coverage under Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
Work from home is often associated with increased job flexibility and efficiency, but employees should also consider their self-discipline to succeed in these arrangements. Self-discipline describes your ability to focus on a task or goal to accomplish something. This skill can take many forms in the workplace. Generally, self-disciplined employees are consistent, responsible, persistent and ambitious. They’re able to complete both exciting and uninteresting tasks on time and have a productive mindset.
Self-discipline is crucial for all workers to succeed and accomplish their goals. However, it’s even more important for remote employees, who often have less managerial oversight and more potential distractions than in-office workers.
Remote work comes with unique challenges, including additional cyber security risks. As artificial intelligence (AI) use becomes more popular among businesses and individuals, remote workers must be aware of the potential risks associated with using this technology. Although there are cyber security benefits to using AI, such as streamlined threat detection and the ability to analyze vast quantities of data, it also has the potential to be weaponized by cyber criminals. These threat actors have already begun leveraging AI technology to seek out their targets more easily, launch attacks at greater speeds and in larger volumes, and wreak further havoc amid these attacks.
To meet Health Plan Compliance Rules, group health plans typically fall into two categories: fully insured or self-insured.
- A fully insured health plan moves most of the financial risk away from the employer and places it on the insurance carrier. An employer’s liability for health care expenses is limited to its insurance premiums.
- A self-insured health plan places most of the financial risk on the employer. Instead of paying fixed premiums to an insurance company, the employer pays for medical claims as they are processed throughout the year. Although they are designed differently, level funded health plans are generally considered self-insured for compliance purposes.
The U.S. Supreme Court issued several consequential decisions addressing religious accommodations, the Biden administration’s student debt relief plan and affirmative action as its most recent term ends. These cases’ rulings will likely have major impacts on employers, altering established labor and employment laws and workplace practices. The following article provides additional information regarding these decisions.
On May 16, 2023, the IRS released Revenue Procedure 2023-23 to provide the inflation-adjusted limits for health savings accounts (HSAs) and high deductible health plans (HDHPs) for 2024. The IRS is required to publish these limits by June 1 of each year.
These HSA-HDHP limits include:
- The maximum HSA contribution limit;
- The minimum deductible amount for HDHPs; and
- The maximum out-of-pocket expense limit for HDHPs.
These limits vary based on whether an individual has self-only or family coverage under an HDHP.
Employees face not only the ever-changing demands of their professional lives but also the constant challenges of managing their personal finances. In fact, a 2023 survey by professional services network PwC revealed that 57% of full-time employees say finances are the top cause of stress in their lives. The increasing cost of living, unexpected expenses, medical debt and economic uncertainties take a toll on employees’ well-being, impacting their overall productivity and job satisfaction. Financial stress impacts many aspects of employee well-being, such as mental health, sleep and self-esteem.
Aiming to promote responsible innovation in automated systems — including those marketed as artificial intelligence or AI — four federal agencies issued a joint statement on AI pledging to monitor the development and use of these systems and vigorously enforce anti-discrimination laws as they become more common. The agencies issued the statement on April 25, 2023.
What You Should Know About Ozempic. Ozempic is an injectable prescription medication to help adults with Type 2 diabetes manage their blood sugar. Although it’s not approved as a weight-loss drug, people without Type 2 diabetes have begun using Ozempic off-label for this purpose. While some health care providers may be prescribing Ozempic for patients whose goal is to lose weight, the drug’s manufacturer does not promote, suggest or encourage off-label use of this medication.
Employers are increasingly looking to consumer driven health plans to help soften the blow of continually rising health carecosts. Depending on the model, consumer driven health plans typically include health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), flexible spending accounts (FSAs) or health savings accounts (HSAs).
Consumer driven health plans generally increase employees’ stake in their own health care costs. In most cases, a consumer driven health plan covers a wide range of medical expenses, but also includes more cost-sharing for participants (for example, higher deductibles). Some plans incorporate an HRA, health FSA or HSA to help employees pay for their out-of-pocket medical expenses on a tax-free basis. This article provides some basic information about the similarities and differences when comparing HRAs, FSAs and HSAs.