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.
