Employee Benefits
The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury (collectively, the Departments) released new guidance on June 13, 2019 which permit a new type of Health Reimbursement Arrangement, referred to as an Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA).
For employees, achieving financial wellness is a journey…and the workplace can be the starting point
Happy employees are better employees. They're more engaged in their work, more loyal to their employers, and make more meaningful contributions toward company goals. That's not surprising.
Simple Cafeteria Plans were created by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and have been an option for eligible employers since 2011. This type of plan provides eligible employers with an automatic pass for many of the non-discrimination tests that apply to Cafeteria Plans and its component benefits. This is the primary difference between a Simple Cafeteria Plan and other more traditional Cafeteria Plans.
A stand-out strategy for small businesses: Voluntary benefits enable small companies to do more with less
The competition for talent is fierce for small businesses. One in four say the talent pool for their open positions is poor, [1] and the Society for Human Resource Management lists retaining employees as one of the top three issues facing companies with 3-99 employees (along with employee productivity and controlling health insurance costs).[2]
Many employers offer a cash payment to employees who waive health insurance coverage. These cash payments are always taxable to employees who waive health insurance coverage, but did you know employees who elect the health insurance coverage may be subject to paying taxes on the cash payment that they didn’t receive?
Wait! What?
It’s that time of year again. The days are getting shorter, the trees are mostly bare, the holidays are just around the corner and open enrollment is in full swing. If you’re like most benefits professionals, you probably head into open enrollment with a mixture of enthusiasm and dread.
Identity theft, security breaches, and traffic tickets are all things that employees worry about today. When issues like these arise, many people look to an attorney for advice and assistance. Unfortunately, finding an attorney can be stressful and time-consuming—not to mention expensive.
Consumer-Driven Health Plans (CHDPs) have been steadily gaining in popularity for several years now. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) 2018 Annual Benefits Report, 40% of the employers surveyed now offer a CDHP to their employees. SHRM defines a CDHP as a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) or a Health Savings Account (HSA) paired with any underlying medical plan.
While we continue to hear about the rapid growth of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), there is one feature about Health Flexible Spending Accounts (Health FSAs) that keeps some employees enrolled in this type of consumer-driven account (CDA). That’ s the uniform coverage requirement of Health FSAs.
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