Health and Welfare Plans Archives - Page 36 of 129

New York State Department of Labor Publishes Standard for Prevention of Airborne Infectious Diseases

by Lindsay Ditlow and Abigail M. Kagan | Jul 15, 2021 | Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

On July 6, 2021, the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) published its Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Standard (Standard), as required under the New York Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act. Under the Standard, employers with worksites located in New York are required to either adopt the NYSDOL’s model exposure prevention plan or develop their own alternative prevention plan no later than August 5, 2021, and circulate their plan to employees no later than September 4, 2021.

According to McDermott’s Lindsay Ditlow, Christina S. Dumitrescu and Abigail M. Kagan, employers must adopt a prevention plan but are not required to implement the plan until the New York State Commissioner of Health (Commissioner) designates an airborne disease as a “highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to the public health.” As of the date of this alert, the Commissioner has not issued any such designation so employers need not implement their plans just yet.

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Drug Prices Are Prime Target in Biden’s Competition Order

by Emily J. Cook | Jul 14, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans

President Biden’s July 9, 2021, Executive Order—which seeks to increase competition throughout the American economy—takes aim at prescription drug prices. In this article, published in Law360, McDermott partner Emily Jane Cook says Biden’s focus on drug prices is unsurprising given the “significant public interest and frustration” with drug costs.

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COVID-19 Vaccine Q&A

by Joseph K. Mulherin, Kathleen Quinn, Troy Van Dongen and McDermott Will & Emery | Jul 7, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

Can employers mandate some employees get the vaccine and not others? Is there an obligation to consider requiring a COVID-19 test before coming back to work? What are the potential workers’ compensation claims relating to possible adverse reactions to a vaccine? Should employers mandate vaccinations?

In this article, McDermott partners Carole Spink, Joseph Mulherin, Kathleen Quinn and Troy Van Dongen answer common employer questions about the COVID-19 vaccine.

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Ruling Gives Ammunition in Fights Over Health Insurer Clawbacks

by McDermott Will & Emery | Jul 1, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans

A recent ruling from a New Jersey federal district court gives ammunition to providers fighting to stop insurers from engaging in cross-plan offsetting, a common billing practice where health insurers attempt to claw back overpaid claim money from one patient by withholding payment from another patient in a different health plan.

The ruling—which found that the practice violates the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)—could lead to more lawsuits and changes to plan documents. McDermott partner Judith Wethall said in a recent Bloomberg Law article the ruling was more significant than the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit’s 2019 ruling in Peterson v. UnitedHealth Group, Inc.

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Global Employment Law Update

by Lindsay Ditlow, Michael J. Sheehan and Mark Meredith | Jun 30, 2021 | Benefit Controversies, Employee Benefits, Employment, Fiduciary and Investment Issues, Health and Welfare Plans, Labor, Privacy and Data Security, Retirement Plans

Employment law continues to evolve, and it can be a challenge amid an ever-changing landscape of local employment laws for human resources executives and employment counsel at multinational businesses to maintain a consistent global corporate culture.

McDermott’s Global Employment Law Update brings you the key highlights from across Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin and North America. Developed in collaboration with peer firms operating in more than 50 countries, this resource guide contains summaries of the laws and significant court decisions that impacted employers and employees all over the world. It includes:

COVID-19 legislative updates
Remote work and telecommuting policies
Data privacy protections
Minimum wage and salary compensation updates
Changes to labor protection laws
Sexual harassment modifications

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Business Leaders Must Confront the Corporate Impact of the CDC Mask Controversy

by Michael W. Peregrine | Jun 17, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

When the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) relaxed its mask guidance in May, the news caught many people—especially corporate America—off guard.

In this Forbes article, McDermott partner Michael W. Peregrine argues that companies need to provide stakeholders with clear health and safety messaging in light of mandates from state and local governments.

“Companies can ill-afford to drift in the wind of confusion and controversy, and they can’t be blindsided by further guidance change should there be an increase in reported cases or should variants, like those first found in India, surface in the United States,” Peregrine writes.

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How to Apply the IRS’s COBRA Premium Subsidy Guidance

by Jacob Mattinson, Sarah Raaii, Teal Trujillo and McDermott Will & Emery | Jun 9, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans

On May 18, 2021, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued much-anticipated Notice 2021-31 (the Notice) regarding the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) premium subsidy provisions of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). Under ARPA, a 100% COBRA premium subsidy and additional COBRA enrollment rights are available to certain assistance eligible individuals (AEIs) during the period beginning on April 1, 2021, and ending on September 30, 2021.

The US Department of Labor (DOL) has previously issued model notices and a set of FAQs regarding the COBRA premium subsidy. The IRS has now issued additional FAQs in the Notice that apply to employers and plan sponsors.

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Access to Digital Health Applications and Digital Care Applications in Germany

by Stephan Rau and Karolin Hiller | Jun 8, 2021 | Digital Health, Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Privacy and Data Security

The German federal cabinet recently approved the draft law on the digital modernization of healthcare and nursing care. The draft has been criticized for not taking into account lessons learned from the implementation of the 2019 digital health applications (DiGAs) law.

In this International News article, McDermott Will & Emery partner Dr. Stephan Rau and McDermott alumna Dr. Karolin Hiller provide insight into the planned German regulations on DiGAs and digital care applications (DiPAs).

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VIDEO: COVID-19 Vaccination and Five Key Considerations for Healthcare Employers

by Paul McGrath and McDermott Will & Emery | Jun 1, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Employment, Health and Welfare Plans, Privacy and Data Security

The question of whether or not to make vaccinations mandatory for workers is being considered by employers globally, particularly those in the healthcare sector. In this video, McDermott Will & Emery partner Carole A. Spink outlines some of the most common employer-related vaccine questions, including incentives and data privacy concerns. Spink and McDermott partner Paul McGrath recently also wrote for McDermott’s International News about this topic.

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VIDEO: Transfers of Health Data from the European Union to the United States in a Post-Schrems II World

by Amy C. Pimentel and Romain Perray | May 27, 2021 | Employee Benefits, Health and Welfare Plans, Privacy and Data Security

In this video, McDermott Will & Emery partner Amy C. Pimentel explains the significance of health data transfers from the European Union to the United States in a post-Schrems II world. The recent Schrems II ruling invalidated the EU-US Privacy Shield, holding that the US legal regime on access to personal data does not contain adequate limitations and safeguards. Pimentel and McDermott’s Romain Perray recently also wrote for McDermott’s International News about this topic.

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