The Department of Labor Sends Electronic Disclosure Plan to the Office of Management and Budget

As I have discussed previously on Dickinson Wright’s All Things HR Blog, the Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) disclosure regulations with respect to electronic disclosure of ERISA plan-related documents and notices are woefully out of date, not having been updated in more than fifteen years. For example, the basic DOL rule continues to be that employers …

High Deductible Health Plans Allowed to Provide Additional Preventive Care Benefits for Individuals with Chronic Conditions

A high deductible health plan (“HDHP”) is not permitted to pay for medical expenses until the plan’s deductible has been satisfied, with the exception of medical expenses incurred for preventive care.  Preventive care did not generally include expenses for any service or benefit intended to treat an existing illness, injury or condition. In a welcome …

Increasing Access to Retirement Security

On August 31, 2018 President Trump issued Executive Order 13847, titled “Strengthening Retirement Security in America”. This Executive Order directed the Secretary of Labor to: Clarify and expand the circumstances under which small and midsize businesses may sponsor or adopt a multi-employer plan (MEP) as a retirement savings option for employees; and Increase retirement security …

“Well I’m Gone to Detox Mansion”* – What Employers Should be Mindful of When an Employee Asks for Time to Enter Rehabilitation for Substance Abuse

From our perspective we appear to be experiencing an uptick in the reporting of employees testing positive for controlled substances, whether how to address positive tests for cannabis in those states in which it is legal to use either medically or recreationally, or other substances.  We cannot quantify this uptick, but we have seen clients …