February 28th – March 4th, 2022
Each week, you’ll find specially curated news articles to keep you up to date on the ever-evolving world of insurance and risk management. The articles are divided out between items relevant to Property & Casualty, Employee Benefits/Human Resources, and Compliance. We’ve included brief summaries of each item as well as a link to the original articles.
PROPERTY & CASUALTY
Having a female doctor improves women’s chances for workers’ comp: study
“Women injured on the job have a better chance of qualifying for workers’ compensation disability payments and receiving higher payouts when a female doctor evaluates their claim, according to a recent study.” Full Article
– Safety+Health
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, HUMAN RESOURCES, & COMPLIANCE
Fifth Circuit Reverses Denial of Preliminary Injunction in Vaccine Mandate Case “A split panel in the Fifth Circuit is the first appellate court to signal certain private employer mandates could be vulnerable. The opinion reverses the district court’s denial of a preliminary injunction against the airline’s mandatory vaccine program.” Full Article – Littler
COVID-19 Testing Provider Sues Plans and TPAs for Violating Group Health Plan Coverage Mandate “In a footnote to its opinion, the court acknowledged the plan’s assertion that the price of the testing was too high and noted that its ruling did not foreclose a counterclaim challenging the propriety of the pricing.” Full Article – Thomson Reuters / EBIA
March 1 Deadlines for Group Health Plans “An employer with a group health plan that provides prescription drug coverage to Medicare-eligible individuals must make an annual disclosure to CMS within 60 days after the beginning of the plan year — no later than March 1, 2022 for calendar-year plans. The plan must report small HIPAA breaches occurring in 2021 no later than March 1, 2022. A ‘small’ breach is one affecting 500 or fewer individuals.” Full Article – Venable LLP
The Clock Is Ticking: HIPAA Small Breach Notifications Due March 1st “Covered entities must report small breaches to OCR no later than 60 days after the end of the calendar year in which the small breaches were discovered. Steps to take for notifications [1] Designating a person within the covered entity [2] Preparing the contents of the notification in advance [3] Printing out and retaining a ‘receipt’ of the filing of the notification [4] Verifying that the covered entity has appropriate documentation in place.” Full Article – Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
Tolling of Important Health and Welfare and Retirement Plan Deadlines Extended Again Due to COVID-19 “On February 18, 2022, President Biden again formally extended the COVID-19 National Emergency. Certain deadlines continue to be tolled for one year (or, if earlier, 60 days from the end of the National Emergency). For Participants: [1] COBRA qualifying event and disability extension notices [2] COBRA election [3] COBRA premium payments [4] HIPAA special enrollment period [5] Benefit claims and appeals [6] External review [7] Perfecting a request for external review. For Plan Administrators: COBRA Election Notice.” Full Article – Groom Law Group
Recent Guidance on Implementing the No Surprises Act “The No Surprises Act was enacted in December 2020 and went into effect on January 1, 2022. With just a year between enactment and the law’s effective date, the Biden administration moved swiftly to implement the law by issuing several interim final rules, one proposed rule, and guidance. But federal officials have not stopped there and have continued to issue new guidance, answer questions, and establish new processes. This article summarizes recent federal guidance on the No Surprises Act.” Full Article – Health Affairs
STATE & INTERNATIONAL COMPLIANCE
In addition to the RISQ Review, RISQ Consulting also provides a resource that features changes and updates to State and International Compliance measures. We’ve included brief summaries of each item below, and also provided links to the original articles if you’d like to read further.
New York
New York State Employers Freed From Mask Mandate
“On February 10, 2022, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul lifted the statewide indoor mask-or-vaccine mandate that had been in effect since December 13, 2021. This mandate required that all persons entering a business’s premises wear a mask, unless all persons were vaccinated against COVID-19.” Full Article
– Phillips Lytle
California
California Reactivates COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave
“The new legislation appears to be similar to the 2021 CSPSL, but also contains major differences regarding the characterization of the amount of hours allotted, regular rate calculations, and wage statement obligations.” Full Article
– Ford & Harrison
Illinois
First Deadline Approaching for New Illinois Equal Pay Act Requirements
“On January 25, 2022, the Illinois Department of Labor (“IDOL”) issued notices to 625 Illinois businesses to inform them that they have until May 25, 2022 to submit their Equal Pay Registration Certificate (“Certificate”) application as required under the amendments to the Illinois Equal Pay Act (“IEPA”).” Full Article
– Proskauer
Pennsylvania
Court Approves $4.2 Million Settlement in Suit for Unpaid Overtime
“A Pennsylvania federal judge approved a $4.2 million settlement between Pittsburgh-based grocery chain Giant Eagle and employees who were “team leaders” at its grocery stores and GetGo convenience stores in Ohio and Pennsylvania. Team leaders made allegations of misclassification and unpaid overtime in violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and state wage laws.” Full Article
– Hall Benefits Law
Virginia
Virginia’s Republican Lawmakers Seek to Reverse State’s Overtime Wage Act
“During the November 2021 elections, Republicans regained a 52-48 majority in the Virginia House of Delegates and a Republican Governor, Glenn Youngkin, was elected. Now, although the Senate remains under control of the Democrats by a three-member margin, Republican law makers in both houses are seeking to undo the Virginia Overtime Wage Act.” Full Article
– Jackson Lewis
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