January 3 – 7, 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
2022 Set to be “Hangover” Year From 2021’s Cyber Epidemic
“Much of the cyber turmoil that plagued the world in 2021 will continue into 2022, with individuals remaining the top source of risk in an irrevocably online society, according to Experian’s annual Data Breach Industry Forecast for 2022. ‘In a sense, 2022 will be a sort of hangover from 2021’s cyberdemic,’ commented breach resolution firm in its report. ‘Since so much of our lives now take place online, the digitization of society means that our infrastructure, institutions and personal lives are more exposed than ever to malicious actors. Big institutions remain vulnerable, despite spending millions on security, and cybercriminals have plenty of opportunities to exploit weak technologies.’ ” Full Article
– Zywave
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS, HUMAN RESOURCES, & COMPLIANCE
To Deduct or Not to Deduct: Washington Cares Act Dilemma Requires Employers to Make a Choice This January “It makes sense to collect the premium given that the Act is currently the law and it requires employers to deduct premiums beginning on January 1, 2022. If the legislature changes the law, employers will likely need to refund those premiums quickly or risk a wrongful wage withholding claim. All signs seem to point to a change in the law, or even repeal, and the lack of civil penalties may make the risk of not following the current law more attractive.” Full Article – Fisher Phillips
IRS Announces PCORI Fee Amounts for the 2022 Reporting Period “The original PCORI fee assessments under the ACA were scheduled to end after September 30, 2019, but Congress extended these fees for another ten years, until at least September 30, 2029. The updated PCORI fee is now $2.79 per covered life for all plan years ending on or after October 1, 2021, and before October 1, 2022, up from $2.66 for the prior period.” Full Article – Jackson Lewis P.C.
No Surprises Act Implementation: What to Expect in 2022 “Monitoring of the law’s impact, as well as compliance, will be accomplished in various ways. Data reporting by IDR entities will provide some information. Annual health plan audits conducted by federal agencies can also yield information about prices charged and paid for surprise bills. State systems may also yield important data as to how the law is working. To a large extent, oversight and enforcement will rely on complaints.” Full Article – Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation
Premium Increase Upon Retirement Was a COBRA Qualifying Event “The appellate court agreed that the employee’s placement on unpaid leave was not a qualifying event, explaining that there was a reduction of hours … but not a corresponding loss of health coverage. Because the retirement (a termination of employment for COBRA purposes) resulted in a higher premium for the same health coverage (because it was now considered retiree coverage, the employee experienced a loss of coverage, resulting in a COBRA qualifying event.” Full Article – Thomson Reuters / EBIA
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.
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