On March 12, 2021, the DOL published a proposal to withdraw the independent contractor rule that was finalized by the prior administration and set to take effect on May 7, 2021 (more info on the prior final rule is available in the January 21, 2021 edition of Compliance Corner) .

On March 10, 2021, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). The ARPA includes over $1.9 trillion in COVID-19 relief and contains important updates to certain benefits laws to help employees who have been affected by the pandemic. We will address some of the major benefits-related provisions below.

In Festini-Steele v. ExxonMobil Corporation , No. 20-1052 (10th Cir. 2021), the US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit recently held that a divorce decree can satisfy the ERISA requirements for a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO). As a result, the court determined that a deceased employee’s former spouse was entitled to his life insurance proceeds.

On February 28, 2021, the IRS issued Notice 2021-15, which provides guidance for the benefits-related provisions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA), specifically those related to health FSA and DCAP relief. The IRS also provided new guidance regarding additional mid-year election changes permitted for plan years ending in 2021. The IRS guidance provided in Notice 2021-15 explains that:...

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at HHS released its 2016 – 2017 HIPAA Audits Industry Report, which reviews compliance with HIPAA privacy, security and breach notification rules of certain healthcare entities and business associates. The HITECH Act requires a periodic audit of covered entities and business associates to monitor for HIPAA compliance. Pursuant to this requirement, OCR completed audits of 166 covered entities and 41 business associates in 2016 and 2017.

In Estate of Foster v. Am. Marine Servs. Grp. Benefit Plan, et al. (9th Cir. February 9, 2021), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that an employer’s obligation to notify a participant of life insurance conversion rights is not necessarily satisfied by furnishing an SPD. Rather, ERISA fiduciary obligations may warrant further explanation under the circumstances.

The IRS recently released a revised Form 8994: Employer Credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave and its instructions, which are used to claim the tax credit for providing paid family and medical leave. The credit, which was first available only for tax years beginning in 2018 and 2019 and then later extended through 2020, was further extended through 2025 by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.

On February 3, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit addressed the issue of whether the USERRA requires an employer to provide paid military leave to the same extent that it provides paid leave for other absences. In White v. United Airlines, Inc., No. 19-2546 (7th Cir. 2021), the court held that paid leave fell within the rights and benefits defined by USERRA, reversing the district court’s prior ruling.

In a DOL fact sheet, the agency announced that over $3.1 billion was recovered from enforcement of ERISA by the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) through investigations, complaint resolution and other enforcement efforts for fiscal year 2020.

The DOL and CMS recently released the 2020 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) Enforcement Fact Sheet and Appendix. The fact sheet summarizes regulatory investigations and public inquiries related to MHPAEA during fiscal year (FY) 2020.