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Summary of SECURE Act 2.0 Guidance Released in 2023
Click here for a printer-friendly version. The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE Act 2.0”) was signed into law on December 29, 2022 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Pub. L. 117-328, 136 Stat. 4,459 (2022). SECURE Act 2.0 refers specifically to Division T of this session law. SECURE Act 2.0 builds on the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE Act”) and aims [...]
Lawsuits and Proposed IRS Regulations Conflict on the Use of Forfeitures in Defined Contribution Plans
Click here for a printer-friendly version. For decades IRS regulations and guidance have allowed employers with qualified 401(k) plans wide discretion to decide how to use plan account forfeituresForfeitures may include, for example, non-vested employer contributions in a former employee’s 401(k) account which the employee forfeited after a termination of employment. —including paying plan expenses, reducing an employer’s future contributions, or re-allocating to other participants, in accordance with the plan terms.For example, the House Conference [...]
State PBM Legislation Impacting ERISA Self-Funded Group Health Plans
Click here for a printer-friendly version. State legislatures have increasingly regulated Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) in the wake of Rutledge v. Pharmaceutical Care Management Association,Rutledge v. Pharmaceutical Care Management Ass’n, 592 U.S. 80 (2020). a 2020 Supreme Court decision holding that ERISA did not prevent Arkansas from requiring PBMs to reimburse pharmacies at a rate equal to or greater than a pharmacy’s acquisition cost. More than half of the states have enacted laws regulating [...]
Legal Developments Impacting Retirement Plans 2023 Year-End Update
Click here for a printer-friendly version. Federal courts are conflicted on the elements necessary to prove that ERISA plan fees paid to a service provider are a prohibited transaction. Recent decisions from the Second and Ninth Circuits added to the circuit split, increasing the likelihood the Supreme Court will weigh in.Cunningham v. Cornell University, 86 F.4th 961 (2d Cir. 2023); Bugielski v. AT&T Services, Inc., 76 F.4th 894 (9th Cir. 2023). Regardless, plan fiduciaries [...]
Legal Developments Impacting Health & Welfare Plans 2023 Year-End Update
Click here for a printer-friendly version. A federal district court in Texas previously ruled that the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) lacked authority to determine which services are covered by the Affordable Care Act’s preventive care mandate, and this year the court invalidated all agency action (back to March 23, 2010, and going forward) to implement or enforce preventive care coverage requirements in response to an “A” or “B” rating by the USPSTF.Braidwood [...]
Healthcare Transparency Timing Requirements
Click here for a printer-friendly version. In recent years, Congress and federal agencies have pushed for greater transparency into the cost of healthcare through the passage of the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act and Transparency in Coverage rules.Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Pub. L. No. 116-260, 134 Stat. 1182 (2020); Final Rule on Transparency in Coverage, 85 Fed. Reg. 72,158 (Nov. 12, 2020). Group health plans must now disclose certain healthcare costs and other information to [...]
10th Circuit Invalidates Plan’s Arbitration Term
In the last several years, courts have grappled with ERISA plan terms that require participants to arbitrate their claims on an individual basis. Recently, the 10th Circuit invalidated a plan’s arbitration term in Harrison v. Envision Management Holding because it would have restricted the statutory ERISA remedies participants were otherwise entitled to seek.
Summary of Key Changes Under SECURE Act 2.0
The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (“SECURE 2.0” or “the Act”) was signed into law on December 29, 2022 as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. SECURE 2.0 builds on the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Act of 2019 (the “SECURE Act”) and aims to modernize the retirement system, encourage additional retirement savings, and ease administrative requirements. Summarized below are the Act’s key provisions that apply to retirement plans (note that not all provisions of the Act are addressed). The first section of this bulletin covers changes that impact plan design, and the second covers changes that are more administrative in nature.
Legal Developments Impacting Health & Welfare Plans 2022 Year-End Update
In June, the Supreme Court ruled the Constitution does not guarantee a right to abortion, leaving states free to regulate them. This means state law may dictate coverage of abortions by insured health plans while ERISA plan sponsors may decide whether self-funded health plans will cover abortions. Limits on coverage will apply—for example, plans generally will not cover medical procedures that are illegal in the state where performed. Other issues remain open—for example, coverage of abortifacient drugs obtained out-of-state and reimbursement for out-of-state travel to obtain an abortion. Upcoming legislative sessions will likely produce additional laws.
Legal Developments Impacting Retirement Plans 2022 Year-End Update
Click here for a printer-friendly version. Congress passed the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022, which has far-reaching impacts on retirement plans. See our separate article for additional information. Some investment houses now include bitcoin in their fund offerings for retirement plans. However, in 2022 the DOL issued guidance expressing serious concerns about the prudence of making cryptocurrency investments available to 401(k) plan participants. The DOL pointed to several factors which make cryptocurrency investments particularly troubling [...]