Government response to the Coronavirus has included a wide range of emergency measures governing health plan administration. Some of these measures address dislocations caused by sudden change in employment status while others address administration of benefits for employees marooned at home. The fast pace of change wrecks the predictability required for health care benefits tied…
They said they would and they did. Twelve states filed a lawsuit against the Department of Labor (DOL) challenging DOL regulations liberalizing standards for creation and operation of Association Health Plans (AHPs). The complaint mirrors objections and comments submitted to DOL by a group of seventeen state attorneys general before the final rules were adopted.…
Bless their hearts, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued proposed regulations to improve access to association health plan markets. Their two biggest ideas for improvement are to force existing bona fide associations to stop risk rating health plan coverage at the employer level and to start counting individuals as groups. Where to begin……
Last week, Judge Rice denied Associated Industries Management Services and Associated Employers Trust motion to dismiss the Department of Labor lawsuit alleging breach of fiduciary duties under ERISA. The federal court later accepted the parties agreed extension of time required for Associated Industries to file an answer to the DOL complaint. The defendants will have until…
Yesterday, the Department of Labor (DOL) responded to Associated Employers Health and Welfare Trust’s (AET) motion to dismiss the ERISA fiduciary case against the Trust, Associated Industries of the Inland Northwest and Associated Industries Management Services (AIMS). Recall that AET and the other defendants argued that the ERISA lawsuit by DOL should be dismissed because…
In February, the Department of Labor (DOL) sued Associated Industries of the Inland Northwest, Associated Employers Health and Welfare Trust, Associated Industries Management Service, Inc. (AIMS), and several individuals responsible for managing the Trust. DOL alleges “fiduciary breaches, prohibited transactions, and knowing participation in same.” The thirty-one page civil suit against the Association and Trust…
