In April 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) finalized revised regulations implementing Section 1557 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). The new, final Section 1557 regulations (2024 Rule) have staggered effective dates—beginning as early as November 2, 2024—and the 2024 Rule now applies to recipients of Medicare Part B payments. In this article, we discuss some notable changes in the 2024 Rule and provide a chart summarizing key requirements and compliance deadlines.
Register Now | MT|SHRM 2024 Employment Law Conference | October 16-17
I am looking forward to presenting at the 2024 Employment Law Conference, hosted by the Middle Tennessee Society for Human Resource Management (MTSHRM). My session, titled “Worker Classification: Why it Matters,” will take place on October 16, from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. CT. During the presentation, I will discuss various topics related to worker classification, its impact on the workforce, and recent Department of Labor rulings.
Continue Reading Register Now | MT|SHRM 2024 Employment Law Conference | October 16-17Hot Issues for Second Half of 2024
In an article for HR.com’s Employee Benefits & Wellness Excellence issue, we highlighted key issues to watch in benefits law for the remainder of 2024. Among the top three of these considerations for the rest of the year, we listed retirement plan regulations from SECURE 2.0, litigation surrounding pharmacy benefit managers (PBM), and welfare plan compensation disclosures and associated litigation.
Continue Reading Hot Issues for Second Half of 2024Register Now | A Step-by-Step Approach to Navigating EEOC Charges Webinar
Responding to a charge from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) can often be a complex and opaque process, fraught with red tape. To alleviate this burden, we have developed a comprehensive roadmap to assist employers, in-house counsel and human resources professionals in managing EEOC charges from start to finish, while avoiding common pitfalls and mitigating potential risk exposure.
Continue Reading Register Now | A Step-by-Step Approach to Navigating EEOC Charges WebinarChevron No More: The Impact on Benefit Plans
On June 28, 2024, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, Secretary of Commerce and Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce (Loper Bright), overturning Chevron U.S.A. Inc v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. (Chevron). In this landmark case, Loper Bright overruled the forty-year doctrine known as “Chevron deference,” whereby courts defer to an administrative agency’s reasonable interpretation of ambiguous federal laws, even if the court disagrees with the agency’s interpretation. Instead, Loper Bright held that courts must exercise independent judgment in deciding whether an administrative agency has acted within its statutory authority, and may not automatically defer to an agency’s legal interpretation when a statute is ambiguous.
Continue Reading Chevron No More: The Impact on Benefit PlansFederal Court Blocks FTC Non-Compete Rule Nationwide
Today, the federal district court for the Northern District of Texas, in Ryan LLC v. Federal Trade Commission [FTC] (opinion found here), “set aside” with nationwide effect, the FTC “Non-Compete Rule.” The federal district court held that the FTC exceeded its statutory authority in promulgating the Non-Compete Rule, concluding “the text and the structure of the FTC Act reveal the FTC lacks substantive rulemaking authority with respect to unfair methods of compensation….”
Continue Reading Federal Court Blocks FTC Non-Compete Rule NationwideNotices Under FTC Rule on Non-Competes: What Should I Be Doing Now?
As previously covered on our HR Law Talk blog, the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) non-compete ban (FTC Rule or the Rule) is scheduled to take effect on September 4, 2024. Issued in April, the FTC Rule prohibits all non-competes arising out of employment relationships – with the exception of existing agreements with “senior executives,” as defined by the Rule. Although many legal experts have hypothesized that the federal courts would enjoin the Rule, the future of the FTC Rule remains uncertain. Accordingly, employers must remain informed on the most recent court rulings involving the FTC Rule and prepare as though it will take effect on September 4.
Continue Reading Notices Under FTC Rule on Non-Competes: What Should I Be Doing Now?New Reproductive Health Care Privacy Final Rule: Key Compliance Steps and Dates
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and subsequent state abortion bans, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a Final Rule (Final Rule) modifying the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy Rule in order to support reproductive health care privacy. As with prior HIPAA rules, the Final Rule applies to covered healthcare providers, health plans, or healthcare clearing houses (each, a Covered Entity) and their business associates.
Continue Reading New Reproductive Health Care Privacy Final Rule: Key Compliance Steps and DatesNLRB Withdraws Appeal of Joint Employer Rule
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has dropped its appeal of a Texas federal judge’s order striking down its new, expansive joint employer rule. As readers may recall, late last year the NLRB issued a rule broadening the definition of joint employer, which would have significantly increased the number of entities that may be deemed joint employers and thus share responsibility for complying with the National Labor Relations Act.
Continue Reading NLRB Withdraws Appeal of Joint Employer RuleFederal Court Enjoins FTC From Implementing Non-Compete Ban
A federal judge in the Northern District of Texas has enjoined the Federal Trade Commission from implementing its Rule banning non-compete agreements and stayed the effective date of the Rule while the underlying lawsuit against the Rule proceeds, but only with respect to the parties to the lawsuit.
Continue Reading Federal Court Enjoins FTC From Implementing Non-Compete Ban