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Doug Dahl

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Doug Dahl provides technical knowledge and advice to companies on a wide range of federal tax and ERISA matters regarding employee benefits, including qualified retirement plans, executive compensation arrangements and health and welfare plans. Doug regularly assists companies with employee benefit issues that arise during and following various corporate transactions and events, such as mergers, acquisitions, dispositions and bankruptcies.

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Many people see the start of a new year as a time to refresh and renew themselves. For covered entities under HIPAA, which include group health plans, it’s also time to refresh and renew your HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices (Privacy Notice) to address the changes made to the Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Patient Records regulations at 42 CFR part 2 (Part 2). The deadline for updating Privacy Notices to reflect these amendments is February 16, 2026.Continue Reading Reminder: Group Health Plans Should Update HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices by February 16

As announced in our previous HR Law Talk blog post, on January 15, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) published a much anticipated amended and restated version of the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP) in the Federal Register, which now includes two self-correction features. The VFCP, initially adopted in 2002 and last amended in 2006, allows ERISA plan administrators, plan sponsors, and other plan officials to correct certain fiduciary breaches and receive relief from potential DOL civil enforcement actions.Continue Reading Updated Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program for ERISA Plans Includes Self-Correction Features

Earlier today, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published in the Federal Register an updated version of the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP) under Title I of ERISA. Per the DOL, VFCP “is designed to encourage correction of fiduciary breaches and compliance with law by permitted persons to avoid potential [DOL] civil enforcement actions and civil penalties if they voluntarily correct” errors in accordance with the program. Notably, the update expands the current VFCP by adding a much-anticipated self-correction component for delinquent transmittal of participant contributions and loan repayments to retirement plans in specific circumstances. Continue Reading BREAKING: DOL Expands the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program

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…

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 2024

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 Plans

NOTE: This post was originally written August 29, 2023, and was updated on September 27, 2023 and July 1, 2025.

Breaking News: On June 30, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it will not review the Tenth Circuit panel’s decision in PCMA v. Mulready. On May 10, 2024, Glen Mulready, the Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner, asked the Supreme Court to review the case, and reverse the Tenth Circuit’s decision that ERISA preempted portions of Oklahoma’s Patients’ Right to Pharmacy Choice Act (as discussed below). Mr. Mulready argued that the Tenth Circuit’s decision was not consistent with the Supreme Court’s prior decisions and another appeals court opinion, creating a split among the Circuits. In connection with Mr. Mulready’s request, the Supreme Court asked the U.S. Solicitor General’s office to provide its view of the case on behalf of the government, which it provided on May 27, 2025. In its brief, the government asked the Supreme Court to deny any further review of the Mulready case, arguing that the ERISA preemption question did not warrant further review by the Supreme Court, because the Tenth Circuit correctly determined that the provisions of the Oklahoma law were preempted by ERISA. The Supreme Court’s denial of Mulready’s request for review is good news for self-funded ERISA plan sponsors, as it means that the Tenth Circuit’s ruling in favor of ERISA preemption remains in place.Continue Reading Tenth Circuit Rules ERISA Preempts Oklahoma PBM-Reform Law

From the Bass, Berry & Sims Blog Network
From the Bass, Berry & Sims Blog Network

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