Perfect Your 2017 Health Benefits Planning With the Help of This Checklist!
With soaring penalties and increased complexities in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) provisions and other crucial developments, employers need to stay active and keep up with pace of the changes by effectively scrutinizing the important parameters while finalizing 2017 health benefit designs, employee communication channels and other contribution strategies.
To make the perfect health benefit plan designs, here is the list of rules and regulations that you need to keep on priority!
Re-Check Your Employee Wellness Program
Make sure that your employee wellness program meets the new Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) rules if your program encompasses issues such as health risk assessment or biometric screening or seeks spousal information. If required, have a proper word with a comprehensive broker on every wellness issues and problems to make sure that you are going in accord with EEOC’s final Americans with Disabilities Act and Genetic Information Non-discrimination Act rules.
Prepare For Healthcare Audits & Consider The Mental Health Parity
Make sure that Check if your plan meets the recent parity guidance regarding the mental health coverage and substance use disorders. It will help you prepare for plausible U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) audits regarding the healthcare compliance. You need to consider other important issues such as Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA), etc. while selecting your benefit experts.
Read Also — Unconventional Employee Benefits Offerings Contributing in Increased ROI
Evaluate and Re-Design Your Employer Shared Responsibility (ESR) Strategy
Analyze health plan designs and other eligibility criteria for your 2017 ESR strategy. You must ensure whether medical options you provide to the employees are meeting the minimum essential coverage, value and related affordability standards or not. Categorize your full-time employees as per the current measurement methods, and prepare in well-advance your Internal Revenue Service (IRS) coverage-reporting process to avoid any non-compliance issues in the future.
Be Ready for Detailed Documentation
Updated SBC (Summary of Benefits and Coverage) model materials to be used on or after April 1, 2017. You need to make sure that all your delivery practices for your healthcare plan summary of benefits and coverage are in accord with the latest rules and regulations.
Take Advantage of ACA Relief for Expatriates
If your workers travel often or are located at other locations, then you can take the advantage of ACA relief by putting the group health plans for globally mobile employees under the Expatriate Health Coverage Clarification Act or Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) or other ACA exemptions.
Assess The Impact of DOL’s Fiduciary Rule
Department of Labor (DOL)’s final rule that outlines the “best interest” policy over investment advice on the retirement plan will come into effect in April 2017 and this will have a huge impact on health savings accounts (HSAs) and ERISA health or welfare plans having an investment component with them. So make yourself prepared for the potential impact the rule may have on your benefit offerings.
Read Also — Clear Your Confusion Over the Fiduciary Rule!
Consider Final Overtime Rules’ Specifications
Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) latest overtime rules may have a huge impact on employees’ benefits plans due to its employee overtime compensation criteria and policies. If needed, the best option could be to modify your benefits plans to keep the overall costs balanced.
Keep A Check On HIPAA Standards & Electronic Transactions
Reassure if you meet all the rules, regulations and security parameters as set by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Also, find out the latest federal regulations for self-insured groups and other health plans to obtain national health plan identifiers and certify for HIPAA compliance in specific electronic transactions.
Design Your Health Plans Considering ACA Non-Discrimination Rules
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will have a direct or indirect effect on the way employers design their employee benefits plans. For 2017, you must take into account how updated state benchmark plans and final ACA non-discrimination rules are going to affect your plan designs.
To Conclude:
As the healthcare benefits industry continues to face constant changes and new rules coming into effect, employers need to stay updated and aware of all of these in order to save themselves from the heavy penalties. Above are some of the rules and upcoming changes you need to take care of to stay compliant while designing health benefit offerings for 2017.
