For many HR professionals at small businesses, the past few months have been like trudging through a hurricane with a leaky umbrella. Out of that madness, many HR professionals have emerged as essential members of the executive team, working on the top questions of the day.
A second round of FAQs recently issued by the Labor Department, the IRS, and the Department of Health and Human Services provides plan sponsors and insurers with additional implementation guidance relating to health coverage provisions under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), as amended by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The June 23 guidance in FAQs Part 43 is a follow-up to the Departments’ April 11 guidance in FAQs Part 42 and provides specific clarifications on testing coverage and provider payments, summary of benefits coverage (SBC) notifications, temporary telehealth relief provisions, and various other compliance matters of significance to group health plans. FAQs Part 43 highlights include the following:
Because COVID-19 continues to spread at a rapid rate throughout the country, with Kentucky being no exception, Governor Andy Beshear announced that masks or face coverings would be required starting Friday, July 10, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. What do employers need to know about this new requirement?
Federal workers can revoke their union membership and stop paying dues any time after the first year under a Federal Labor Relations Authority final rule.
The IRS recently issued additional guidance on the eased rules for hardship withdrawals that 401(k) and similar defined contribution retirement plans can put in place under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, enacted in March. New data show, however, that an expected surge in plan withdrawals hasn’t happened.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms just issued an executive order requiring persons within the City of Atlanta to wear face masks in many circumstances. This July 8 order appears to conflict with Governor Kemp’s latest June 29 Executive Order that suspends enforcement of any county or municipal ordinance or order that is more or less restrictive than the statewide order, at least through July 15. Similar orders and ordinances have been issued by Athens-Clarke County, the City of East Point, and the City of Savannah. What do employers need to know about this order?
