08 Mar 2022
Mental Health Means American Health
The U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury (the agencies) issued a 2022 report to Congress regarding their enforcement activities under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) , as required under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA 2021) (Pub. L. No. 116-260, Div. BB, § 203). See DOL News Release. The CAA 2021 mandates that group health plans offering medical/surgical and mental health/substance-use disorder coverage that impose non-quantitative treatment limitations (NQTLs) on such benefits provide comparative analyses and documentation demonstrating compliance with the MHPAEA. The law also requires the agencies to implement a compliance program for plans and insurers to help them interpret and appropriately implement the NQTL rules, and to conduct investigations of at least 20 of the NQTL analysis disclosures per year, monitoring remedial actions, and creating periodic reports.
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Learn more about how the MHPAEA (Pub. L. No. 110-343) and related provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Pub. L. No. 111-148) generally prevent health plans and policies from imposing less favorable terms on mental health or substance use disorder benefits than on medical and surgical benefits. Section 203 of Div. BB of the CAA 2021 imposed new requirements on certain group health plans to perform compliance analyses to ensure they are not in violation of certain MHPAEA requirements regarding NQTLs.
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Stay informed on new developments.- ERISA Litigation
An Illinois federal judge approved a $13.75 million settlement to end an ERISA fiduciary suit that alleged Walgreens had imprudently selected, retained, and monitored a suite of poorly performing funds in its 401(k) plans. Allegretti v. Walgreen Co., 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 215614 (D. Ill. Nov. 1, 2021); Massive Walgreens Worker Class Inks $13.75M 401(k) Deal. - Retirement Plans
IRS issues proposed regulations to amend required minimum distribution rules for qualified plans, 403(b) plans and annuities, 457 plans, and IRAs) to reflect SECURE Act statutory amendments, clarify other issues, and replace the Q&A format of existing regulations. 87 Fed. Reg. 10,504 (Feb. 24, 2022). - Health and Welfare Plans
Texas district court vacates certain independent dispute resolution rules under the No Surprises Act for adjudicating disputes between plans or issuers and non-network providers over reimbursement rates. Tex. Med. Ass'n v. United States HHS, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31807 (E.D. Tex. Feb. 23, 2022); Complaint; see also DOL Memorandum.
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