The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) was enacted in 2008 and generally prevents most group health plans that provide mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) benefits from imposing more restrictive coverage limitations on those benefits than on medical/surgical (M/S) benefits.

As we head into the last quarter of the year, plan sponsors should be mindful of the upcoming SECURE 2.0 Act deadline for mandatory Roth catch-up contributions, effective January 1, 2026. The SECURE 2.0 Act was passed on December 23, 2022, so its amendment of Internal Revenue Code Section 414(v) to require mandatory Roth catch-up contributions isn’t new news.

Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) provides individuals shall not be subject to discrimination on the basis of sex under a health program or activity that receives federal financial assistance or is administered by an Executive Agency.  (42 USC 18116(a)).  As discussed in our blog post regarding United States v. Skrmetti, the contours of Section 1557’s prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex remain a hotly litigated issue.

Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) provides individuals shall not be subject to discrimination on the basis of sex under a health program or activity that receives federal financial assistance or is administered by an Executive Agency.  (42 USC 18116(a)).  As discussed in our blog post regarding United States v. Skrmetti, the contours of Section 1557’s prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sex remain a hotly litigated issue.

As we’ve advised, the times are changing when it comes to what participants’ retirement plan investment options.  On Thursday, August 7, 2025, the president signed an executive order to allow 401(k) participants to join institutional investors and non-ERISA retirement plans in investing in alternative investments like private equity, cryptocurrency, and real estate.  The order is aimed to place ERISA regulated 401(k) and defined contribution plan participants on an equal play

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (“Bill”) did not extend the enhanced premium tax credits (“PTCs”) which help make health insurance purchased through the marketplace (e.g., Covered California) more affordable for millions of Americans. The Affordable Care Act’s employer shared responsibility penalties are only imposed in situations where a full-time employee receives a PTC or cost-sharing reduction.

On June 18, 2025, the majority of the United States Supreme Court held Tennessee’s law prohibiting access to gender-affirming care for certain minors was permissible under rational basis review. The Tennessee law at issue, SB1, forbids healthcare providers from providing puberty blockers or hormones to minors.

A recent Executive Order (EO), “Making America Healthy Again by Empowering Patients with Clear, Accurate, and Actionable Healthcare Pricing Information,” aims to increase consumer access to healthcare pricing information by increasing enforcement of  regulations released pursuant to an EO issued in 2019. 

In Cunningham v. Cornell University, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that plaintiffs asserting prohibited transaction claims under ERISA §406(a)(1)(C) do not need to plead facts related to the §408(b)(2)(A) exemption to survive a motion to dismiss.

On Tuesday, January 14th, the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued final rules for the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Pro

Health & Welfare Journal of Pension Benefits Issues in Administration, Design, Funding, and Compliance Volume 32 • Number 1 • Autumn 2024...

Another year of health and welfare litigation, another year of mixed results for both plaintiffs and defendants, but lessons for all.

The SECURE Act of 2019 brought significant changes to multiple employer plans (MEPs) and introduced pooled employer plans (PEPs). These reti

On July 25, 2024, Judge Jeremy Kernodle of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas temporarily blocked the US Department..

The deadline to file or extend your calendar year Form 5500 for the 2023 Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan is approaching...

The IRS has just issued very lengthy final regulations (TD 10001; RIN:1545-BP82) governing required minimum distributions (RMDs) that...

Health & Welfare Journal of Pension Benefits Issues in Administration, Design, Funding, and Compliance Volume 31 • Number 2 • Winter 2024...

Contributed by Katrina Veldkamp, Boutwell Fay LLP February 2024 Retirement plan sponsors and service providers will want to pay close...

By: Sherrie Boutwell and Deborah Fabricant (2010) What happens when the drafter of an ERISA plan makes an innocent error (a “scrivener’s...

HEALTH & WELFARE JOURNAL OF PENSION BENEFITS ISSUES IN ADMINISTRATION, DESIGN, FUNDING, AND COMPLIANCE Volume 30 • Number 3 • Summer 2023...

Katrina Veldkamp's recent article for Bloomberg Law addresses the new provisions introduced by SECURE 2.0 for matching contributions for...

HEALTH & WELFARE JOURNAL OF PENSION BENEFITS ISSUES IN ADMINISTRATION, DESIGN, FUNDING, AND COMPLIANCE Volume 30 • Number 3 • Spring 2023...

In her recent article for Bloomberg Law, Boutwell Fay's Katrina Veldkamp covers the changes in minimum participation rules for LTPT...

After co-presenting at the recent 2023 Annual Meeting for NBOA, both Evan Giller, Boutwell Fay, LLP, and Gary Mauger, New Pinnacle...

HEALTH & WELFARE JOURNAL of PENSION BENEFITS ISSUES IN ADMINISTRATION, DESIGN, FUNDING, AND COMPLIANCE Volume 30 • Number 1 • Autumn 2022...

Employer-based health plans must now submit information about prescription drugs and health care spending to the DOL...

HEALTH & WELFARE JOURNAL of PENSION BENEFITS ISSUES IN ADMINISTRATION, DESIGN, FUNDING, AND COMPLIANCE Volume 29 • Number 4 • Summer 2022...

This column for the Journal of Pension Benefits, Health & Welfare explains the new rules that extend Section 408(b)(2) of ERISA to health...