Given the myriad of COVID-19 pandemic era legislation, it’s important to highlight the regulations that impact employers, employees and your Employee Benefits Programs. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA)established protections for consumers related to surprise billing and transparency in health care, which have important updates.  Also, Washington state officials made changes to the new Long Term Care mandate.  In January, updates were made that affect consumers and plan sponsors and are summarized below, along with links to more information. DDI continues to monitor legislative changes that impact you and your employees.

Need help staying compliant with all the employer mandates and requirements? Check out our free HR services with Mineral, see below!

Contact your DDI team with any questions.

Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) – 2022 updates

The No Surprises Act of the CAA protects people covered under group and individual health plans from receiving surprise medical bills when they receive most emergency services, non-emergency services from out-of-network providers at in-network facilities, and services from out-of-network air ambulance service providers. It also establishes an independent dispute resolution process for payment disputes between health plans and providers, and provides new dispute resolution opportunities for uninsured and self-pay individuals when they receive a medical bill that is substantially greater than the good faith estimate they get from the provider.

Starting in 2022, there are new protections that prevent surprise medical bills.  For insureds in group or individual plans, these new protections ban the most common types of surprise bills. If you’re uninsured or you decide not to use your health insurance for a service, under these protections, you can often get a good faith estimate of the cost of your care up front, before your visit. If you disagree with your bill, you may be able to dispute the charges. Here’s what you need to know about your new rights.

Click here for an overview of the rules and facts.

Broker Compensation Disclosure: Section 202 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, requires entities providing brokerage and consulting services to provide plan fiduciaries with a written disclosure “reasonably in advance of” when contracts are entered, extended or renewed. DDI’s standard practice is to accept the carrier/vendor standard compensation schedule where applicable. Compensation schedules will be provided to DDI clients upon group plan renewals.

WA state Long Term Care Mandate Revisions:

As of January 27, 2022, Governor Inslee has passed two bills to make some key improvements to the fund.  Please see the bullet points below:

• Workers near retirement (born before 1968) will be able to qualify for partial benefits on a pro-rated basis.
• Workers who live out of state and work in Washington, military spouses, workers on non-immigrant visas, and certain veterans with disabilities will be able to opt out of the program if they choose.
• Workers will begin contributing to the fund in July 2023.  Employers will refund any premiums collecting in 2022 so far.

The Washington Cares Fund website is being updated to reflect these changes and you can join the mailing list to get notifications as more information becomes available.  For details of the changes, you can read House Bill 1732 and House Bill 1733.  ESD has updated instructions for employer and will be providing additional information and guidance in February.  You can sign up for the ESD employer newsletter to receive updates.

Mineral HR—FREE to DDI clients!

Want to provide expert support and resources to your HR Team? Or maybe you’re not quite ready to hire an HR position? Check out the services and resources available through our partners at Mineral! Last Fall DDI’s HR services were upgraded and offered for free to all clients!  Contact us to get started with our HR platform. Here is a flyer about their services and here is a Step-by-Step Guide to HR and Compliance with Mineral. We encourage you to create a password and get started on the platform so you can receive news and information tailored to your company’s needs. Here are a few high-lights:

• Easily create a compliant employee handbook
• Find answers to common HR questions
• Stay up to date on changing laws and policies
• Take a quick test to identify compliance gaps and action items, and to receive recommendations tailored to your business