Preparing Employers for the End of COVID-19 Emergencies
April 12, 2023
Back on January 30, 2023, the President announced his intention to end the COVID-19 National Emergency (NE) and Public Health Emergency (PHE) effective May 11, 2023. If you remember, both emergency declarations resulted in various forms of relief for employer-sponsored benefit plans, and both have been extended several times. Employers should be preparing for the end of the relief. BenefitMall is sending out this alert as a guide to help our broker partners and their clients.
Employers and other plan sponsors should start evaluating what changes to make to their health benefits. Additionally, some of the flexibility that was provided to extend the timeframes for participants for certain health plan-related deadlines, such as special enrollment, COBRA election and payment, and claims and appeals deadlines, may soon lapse.
Communication with participants in a group health plan is imperative. Some of the potential questions may include:
We urge plan sponsors to consider the following:
On March 30, H.J. Res. 7 was voted on and passed in both the House and the Senate. This resolution would terminate National Emergency prior to the May 11 date. The President signed the resolution on April 10, and it is effective immediately.
For more information, please contact compliance@benefitmall.com.