DOL issues ACA and DOMA guidance, and PSU pulls back its wellness penalties: 3 things you need to know this week in employee benefits

DOL: No exchange notice? No problem (or at least, no penalty)

We’ve kept you up to speed on health care reform every step of the way—letting you know about the Affordable Care Act’s requirements, deadlines and delays, potential penalties and, of course, how to communicate the law to your employees.

We’ve tried to do our best to let you know where the potential pitfalls are, with ACA and other HR/benefits laws and issues. However, it’s not very often that we can tell you about something that won’t get you in trouble—particularly when it comes to the Department of Labor—so we’ll jump at the opportunity.

The DOL recently announced that it will not impose noncompliance penalties on employers that fail to provide employees by Oct. 1 an official notice about the Health Insurance Marketplace (exchanges) under ACA.

As you likely know, the notice has to let employees know:

• That the exchanges are open for business.
• How to find more information about the exchanges at healthcare.gov
• Provide pertinent information about their employer-sponsored benefits in case they choose to shop in their state’s exchange.

Chances are, you're already prepped or your notice may be posted. If not, you can take a breath!

DOL also issues new guidance on same-sex marriages and employee benefit plans

The DOL’s been keeping busy; in addition to the news above, the Labor Department also announced this week new guidance for employers that interprets the Supreme Court's decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act.

In general, according to the agency, the terms “spouse” and “marriage” in ERISA and other DOL regulations should include same-sex couples legally married in any state or foreign jurisdiction that recognizes such marriages, regardless of where they currently live.

This week’s hidden gem: Nittany Lions nix wellness penalty

Power to the people? After strong protest from employees—not to mention national media coverage—Penn State University officials have decided to drop the school’s much-maligned wellness proposals, which included charging workers $100 per month if they and their covered spouses fail to complete health questionnaires, certify they’ve had an annual physical exam and undergo biometric screenings to measure blood sugar, cholesterol and body-mass index.

In dropping the proposed penalties, PSU President Rodney A. Erickson said, “We have decided to suspend the $100-per-month surcharge so that people who are uncomfortable with any aspect of the survey will not feel as if they are being penalized.” 

PSU associate professor Matthew C. Woessner, who was the flag-bearer for the employee uprising over the penalties, told the New York Times that the decision “gives us hope that whatever future program they undertake, it will be undertaken with due diligence and high ethical standards.”

While the Penn State program is nothing out of the ordinary, we do hope this coverage helps the shift from punitive to positive wellness programs happen faster.