As employers consider implementing a vaccine mandate to encourage employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19, we have recently discussed the merits of imposing a “vaccine surcharge” on monthly health insurance premiums for those employees who remain unvaccinated. There were unanswered questions about specific legal issues, but now the Department of Labor (DOL), Health and Human
Natalie M. Nathanson
Natalie M. Nathanson is a principal in the Miami, Florida, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She focuses her practice on employee benefits, ERISA plans, and executive compensation matters.
In her legal practice, Natalie offers a depth of experience gained from serving as both in-house counsel and a law firm partner. Natalie understands that clients want easy-to-understand, helpful, real-world advice and counsel. She appreciates that while the issues underlying benefits questions can be complex, employers need responsive service, straightforward advice, and concise risk assessments so they can make time-sensitive business decisions while ensuring they remain in compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
Money Money Money: How Much can the Health Plan Surcharge on Unvaccinated Employees Be?
In light of the lingering COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on employee productivity and health care expenses, employers are considering imposing a premium surcharge on employees participating in the company’s health plan who are not vaccinated against COVID-19.
As we have discussed here, several federal laws must be taken into consideration when designing such…
Special COVID-19 Health Insurance Enrollment Windows and Waivers
As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we are observing all sorts of never-before-seen changes in the fully-insured group health plan space. Many insurers are liberally waiving their normal rules to accommodate the continuation of coverage to employers and employees in their time of need. Although the accommodations are welcome, employers need to exercise…
Implications of COVID-19 on Your Health and Welfare Benefit Plans
Employers are grappling with employee benefit issues in response to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (“COVID-19”). Efforts are being made to pave the way for widespread testing by eliminating cost barriers such as deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, or High Deductible Health Plan restrictions to ensure employees and their families are proactively being diagnosed once symptoms present, to…