May 10, 2006 AHP Legislation May Soon Be A Reality Congress, after eight unsuccessful attempts, may finally pass scaled down Association Health Plan (“AHP”) legislation with a majority vote of…

April 20, 2006 Department of Labor Advisory Letter Received The Kansas City office of HitesmanLaw, P.A. successfully assisted its client, the TICUA Benefit Consortium, a multiple employer welfare arrangement (“MEWA”),…

April 20, 2006 Your Employee Benefit Plan Has Been Selected For An Audit… Now What? If you sponsor an employee benefit plan in the Kansas City area, it is inevitable…

March 24, 2006 Looming Health Plan Compliance Deadlines   March 31, 2006 Medicare Part D Notice to CMS The Medicare Modernization Act (MMA) requires that health plans disclose to the…

February 20, 2006 2005 Year End IRS Guidance Summary The IRS and the legislature finished 2005 with a flourish of activity regarding group health plans and retirement plans. Publications 502…

January 24, 2006 Harry Beker Re-Confirms Death Benefit Provisions of HRAs On January 19, 2006, Harry Beker, Chief IRS Counsel, visited Minneapolis for the Minnesota State Bar Association Employee Benefits…

January 11, 2006 MEWAs: File Your 2005 Form M-1 by March 1, 2006 The US Department of Labor requires all Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements (MEWAs) to annually file a Form…

January 3, 2006 Guidance Issued by CMS (Creditable Coverage Notices) On December 30, 2005, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released guidance regarding the provision of creditable coverage…

December 8, 2005 Year End Alert: Federal Law Changes in 2005 and Clean Up A number of statutory and regulatory changes have occurred in 2005 affecting group health plans. In…

November 29, 2005 IRS Issues Guidance Regarding FSA Grace Period and HSA Eligibility On November 22, 2005, the Treasury and IRS issued IRS Notice 2005-86, which clarifies the interaction of…