As we approach our third new year since the first reported cases of COVID-19, related relief may seem like old news. Although much of the government-sponsored pandemic relief has expired, there are aspects that remain germane for employer-sponsored benefit plans.
Specifically, relief provided as part of the national emergency and the public health emergency declarations remains ongoing, along with the telehealth relief introduced in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) and extended by the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA). Plan sponsors and administrators should be aware of special relief provisions that directly or indirectly affect group health plans and have a strategy for when the relief periods end.
