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EPIC Commits to Staying Connected!

EPIC Launches 2nd Annual Virtual Benefits Event Virtual Employee Benefits University is July 19 – 23 On Monday, July 19, we launched our second Virtual Employee Benefits University (VEBU). Our focus on this week-long learning event reflects our commitment to our employees, EPIC’s most valuable asset, and our virtual VEBU platform provides an interactive, high-touch environment to gather and learn from each other and our vendor partners. Our VEBU theme this year is the Five Pillars of Success: Innovation, Organic Growth, Collaboration, People First and M&A. Each day, we are presenting a key learning topic based on …

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/epic-announces-2nd-annual-virtual-benefits-event/

Market Pulse Survey: Fertility Benefits

Are You Offering Fertility Benefits? Fertility benefits range from infertility diagnosis and medication, to IVF and artificial insemination. More expansive plans cover egg freezing, the procurement of donor eggs or embryos, and gestational surrogacy. It’s that time of year again! Time to make tough calls on where to focus your benefits budget dollars for 2022. Fertility benefits are getting more attention at exactly the time when the Millennial generation is becoming more widespread in the workforce. Not coincidentally, many members of that cohort are now in their prime childbearing years. However, employer coverage of fertility treatments is a mixed …

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/market-pulse-survey-fertility-benefits/

Celebrating Diversity Through Inclusive Wellbeing Programs

Celebrations of the many achievements by minorities and the LGBTQ+ community marked the first half of 2021. But the call to raise awareness of the importance of acceptance carries on. And while the festivities have ended, these marginalized populations’ unique health and wellbeing needs require continued support. Viewpoints from Ayana Collins Take a moment to consider how discrimination negatively impacts seeking care. Microaggressions experienced at the workplace and within the healthcare system can lead to skepticism toward participating in an employer’s wellness program and distrust of the healthcare system – specifically toward healthcare providers. This lack of trust has led …

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/celebrating-diversity-through-inclusive-wellbeing-programs/

Federal Court Rules Employers Can Require Employees to Receive COVID-19 Vaccines Before Returning to Work

… making it unlawful and contrary to public policy to require someone to receive the vaccine. Judge Hughes dismissed the case, ruling that if Houston Methodist Hospital terminated employees that failed to get vaccinated it would not be a wrongful termination. According to the District Court’s ruling, the vaccine requirement was not unlawful or coercive. Judge Hughes wrote that, under the Texas at-will employment statutes, an employee can only claim that a private employer committed a wrongful termination if the employer terminates the employee for refusing to commit a criminal act. According to the judge’s ruling, the employees

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/federal-court-rules-employers-can-require-covid-19-vaccines-to-return-to-work/

EEOC Provides Updated Guidance on COVID-19 Vaccine Incentives

Quick Facts The EEOC recently provided clarifying guidance on permitted COVID-19 vaccine incentives under the ADA and GINA. According to the EEOC guidance, application of the EEOC wellness rules differs depending upon whether the pre-vaccination screening and COVID vaccine are administered by an unrelated third party. Employer-administered vaccine programs may not provide an incentive that is “coercive” in nature. Introduction Some employers require employees to obtain COVID vaccines as a condition of employment, while many others are instead choosing to offer incentives to encourage their workforce to obtain COVID vaccines. Any time an incentive is tied to …

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/eeoc-provides-updated-guidance-on-covid-19-vaccine-incentives/

Supreme Court Upholds the ACA in 7-2 Decision

Quick Facts On June 17, 2021, the SCOTUS issued a 7-2 decision in California et. al. v. Texas et. al. upholding the ACA. The Court ruled that none of the plaintiffs demonstrated the requisite standing, the legal concept that requires parties bringing or defending a lawsuit to have a legal interest or injury in a matter that permits them to file or defend a lawsuit. The decision ends a case that has been working its way through the courts since a Texas judge first ruled that the ACA was unconstitutional in 2018. Introduction The Supreme Court of the United …

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/supreme-court-upholds-the-aca-in-7-2-decision/

San Francisco HCSO Reporting Waived

… covered employees who regularly work at least eight hours per week. Any employees earning greater than $104,761 annually ($50.37) hourly with a managerial, supervisorial or confidential position are exempt from the HCSO and are not included in the calculation. Employers must also maintain records sufficient to establish compliance with the ESR and post the 2021 HCSO Poster. Employers must retain records for a period of four years for each employee’s dates of employment. The required records include itemized pay statements; the employee’s address, telephone number and date of the first day of work; records of the

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/san-francisco-hcso-reporting-waived/

Why You Need a Specialist in Pharmacy to Manage Healthcare Costs

Our association with Pharmacy Strategies Group (PSG) has made me even more acutely aware of the importance of proactive pharmacy consulting in managing overall healthcare costs. For years, I have been writing in the abstract that specialty pharmacy costs are the fastest-growing component of healthcare expenses. Now, I feel like I am “armed for bear” with much more specific discussion points that give me greater insight into concurrent plan cost management. Viewpoints from Craig Hasday On June 24 (just days ago as I am writing this blog), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the approval of …

https://www.epicbrokers.com/insights/why-you-need-a-specialist-in-pharmacy-to-manage-healthcare-costs/