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Since reporting that 500,000 logged onto HealthCare.gov and 100,000 submitted applications on Saturday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has remained silent on the results of Obamacare sign-ups, even refusing to answer media requests from the Washington Post and others.
The Post's Erik Wemple, writing about his attempt to elicit an answer from HHS, noted that Massachusetts's h...
An audit by KPMG found security vulnerabilities in the IT systems at the Department of Labor (DOL), threatening the agency's financial and support systems and increasing the risk that "current employees, separated employees, and/or contractors may obtain unauthorized or inappropriate access to financial systems and/or data.”
“Vulnerabilities that are not remedied in a timely manner may result ...
The Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (CCIIO) has extended its health plan enrollee report deadline until 11:59 p.m., Dec. 5.
Originally due by Nov. 15, the report requires employers and insurers to indicate how many health insurance enrollees they have. They then have to pay a reinsurance fee of $63 per enrollee as part of a pool to help cover catastrophic claims (becaus...
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) is sending out 2,500 Courtesy Scheduling Announcement Letters (CSALs) nationwide to notify employers that they are being slated for audits.
Once a company receives one of these letters, it must submit detailed pay data for each of its employees. The company must also submit a copy of its Affirmative Action Program (AAP) and its Section...
Marred by glitches in its inaugural year, HealthCare.gov will begin accepting enrollments for 2015 beginning tomorow, Nov. 15, and ending Feb. 15, 2015.
Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Mathew Burwell promises a much smoother operation this time as the site has undergone extensive testing and changes and the call center staff has been beefed up.
Burwell also says site security is im...
What are referred to as "minimum value" or "skinny" health plans have been ordered to include physician services and hospitalization by way of a new regulation, but the issuing federal agencies have now given a reprieve to certain plans already in effect.
By way of background, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) mandated that all health insurance plans include "essential services" but never listed w...
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) have issued a bulletin in "light of the Ebola outbreak and other events" to clarify "the ways in which patient information may be shared under the HIPAA Privacy Rule in an emergency situation."
The bulletin notes that the HIPAA Privacy Rule is balanced so that, when necessary, protected health information (...
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) expects health care sign-ups in the state and federal exchanges during the open enrollment period starting Nov. 15 to total about 13 million people, but Health and Human Services (HHS) officials said Monday they expect only 9 to 10 million to sign up, including 6 million or so who renew.
The CBO anticipates a steady climb in enrollments during the first th...
With just a few days to go before the start of the second open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Supreme Court has agreed to hear both sides in the King v. Burwell lawsuit, which aims to strike down health care subsidies in the 36 states that chose not to establish insurance exchanges.
At question is language in the original reform bill that says tax credits would be a...
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has relaunched its website, USCIS.gov, with a new look and an enhanced tool for mobile user to check the status of their cases.
The USCIS announcement explained:
Our updated homepage for www.uscis.gov and www.uscis.gov/espanol will still offer the user-friendly icons and tabs you are familiar with, and it will now provide easy-to-n...
Practical articles on HR, Safety, compliance, and people operations—written for real businesses, not legal textbooks.
DOL Updates Enforcement Approach for Employee Benefit Plans: What Employers Should Know
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced a significant change in its enforcement of employee benefit plan rules. The DOL will now focus more closely on serious violations that harm workers and retirees, meaning compliant employers may face less scrutiny under the updated approach.
Latest EEOC Enforcement Data Shows Increased Pre-Litigation Activity
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently released its FY 2025 performance and enforcement results. In a news release dated April 6th, 2026, the agency reported increased monetary recoveries for victims of employment discrimination and increased enforcement activity overall....
EEOC Pens Letter to Companies Regarding Title VII Compliance and DEI Initiatives
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently issued a letter to 500 of the largest employers in the United States regarding Title VII compliance and potentially "illegal" DEI initiatives. Notably, the document was drafted for the chief executive officers, general counsel, and board...
NLRB Officially Reinstates Previous 2020 Joint Employer Standard
On February 26th, 2026, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) officially reinstated its 2020 Joint Employer standard. Specifically, to do so, the agency needed to formally withdraw a 2023 Joint Employer standard. That final rule was to go into effect on February 26th, 2024.
OSHA Releases New Job Safety and Health Workplace Poster
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released a new workplace job safety and health notice. Specifically, the OSHA Cares Job Safety and Health poster informs workers about their rights under the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act. Per OSHA’s poster page, employers do...