Articles by Girish Anand

January 11, 2016

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HHS Releases Guidance on Individuals' Right to Medical Information

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) this past week published guidance on individuals' right to their protected health information (PHI) under the Privacy Rule provision of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The guidance was issued in response to complaints the agencies have received over the years about consumer ...

January 7, 2016

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OSHA, FAA Ink Accord on Protecting Airline Workers from Retaliation

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding that allows the agencies to share information regarding the anti-retaliation provision under the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (AIR21). The act prohibits air carriers and air carrier contractors and subcont...

January 7, 2016

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Mining Deaths in 2015 Reach Record Low

Preliminary data released by the U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration indicate that 28 miners died in 2015 in work-related accidents at the nation's mines, down from 45 in 2014. The figure represents the lowest number of mining deaths ever recorded and the first year that mining deaths dropped below 30. Eleven of the 28 deaths occurred in coal mines — three in Penns...

January 5, 2016

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HIPAA Modified to Allow Data to Be Sent to the FBI for Background Checks

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today issued a final rule to allow HIPAA-protected mental health data to be shared with the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) run by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and used to screen gun purchasers. Under the Gun Control Act of 1968, a provision called the "mental health pr...

January 5, 2016

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OSHA to Hold Hearing on Proposed Beryllium Exposure Rule

Responding to a request by the Non-Ferrous Founders' Society, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will hold what it's calling an "informal public hearing" on its proposed beryllium exposure rule on Monday, Feb 29. The public comment period on the August 2015 proposed rule closed this past Nov. 5, but not before the society made its request for a public hearing. Beryllium,...

January 4, 2016

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OSHA Relying More and More on General Duty Clause

According to watchers of the organization, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is relying more and more on its General Duty Clause to cite firms for safety violations, causing some observers to cry foul. The clause has been the fourth-most cited standard for severe injury reports triggered by new reporting requirements effective Jan. 1, 2015, with 175 violations issued in ...

December 30, 2015

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The Obama Immigration Plan Legal Saga Continues

President Obama's executive immigration edicts from November 2014 have been put on hold by a federal district judge and then once again upon review by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and both decisions now rest on the docket of the U.S. Supreme Court for final review. Facing a possible hearing by SCOTUS in April, with a decision possible in June, both sides of the issue -- which would g...

December 30, 2015

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Time to Update Your Labor Law Poster, Especially If...

Especially if you're in one of the 13 states that will greet the New Year with new minimum wage rates and mandatory workplace notices: Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, New York (which actually takes effect on Dec. 31, 2015), Rhode Island, South Dakota and Vermont. In addition, both Washington, D.C. and Maryland will increase their ...

December 29, 2015

28 view(s)

Rules Proposed for Child Care Block Grant Program

New proposed rules to improve child care have been announced by the Administration for Children and Families, an office within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The proposed rules offer additional guidance on program requirements established by the bipartisan Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 2014, which was passed by Congress and signed by President Obama in Novemb...

December 29, 2015

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Health Care Reporting Deadlines Extended for Employers

The February and March deadlines for employers to report health care information to their employees and to the IRS have been pushed back to March 31, and in some cases to June 30. The original deadline for reporting to employees was Feb. 1, with a new two-month window until March 31. The Feb. 29 and March 31 deadlines for reporting the same information to the IRS (by paper or electronically, r...

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About author

Girish Anand

Recent Articles

Practical articles on HR, Safety, compliance, and people operations—written for real businesses, not legal textbooks.

U.S. Department of Labor Officially Restores Prior Overtime Exemption Rules

On May 14th, 2026, the Wage and Hour Division (WHD) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced it has officially rescinded the 2024 overtime exemption rules. Specifically, the WHD published a technical amendment to restore previous 2019 regulations that dictated overtime exemptions for...

NLRB General Counsel Takes Action to Tackle Current Case Backlog

On May 6th, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and NLRB General Counsel Crystal Stowe Carey announced the bulk transfer of thousands of labor practice cases. Specifically, this action fulfills an initiative signed by the NLRB General Counsel earlier this year. Overall, the initiative...

Privacy Agency Invites Comments from Businesses on the CCPA’s Usage of Personal Data

Recently, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) issued a call for comments on the current state of personal data collection under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). Specifically, the invitation to deliver remarks was issued on April 20th, 2026. The information provided by the...

DOL Proposes New Joint Employer Rule To Unify Standards Under Federal Labor Laws

In April 2026, the U.S. Department of Labor issued a proposed rule to establish a single, clear standard for determining when joint-employer status applies under three major federal laws: the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and the Migrant and Seasonal...

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.

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Articles by Girish Anand