Latest Update

January 12, 2024

Medical Mileage Rates for 2024

On December 14, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced an increase in the optional business standard mileage rate to 67 cents in 2024 from 65.5 cents in 2023. The medical mileage rate of 21-cents-per-mile in 2024 is down from the 22-cents-per-mile in 2023.

You can view the full compliance alert (released January 12, 2024) here for the complete details.

November 15, 2023

IRS 2024 Tax Inflation Adjustments Summary

On November 9, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2023-34 providing the new index figures for 2024. The updated figures for 2024 include:

• Healthcare Flexible Spending Account (Healthcare FSA) annual salary reduction limits are set at $3,200, (up from $3,050 in 2023)
  • For cafeteria plans that permit the carryover of unused amounts, the maximum carryover amount is $640 for the subsequent plan year
• The Dependent Care FSA limits for all but those married filing separately remain set at $5,000, with those married filing separately set at $2,500.
• Commuter accounts for both parking and also transit/vanpooling are set at $315 per month, up from $300 in 2023.

Adoption Assistance Exclusion and Adoption Credit numbers are also set for 2024, with the tax credit limit set at $16,810 (up from $15,950 in 2023).

In addition to the numbers just released, the IRS released IRS Notice 2023-75 on November 1, 2023, which announced that the maximum employee contributions for 401(k), 403(b), or 457 plans are set at $23,000 (with a maximum catch-up allowed for those 50+ at $7,500). 

As an additional reminder, the IRS earlier this year set other index figures with Revenue Procedure 2023-23, including Health Savings Account (HSA) figures. These numbers include:

• Minimum deductible amounts for High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP) in 2024 will be $1,600 for individuals and $3,200 for families.
• Maximum HSA Contribution levels in 2024 will be $4,150 for individuals and $8,300 for families, with a catch-up contribution of $1,000 for individuals 55 years of age and older.
• Maximum HDHP out-of-pocket expenses (excluding premiums) for 2024 will be $8,050 for individuals and $16,100 for families.

Revenue Procedure 2023-23 also provides that the maximum amount that may be contributed into an Excepted Health Reimbursement Arrangement (EBHRA) for plan years beginning in 2024 is $2,100 (up from $1,950 for plan years beginning in 2023).

You can view the full compliance alert (released November 9, 2023) here for the complete details.

July 21, 2023

IRS Issues Guidance on COVID-19 Expenses for HDHPs

On June 23, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published Notice 2023-37 (the “Notice”).¹ This notice relates to how High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs) can cover COVID-19-related expenses before the minimum deductible is satisfied for plan years ending on or before December 31, 2024. The Notice also clarifies that the preventive care safe harbor under the Internal Revenue Code’s Health Savings Account (HSA) eligibility rules does not include COVID-19 screenings, and that if the United States Preventive Services Task Force were to recommend COVID-19 screenings with an “A” or “B” rating, then that testing would be treated as preventive care under the HSA eligibility rules, regardless of whether coverage without cost-sharing is required under the ACA’s preventive services mandate.

Previously, in response to the COVID-19 National Health Emergency, the IRS published Notice 2020-15² which allowed HDHPs to provide benefits associated with testing and treatment of COVID-19 either without a deductible or with one that was below the required minimal annual deductible. This allowed employees to stay eligible to make contributions to their HSAs even if medical expenses related to COVID-19 testing or treatment were paid by the HDHP.

Due to the end of the COVID-19 emergency, the Notice applies for plan years ending on or before December 31, 2024, and no longer allows an HDHP to cover testing and treatment expenses related to COVID-19 without a deductible or with a deductible below the annual minimum deductible (for individual and family coverage). A calendar year, HDHP, therefore, will be required to apply the cost of COVID-19-related expenses to the plan deductible beginning with the 2025 plan year. Non-calendar HDHP plan years have even less time before the expiration of the relief.

HealthEquity will continue to monitor Notice 2023-37 developments around future guidance as COVID-19 relief continues to unwind.

You can view the full compliance alert (released July 21, 2023) here for the complete details.

June 27, 2023

Compliance Reminders for Nondiscrimination Testing and Form 5500 Filing Obligations

With compliance on everyone’s to-do list, HealthEquity has provided a helpful reminder about two requirements of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) for most consumer-directed benefit plans: nondiscrimination testing and Form 5500 filing obligations.

Nondiscrimination testing ensures plans are not designed to discriminate in favor of highly paid employees. The tests can be organized into three basic groupings: Eligibility, Availability of Benefits, and Utilization. In addition, plan sponsors who meet certain requirements and who provide welfare plans (i.e., provide benefits such as medical, dental, disability, etc.) are also required to file Form 5500, with some key exceptions.

HealthEquity is available to help answer questions or complete nondiscrimination testing or Form 5500 services for HealthEquity administered benefit plans.

You can view the full compliance alert (released June 23, 2023) here for the complete details.

May 16, 2023

2024 HSA Index Update Summary

On May 16, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2023-23 providing the new Health Savings Account (HSA) index figures for 2024. The updated figures for 2024 include:

Minimum deductible amounts for High Deductible Health Plans (HDHP) in 2024 will be $1,600 for individuals and $3,200 for families. Maximum HSA Contribution levels in 2024 will be $4,150 for individuals and $8,300 for families, with a catch-up contribution of $1,000 for individuals 55 years of age and older. Maximum HDHP out-of-pocket expenses (excluding premiums) for 2024 will be $8,050 for individuals and $16,100 for families.

Revenue Procedure 2023-23 also provides that the maximum amount that may be made newly available for the plan year in an excepted Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) is $2,100

You can review the full compliance alert (released on May 16, 2023) here for the complete details, including link to the FAQs mentioned above.

April 19, 2023

White House Signs Bill Terminating COVID-19 National Emergency Period; Outbreak Period End Date Remains July 10, 2023

On April 10, 2023, President Joe Biden signed into law a resolution officially ending the COVID-19 National Emergency effective that date. This date is almost a month earlier than the May 11, 2023 date the White House had previously announced for the end of both the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) and National Emergency periods. On March 29, 2023, the Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury (collectively, the “Agencies”) issued the "FAQs about Families First Coronavirus Response Act, Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Implementation Part 58"  announcing the Outbreak Period will end on July 10, 2023, which is 60 days after May 11, 2023. The DOL has provided informal, verbal guidance affirming this end date for the Outbreak Period, the change to the National Emergency end date notwithstanding.

You can review the full compliance alert (released on April 19, 2023) here for the complete details, including link to the FAQs mentioned above.

February 2, 2023

End of COVID National Emergency

On January 30, 2023, the White House announced that it plans to end the COVID-19 National Emergency and public health emergency declarations on May 11, 2023. With this announcement, the 60-day period following the end of the national emergency is expected to begin on May 12, 2023, thus counting down the end of the COVID-19 Outbreak Period and certain ERISA health and welfare plan benefit deadlines that have been extended during this period will resume beginning July 11, 2023.

During the week of March 6, 2023, our teams will begin work to update reimbursement account (RA) plan run-out dates for impacted plans. You can expect to receive a communication from us if you have ERISA plans impacted by the end of the Outbreak Period. This will include more details around the changes and include a member email template for you to use in communicating changes to your employees.

Our internal teams will continue monitoring the situation and communicate to our partners, brokers, clients, and members if the federal government provides any additional information regarding the end of the COVID-19 Outbreak Period.

You can review the full compliance alert (released on February 2, 2023) here for the complete details on the White House announcement.

March 28, 2022

COVID-19 Outbreak Period Deadline Relief Continues

On February 18, 2022, President Biden again determined in a letter to Congress that it is necessary to further extend the national emergency period concerning the COVID-19 pandemic.³This action follows Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra’s recent – but separate – declaration that the government would extend the public health emergency for COVID-19.

While this extension continues the ongoing tolling period calculations, it bears repeating that the following deadlines – on an individual-by-individual basis - will be extended for the duration of the Outbreak Period relief:

• the 14-day deadline for plan administrators to provide COBRA election notices to qualified beneficiaries;

• the 30-day period (or 60-day period, in some cases) to exercise HIPAA special enrollment rights in a group health plan following birth, adoption, or placement for adoption of a child; marriage, loss of other health coverage; or eligibility for a state premium assistance subsidy;

• the 60-day deadline by which a participant or qualified beneficiary must provide notice of divorce or legal separation, a dependent child that ceases to be an eligible dependent under the terms of the plan), or a Social Security disability determination used to extend COBRA coverage;

• the 60-day deadline in which to elect COBRA coverage;

• Individuals electing COBRA outside of the initial 60-day election period (as referenced above) generally have one year and 105 days after the election notice is provided to make the initial premium payment; and individuals electing COBRA within the generally applicable 60-day election period have one year and 45 days after the date of their election to make the initial payment;⁴

• the date by which monthly COBRA premium payments are due; and

• the deadline under the plan by which participants may file a benefit claim (under the terms of the plan) and the deadlines for appealing an adverse benefit determination or requesting an external review.

Read the full compliance alert here.

March 21, 2022

Department of labor (DOL) issues guidance on COVID-19 outbreak period relief duration

On February 26, 2021, the Department of Labor (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued Disaster Relief Notice 2021-01 to confirm the position of both the DOL and the Department of the Treasury (collectively, the “Agencies”) concerning the calculation of the COVID-19 Outbreak Period plan deadline suspensions with regard to participants’ ability to enroll mid-year in group health plan coverage, elect and pay for COBRA continuation coverage, submit benefit claims, and file appeals for benefit benefits determinations.

Notice 2021-01 affirms that the relief introduced in May 2020 continues for the duration of the COVID-19 national emergency period, but any period that is to be disregarded with respect to a certain plan deadline applying to a participant cannot extend beyond one year with respect to that participant. In other words, they have applied the one-year limitation to each impacted participant and event deadline. Therefore, the Agencies recommend that plans and issuers advise individuals not to seek reimbursement from a health FSA or HRA for the cost of OTC COVID-19 tests paid or reimbursed by the plan or issuer.

In Notice 2021-01, the DOL underscored President Biden’s determination and concurred the COVID-19 national emergency – and therefore the Outbreak Period – is still underway. While the ERISA and Code provisions expressly limit the maximum disregarded period for individual actions (whether those actions are “required or permitted”) to a period of one year from the date the individual action would otherwise have been required or permitted, this one-year period is applied on an individual-by-individual basis.

Review the Compliance Alert, including examples to illustrate how to apply the one-year period, here.

February 4, 2022

Tri-agencies clarify recent guidance on OTC COVID-19 tests and HRA/FSAs

On February 4, 2022, the Department of Labor (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) – in conjunction with the Departments of Health and Human Services and the Treasury released new guidance in the form of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) addressing the White House’s ongoing expansion of “Free At-Home Testing for Americans” in the ongoing battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the newest set of FAQs, the Agencies reiterate the general prohibition against individuals participating in a Flexible Spending Account (health FSA), Health Savings Account (HSA), or Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) seeking reimbursement under one of these plans and having the health plan – which is now required to cover these OTC COVID-19 tests – pay for the same medical expense.

Therefore, the Agencies recommend that plans and issuers advise individuals not to seek reimbursement from a health FSA or HRA for the cost of OTC COVID-19 tests paid or reimbursed by the plan or issuer.

Review the newest set of FAQs here.

April 16, 2021

American Rescue Plan Act Update

On April 7, 2021, the DOL released guidance in the form of Frequently Asked Questions regarding the COBRA subsidy, as well as model notices that can be used when administering ARPA’s COBRA subsidy requirements. The DOL’s guidance includes:

• FAQs about COBRA premium assistance under the American Rescue Plan Act: PDF

• Model General Notice and COBRA Continuation Coverage Election Notice: PDF

• Model Notice in Connection with Extended Election Period: PDF

• Model Alternative Notice: PDF

• Model Notice of Expiration of Premium Assistance: PDF

• Summary of COBRA Premium Assistance Provisions under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021:  PDF

View our full compliance alert here. And take time to review the resources above to stay informed about ARPA and the COBRA Subsidy.

HealthEquity will continue to stay abreast of this topic and – as additional guidance is available – we will advise accordingly.

March 3, 2021

EBSA Disaster Relief Notice 2021-01

On February 26, 2021, the US Department of Labor (DOL) released Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) Disaster Relief Notice 2021-01 providing further guidance with respect to certain plan deadlines occurring during the COVID-19 National Emergency period.

In coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Internal Revenue Service, the DOL interprets the one-year maximum period is to be applied on a person-by-person basis. In short, the one-year period is calculated with respect to each member’s specific expiration date.