health care Archives - Be Well Solutions

Wellness Programs Under EEOC Attack—What to Do Now

Frank C. Morris, JR for The National Law Review ________________________________________ Improved Employee Health and Reduced Health Care Costs The U.S. Department of Labor has proclaimed that “the Affordable Care Act creates new incentives and builds on existing wellness program policies to promote employer wellness programs and encourage opportunities to support healthier workplaces.” Employers have embraced wellness programs as a way to improve employee health, enhance productivity, and control health care costs over time. The extent of that embrace is shown in a 2014 Kaiser Family Foundation & Health Research and Educational Trust annual survey of employer-sponsored health benefits. The survey found that 94 percent of employers with over 200 employees, and 63 percent of smaller employers now sponsor some form of wellness program. The positive benefits of wellness programs were also discussed at a January 29, 2015, hearing of the [...]

EEOC Issues Proposed Wellness Program Amendments to ADA Regulations

Frank C. Morris, JR for the National Law Review On April 16, 2015, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) released its highly anticipated proposed regulations (to be published in the Federal Register on April 20, 2015, for notice and comment) setting forth the EEOC’s interpretation of the term “voluntary” as to the disability-related inquiries and medical examination provisions of the American with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). Under the ADA, employers are generally barred from making disability-related inquiries to employees or requiring employees to undergo medical examinations. There is an exception to this prohibition, however, for disability-related inquiries and medical examinations that are “voluntary.” All comments regarding the proposed regulations must be submitted within 60 days from April 20, 2015, which is June 19, 2015. Employers should have considerable interest in submitting comments, especially as those hostile to wellness programs will surely [...]