Health Insurers Cover Home COVID-19 Tests

Health Insurers Cover Home COVID-19 Tests

Starting January 15 at-home CIOVID-19 tests will be free of charge. This order was issued last week Biden-Harris Administration Requires Insurance Companies and Group Health Plans to Cover the Cost of At-Home COVID-19 Tests, Increasing Access to Free Tests.

Free At-Home COVID-19 Test available via USPS. On Jan. 18, every home in the United States can order up to four free COVID-19 tests. January 19, Americans will be able to order free at-home rapid COVID tests from the government at COVIDTests.gov.

The federal guidance requires commercial insurers and group health plans (both fully insured and self-insured) to reimburse consumers for the cost of Over-the-Counter (OTC) COVID-19 diagnostic tests, with or without an order or clinical assessment by a healthcare provider.

Types of COVID Tests:

  • Antigen tests, which test for an active infection by detecting specific virus proteins. Most at-home tests and “rapid tests” performed by healthcare providers fall in this category.
  • Molecular tests, which test for an active infection by amplifying genetic material from the virus. These are considered the “gold standard” for diagnosing COVID, as they are generally more accurate than antigen tests. The most familiar test from this category is the polymerase chain reaction (or PCR) test, which requires lab processing. 
  • Antibody tests, which are blood tests that determine if the body has had an immune response to the virus. These tests are not used for diagnosing an active infection.

How Will this work with your Insurer?

Consistent with the guidance Insurers will utilize existing member claims submission procedures to provide benefits without cost-share for OTC COVID-19 tests that members purchase, either online or through other retailers. In addition to the member demographic information that is normally filed with member-submitted claims, the members will be required to certify that the test was purchased for personal use and not for employment purposes.

Customers may receive reimbursement for up to 8 COVID-19 OTC tests per covered individual per calendar month without a health care provider prescription or individualized clinical assessment. For a family of four covered individuals, that equates to 32 tests per month.

Members with Empire Blue Cross, for example, will utilize A.I. apps such as Sydney App or online.  Separately, Insurers such as UnitedHealthcare will initially offer for at-home COVID-19 tests are Walmart Pharmacy and Rite Aid Pharmacy. When using Walmart or Rite-Aid there will be no up-front cost and you will not have to submit a form for reimbursement. Note, you may be required to go to the pharmacy counter to obtain the test kits at no cost.

Note, only tests that are FDA approved and sold by an authorized reseller are eligible for reimbursement. For updates, go to Approved COVID-19 Home Tests | NC COVID-19 (ncdhhs.gov).

Insurance Resources:

Aetna

CIGNA

Empire BlueCross / Anthem

Halthfirst

Horizon Healthcare NJ

Oxford/Unitedhealthcare

If you’re interested in hearing more about the advantages of partnering with a PEO, we’d love to talk to you. Fill out the form below or email info@medicalsolutionscorp.com for a FREE Consultation Today!

The information provided on this website is intended for informational purposes only.  Millennium Medical Solutions Corp. does not offer legal or medical guidance.  Those with legal or medical questions should seek appropriate assistance from a licensed professional.  Stay up to date by signing up for Newsletter and Coronavirus Dashboard below.

Learn how our PEO Partnership can help your group please contact us at info@360peo.com or (855)667-4621.

Put You & Your Employees in Good Hands

Get In Touch

For more information on PEOs or a customized quote please submit your contact. We will be in touch ASAP.

OSHA Issued COVID-19 Vaccination (ETS)

OSHA Issued COVID-19 Vaccination (ETS)

sCMS and OSHA released interim final rules this week detailing the implementation of national vaccine requirements established by President Biden’s executive order in September.Yesterday, the Department of Labor released an unpublished version of the OSHA Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).

 The ETS is effective immediately and will cover 2/3rds of private employers. The OSHA ETS puts into effect the Biden Executive Order mandating all private employers with 100 or more employees ensure their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19, or submit negative weekly tests.

KEY Summary:

Covered Employers

    • Private employers with 100 or more employees enterprise-wide (across US locations) at the time these rules become effective
      • Independent contractors not included
      • Special franchisee, construction and staffing agency rules
      • Companies who grow will move into the covered group
    • State/local governments, including schools
    • Only state/local ordinances/laws that are not conflicting will have effect (i.e., if the state law prohibits vaccine mandates, OSHA ETS will supersede state law. OSHA ETS will be mandated.)
      • States with state OSHA plans may adopt these federal rules or similar rules. Some states are threatened with removal of state plan authority for failure to comply with laws as stringent as federal (e.g., UT & AZ)

Compliance Deadline

    • Within 30 days of publication (December 5)
    • Testing requirements within 60 days (January 4)

Mandate

    • Determine vaccination status of each employee
      • Obtain acceptable proof – 
      • Maintain records/roster
    • Unvaccinated must test negative weekly if worker in workplace at least once a week or within 7 days before returning to work if worker is away from workplace a week or longer
      • Must wear face covering indoors or in occupied vehicle for work
      • Employer not required to pay for testing unless required by law or collective bargaining agreement
      • Employer not required to pay for face coverings
    • Notice
      • Employee must promptly notify of positive COVID test or receive diagnosis
        • Employer must remove employee from workplace, regardless of vaccination status
        • May not return to work until meeting criteria
    • Must provide paid time off for vaccination and recovery from side effects

OSHA is offering robust compliance assistance to help businesses implement the standard, including a webinarfrequently asked questions and other compliance materials.  

Conclusion

In conclusion, employers subject to the ETS must determine whether they will take a vaccine-only or combined vaccine and testing/face covering approach to compliance and must develop the required written policies and communicate those policies to employees so they have ample time to receive their COVID-19 vaccines.  Employers should work with legal counsel to develop their written policies and to address any reasonable accommodation requests received by employees.

If needing employment law assistance in implementing these new rules, contact your World Insurance Associates representative so that they can connect you a Jackson Lewis P.C. council in order to receive the WIA arrangement. For our PEO clients, please speak with in-house council and HR. 

The information provided in this alert is not, is not intended to be, and shall not be construed to be, either the provision of legal advice or an offer to provide legal services, nor does it necessarily reflect the opinions of the agency, our lawyers, or our clients.  This is not legal advice. Rather, the content is intended as a general overview of the subject matter covered.  

Learn how our PEO Partnership can help your group please contact us at info@medicalsolutionscorp.com or (855)667-4621.

Put You & Your Employees in Good Hands

Get In Touch

For more information on PEOs or a customized quote please submit your contact. We will be in touch ASAP.

PPE Expenses May Be Reimbursable Under HSA

PPE Expenses May Be Reimbursable Under HSA

PPE Expenses May Be Reimbursable Under Health Spending Accounts – Video

During the COVID-19 pandemic, you may have purchased masks or PPE for the purpose of preventing the spread of the COVID-19. Now, according to a recent announcement from the IRS, those purchases may be deductible from your income for tax purposes and eligible to be paid or reimbursed under certain savings accounts. This video explains further:

If you’re interested in hearing more about the advantages of partnering with a PEO, we’d love to talk to you. Fill out the form below or email info@medicalsolutionscorp.com for a FREE Consultation Today!

The information provided on this website is intended for informational purposes only.  Millennium Medical Solutions Corp. does not offer legal or medical guidance.  Those with legal or medical questions should seek appropriate assistance from a licensed professional.  Stay up to date by signing up for Newsletter and Coronavirus Dashboard below.

Learn how our PEO Partnership can help your group please contact us at info@360peo.com or (855)667-4621.

Put You & Your Employees in Good Hands

Get In Touch

For more information on PEOs or a customized quote please submit your contact. We will be in touch ASAP.

PPP Flexibility Act Signed

PPP Flexibility Act Signed

On Friday, June 5, President Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Flexibility Act, clearing the way for more flexibility and forgiveness of the loans made through the PPP. Originally these loans, which were part of the CARES Act, were provided to help business owners cover payroll costs, rent, and utilities.

The newly enacted legislation states that:

  • Business owners now have 24 weeks to spend funds (up from eight weeks)
  • Business owners only need to spend 60% of the loan on payroll costs (down from 75%)
  • The covered period of the loan now ends December 31 instead of June 30
  • Business owners won’t have to make employer payroll tax payments through the end of 2020
  • The business will not lose any loan forgiveness eligibility if it can show that some employees declined to return to their jobs or the pre-pandemic headcount is no longer required
  • The payback period for new loan applicants has been extended from two years to a minimum of five for those not seeking, or who are ineligible, for forgiveness

If you’d like to find out more about how you can get better benefits so your employees use them when they need to, we’d like to show you how. Please contact us using form below or info@360peo.com or 855-667-4621.

The information provided on this website is intended for informational purposes only.  360PEO does not offer legal or medical guidance.  Those with legal or medical questions should seek appropriate assistance from a licensed professional.  Stay up to date by signing up for Newsletter and Coronavirus Dashboard below.

Learn how our PEO Partnership can help your group please contact us at info@360peo.com or (855)667-4621.

Put You & Your Employees in Good Hands

Get In Touch

For more information on PEOs or a customized quote please submit your contact. We will be in touch ASAP.

6 Advantages of a PEO during COVID-19

6 Advantages of a PEO during COVID-19

6 Advantages of a PEO during COVID-19

As COVID-19 unfolds, the importance of a PEO for a Small Business becomes evident. How can you protect your employees while also managing costs?  Here are examples of how our PEO clients have benefited.

 1. Rapid Law Changes

With recent CARES Act and FFCRA(Families First Coronavirus Response Act) to help struggling businesses, overwhelming info and regulations have mounted for the small business owner. Who is eligible for benefits? Tax credits? Furloughs and COBRA? Is their business Essential? Paid Sick Leave eligibility and additional tax credit entitlement?

PEOs provide a full team of experts who anxiously awaited the legislation, final rulings, and updates on all the Acts. They spend countless hours diving into legal jargon to answer business owners’ questions. Then, PEOs work alongside organizations to implement processes that assist in keeping the business compliant. They also help employees through the difficult time, with the livelihood of the business always in mind.

2. PEOs help with Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans through the CARES Act

Lenders are asking for historical payroll data and tax reports quickly produced by a PEO’s HRIS System. Many small businesses without HR help find these systems financially draining. Example: Needed 940/941 reporting is issued which can be sent to SBA Lender.  Also, several leading  PEO’s have supported clients with NYS Shared Loans Program.

Working with clients to understand options.

 3. Payroll Burden

Payroll administration is now a nightmare. Tracking the FFCRA emergency sick leave and expanded FMLA separately from regular sick and FMLA leave has thrown a wrench in many payroll processors’ systems. Add on any furloughed or terminated employee reporting and tracking, and now the job has doubled.

Instead, our PEO Clientsy are spending their time on mission-critical work that could make or break the business. Additionally, their payroll is processed by professionals who have the time and expertise to know the nuances of payroll and payroll tax laws with back up teams of professionals in place.

 4. Staffing Needs – On-Boarding and Terminations 

A minimum 75% of PPP loans must be spent on staffing costs.  Companies that had previously furloughed or terminated employees find they need to hire employees back. This comes with additional paperwork and many employee questions, such as whether benefits wait periods start over. 

Conversely, when businesses do need to furlough or terminate employees, the PEO is a great guide for compliance. The layoff process, COBRA,  paperwork including givernement reporting are supported. 

5. HR Excellence

Partnering with a PEO is much like gaining access to a full-service HR division, with a team of HR experts who are up-to-date with new and changing employment laws and able to identify ways to streamline your HR.

According to a report conducted by the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO), PEOs provide access to more HR services at a cost that is close to $450 lower per employee, compared to companies that manage their HR services in-house. 

 Studies show that businesses in a PEO arrangement grow 7-9 percent faster, have 10-14 percent lower turnover, and are 50 percent less likely to go out of business.

 6. Affordable and Better Benefits

By joining a large group risk-pool a a PEO can help employers gain access to high quality employee benefits, such as health insurance options with stable and affordable rates. Due to costs, small businesses often find high-quality employee benefits out of reach.  The savings on health insurance alone can pay for the PEO itself.  

If you’re interested in hearing more about the advantages of partnering with a PEO, we’d love to talk to you. Fill out the form below or email info@medicalsolutionscorp.com for a FREE Consultation Today!

The information provided on this website is intended for informational purposes only.  Millennium Medical Solutions Corp. does not offer legal or medical guidance.  Those with legal or medical questions should seek appropriate assistance from a licensed professional.  Stay up to date by signing up for Newsletter and Coronavirus Dashboard below.

Learn how our PEO Partnership can help your group please contact us at info@360peo.com or (855)667-4621.

Put You & Your Employees in Good Hands

Get In Touch

For more information on PEOs or a customized quote please submit your contact. We will be in touch ASAP.