EBSA to Hold Public Forum on Automatic Enrollment in Large Employer Health Plans

In anticipation of developing regulations to implement the new automatic enrollment provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) established by the Affordable Care Act, the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) plans to hold a public forum to solicit views and share information on the new requirement. The new provision included in the health care reform law adds Section 18A to the FLSA, which requires employers with more than 200 full-time employees to automatically enroll new hires – subject to any applicable waiting periods – in one of the employer’s health benefit plans, and to continue the enrollment of current employees in the plan. The new section also requires employers to provide adequate notice and opportunity for an employee to opt out of such coverage. Affected employers are not required to abide by the new enrollment mandate until final rules on this obligation are issued and effective.

The forum, which will be held on April 8, 2011 from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm (EST) at the U.S. Department of Labor, Frances Perkins Building, Room C-5521 (#4), 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210, will be divided into the following three panels:

• Panel 1: Definition of Full-Time Employee for Purposes of the Automatic Enrollment Provisions of Section 18A of the FLSA.
• Panel 2: Selection of Plan, Benefit Package and Coverage (if Employer Maintains More than One) in which Employees would be Automatically Enrolled for Purposes of the Automatic Enrollment Provisions of Section 18A of the FLSA.
• Panel 3: The Adequate Notice and Opportunity to Opt Out Requirements Under the Automatic Enrollment Provisions of Section 18A of the FLSA.

Those interested in attending in person or via conference call are encouraged to register via email to e-ORI@dol.gov by March 25, 2011. Interested participants should include their name, organization, title, email address and phone number in the email, and include “Health Plan Automatic Enrollment Forum” in the subject line. In addition, those individuals or organizations interested in participating on one of the three panels should indicate which panel in their registration.

More information on the auto enrollment forum and the registration process can be found in the EBSA’s invitation. (pdf) A transcript of the forum will be published on the EBSA’s website following the meeting.

This entry was written by Ilyse Schuman

Photo credit: Alex Nikada