DOL Proposes Rule on Electronic Delivery for Group Health Plans; Comments Requested

The U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued a proposed rule that would modernize how group health plans deliver required disclosures, making communication faster, more efficient, and less costly. The proposed rule would establish a safe harbor allowing approximately 2.8 million group health plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) to provide required documents digitally. The new safe harbor created by the proposed rule is similar to the 2020 safe harbor rule for pension plans. 

DOL proposes to add another safe harbor for group health plan administrators to use electronic media (e.g., email or web portal) to furnish documents and information to participants and beneficiaries of plans subject to ERISA. This proposal, if finalized, would allow plan administrators who satisfy specified conditions to provide participants and beneficiaries with a notice that certain disclosures will be made available electronically on a website.

Individuals will be able to request paper copies and opt out of electronic delivery entirely.

The proposed new safe harbor would be available to group health plans. It would not be available to all welfare benefit plans, such as benefits in the event of sickness, accident, disability, death or unemployment, or vacation benefits, apprenticeship or other training programs, or day care centers, scholarship funds, or prepaid legal services that are not group health plans. DOL requests comments on whether this proposed safe harbor should be extended to other employee welfare benefit plans.

Comments are due 60 days after official publication in the Federal Register.