Is Your Group Health Plan Ready for a Compliance Audit?
Employer-sponsored group health plans operate at the intersection of multiple federal regulatory frameworks — ERISA, the ACA, COBRA, HIPAA, the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA), and more. Each imposes its own documentation requirements, reporting deadlines, and operational obligations. The challenge for most employers is not a lack of intent to comply, but the sheer complexity of keeping pace with layered and frequently updated rules. A proactive, systematic compliance review conducted with legal guidance is one of the most effective tools employers have to reduce legal exposure, strengthen plan governance, and prepare for regulatory inquiries . The following overview identifies the key compliance areas that such a review should cover. Plan Governance and ERISA Documentation ERISA requires every welfare benefit plan to be maintained pursuant to a written plan document that satisfies specific requirements. Compliance reviews routinely reveal documentation gaps that...