Frank C. Morris, Jr., a Member of the Firm in the Litigation and Employee Benefits practices, in the firm’s Washington, DC, office, was quoted in Treasury & Risk, in “Proposed Regs, Legislation Could Provide Clarity on Wellness Incentives,” by Susan Kelly.
Following is an excerpt:
“You are talking about in an optimistic world probably a minimum of 120 days, but conceivably a much longer period before the final rulemaking,” said Frank Morris Jr., who heads the labor and employment practice in the Washington office of Epstein Becker & Green. …
Employers should ensure that wellness programs comply with the ADA’s rules about reasonable accommodation and provide alternative ways to qualify for an incentive for employees who aren’t able to meet a program’s requirements the regular way, Morris said. …
“The key part is the court reached the conclusion that you don’t have to engage in the inquiry about voluntary or involuntary if the wellness program is part of the employer’s health benefit program because then it’s inside the ADA safe harbor for bona fide benefit plans,” Morris said. “Although that’s only the Eleventh Circuit, it’s still an important precedent.”