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Compliance November 7, 2014
DOL Secures $2M in Health Benefit Restorations in Atlanta
The U.S. Department of Labor has secured a nearly $2 million voluntary correction by Cox Enterprises Inc. after the Atlanta, Georgia-based company violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
Reported by PLANSPONSOR staff
In a related statement from the Labor Department, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employee Benefits Security Phyllis C. Borzi said the DOL is “pleased that Cox Enterprises Inc. has taken steps to resolve this issue.”
“So many workers rely on their employment-based benefits to stay healthy, and it’s important that they be able to fully take advantage of preventive care services,” she added.
According to the DOL, Cox placed annual limits on the dollar amount of benefits that participants and beneficiaries of adult preventive care could claim in plan years 2011, 2012 and 2013. The law prohibits companies from placing annual limits on these health benefits, the DOL says.
Cox Enterprises has voluntarily restored $1,986,918 to 4,564 affected participants. The company reprocessed all adult preventive care services claims that had previously been denied because they exceeded the plan’s annual limit of $500 in plan years 2011 and 2012 or $750 in 2013. Cox has also asked participants to submit all claims that had not been submitted previously because they exceeded the limit.
Cox Enterprises is a communications, media and automotive services company with more than 50,000 employees, whose subsidiaries include AutoTrader.com Inc., Kelley Blue Book Co. Inc., Manheim Auctions, Savings.com Inc. and Valpak Direct Marketing Systems Inc. The voluntary correction was the result of an investigation conducted by EBSA’s Atlanta Regional Office, the DOL says.