Compliance October 6, 2014

EEOC Files Another Lawsuit over Wellness Program

October 6, 2014 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is charging another company with violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by its wellness program practices.
Reported by

The agency says threats of insurance cancellation and discipline make the program involuntary and violate the ADA. The lawsuit was filed against Flambeau, Inc., a Baraboo, Wisconsin-based plastics manufacturing company.

According to the EEOC, Flambeau’s wellness program required that employees submit to biometric testing and a “health risk assessment,” or face cancellation of medical insurance, unspecified “disciplinary action” for failing to attend the scheduled testing, and a requirement to pay the full premium in order to stay covered. The lawsuit alleges that when employee Dale Arnold did not complete the biometric testing and health risk assessment, Flambeau cancelled his medical insurance and shifted responsibility for payment of the entire premium cost to him. The EEOC said employees who had taken the biometric testing and health risk assessment, by comparison, did not have their coverage cancelled involuntarily, and were only required to pay 25% of their premium cost.

Never miss a story — sign up for PLANSPONSOR newsletters to keep up on the latest retirement plan benefits news.

The EEOC contends that the biometric testing and health risk assessment constituted “disability-related inquiries and medical examinations” that were not job-related and consistent with business necessity as defined by the ADA.

The case, EEOC v. Flambeau, Inc., Civil Action No. 3:13-cv-00638, was filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin.

This lawsuit is the EEOC’s second to directly challenge a wellness program under the ADA. Last month, it filed similar charges against Orion Energy Systems (see “EEOC Challenges Employer’s Wellness Program”).

Deals and People October 6, 2014

Seyfarth Adds Employee Benefits Partner in D.C.

October 6, 2014 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – James Napoli has joined Seyfarth Shaw LLP as a partner in the law firm’s employee benefits and executive compensation practice.
Reported by

Napoli has more than 20 years of experience counseling employers on various aspects of employee benefit programs, including health care reform implementation and litigation, ERISA litigation and other matters affecting tax-qualified retirement plans. Previously he was co-chair of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) practice group at Constangy, Brooks & Smith LLP. Napoli is based in Washington, D.C.

His practice focuses on advising businesses on executive compensation plans and group health plan issues, as well as retirement plan design, implementation and administration. Napoli also has experience litigating matters involving claims to benefits and breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA. In addition, he negotiates investment management agreements, administrative services agreements, and several other forms of agreements that create relationships between employers, service providers, and ERISA plans.

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANSPONSOR NEWSDash daily newsletter.

A frequent writer and speaker on employee benefit matters, Napoli is a member of the Health and Welfare Task Force of the American Benefits Council, the Employee Benefits Committee of the Labor Section of the American Bar Association and the Steering Committee for the Healthcare Reform Center and Policy Institute. He received his J.D. from the University of Akron School of Law and earned his B.A. at Cleveland State University.

More information on Seyfarth Shaw is available at www.seyfarth.com.

«