Benefits Manager Responsibilities

Federal Laws

ERISA Employee Retirement and Income Security Act
ERISA establishes standards of conduct, responsibility and obligations for fiduciaries of employee benefit plans.  This includes various health benefits, disability benefits, unemployment compensation benefits, retirement plans and income deferral programs. 

Responsibilties of Benefits Manager:
Distribute Summary Plan Descriptions (SPDs) At CUA, the Benefits Manager is responsible (as the delegee of the Administrator of the Plans, who is the Treasurer) for overseeing distribution of the Summary Plan Descriptions to participants and beneficiaries.  The Plan administrator must automatically furnish to each participant of an employee welfare or pension benefit plan and to each beneficiary receiving benefits under a pension plan a copy of the summary plan description, and all modifications and changes referred to 29 USC 1022(a) within 90 days after he/she becomes a participant, or in the case of a beneficiary, within 90 days after he/she first receives benefits, or if later, within 120 days after the plan becomes subject to ERISA [29 USC 1024(b)]. At CUA the following documents must be distributed in order to meet the above requirement: 
   

Defined Contribution Retirement SPD
TDA Retirement SPD
Employee Assistance SPD
Flex Spending SPD
The Omnibus Plan Document (which contains the required text so that the Life Insurance, Health Insurance and Long Term Disability Insurance distributions from CIGNA are considered ERISA compliant)

Once every five years HR must furnish to each beneficiary receiving benefits under a pension plan, and each participant in an employee benefit plan,  an updated SPD that incorporates all plan amendments made within last five years, unless no such amendments have been made, in which case the SPD shall be given out every tenth year of the plan. Specifics on this and distribution of material modifications to the plan are on the CUA ERISA web page.

Distribute Summary Annual Reports Within 210 days after the close of the fiscal year of the plan, the administrators shall furnish to each participant, and to each beneficiary receiving benefits under a pension plan, a copy of the statements and schedules, for such fiscal year, described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 1023(b)(3) and such other material (including the percentage determined under section 1023(d)(11) of this title) as is necessary to fairly summarize the latest annual report. At CUA this must be done by Sept. 30th of each year.

The Benefits Manager must ensure timely enrollment of all employees in the CUA Retirement Plan, and must automatically enroll employees who do not sign up when noticed. This must be done in accord with the Final Regulations on Qualified Default Investment Alternatives. The Benefits Manager must also sent out the annual notices on  Qualified Default Investment Alternatives.

The Benefits Manager must also file form 5500, Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan, which is due each year on July 15th. (nb: This will be outsourced starting with the report due July 15th, 2009, but the retirement plan 5500 will not be outsourced until the following year.)

Cafeteria Plans
A cafeteria plan is a written plan document that allows employees to exclude from gross income certain types of employer provided benefits, such as accident and health insurance, group term and life insurance, and benefits under a dependent care assistance program. Nondiscrimination rules apply and an annual return for the plan must be filed.
The Benefits Manager is responsible for ensuring that the non-discrimination testing occurs on an annual basis for dependent care and the medical flex spending plan.

COBRA; Health Care Continuation Coverage Requirements
The Law:  This law requires covered employers (20 or more employees) offering group health plans to provide employees and certain family members the opportunity to continue health coverage under the group health plan in a number of instances when coverage would otherwise have lapsed. 

NB: As of January 1st, 2009 HR has outsourced COBRA processing for employees. The Manager of Benefits still has coordination and oversight responsibilties under the law.

The Service Provider must:

Provide a COBRA Notification (option to continue health coverage under the group health plan in a number of instances when coverage otherwise would lapse) in several instances: a general notice of COBRA rights to an employee and his/her spouse when health coverage begins; notification to the plan administrator within 30 days when a qualifying event occurs with respect to a covered employee.  A qualifying event includes:

an employee's termination of employment;
reduction of hours in employment;
death;
enrollment in Medicare; or
the employer's bankruptcy filing

Due to an amendment to the law effective April 1, 2009, two new events, with a 60 day notification period are added: 1) the employee’s or dependent’s CHIP or Medicaid coverage is terminated due to loss of eligibility or 2)     the employee or dependent becomes eligible for a subsidy under Medicaid or CHIP.

Detailed records of COBRA notifications must be kept, including the dates sent, and detailed records of COBRA rejections or acceptance.  Curently this task would be done by the service provider.

Resources:

CUA Policy Page with link to Plan Documents and SPDs

Watson Wyatt summary of DOL Final Regulation on Qualified Default Investment Alternative.

IRS Sample Automatic Enrollment and Default Investment Notice Letter

TIAA-CREF Web Page on QDIAs *

TIAA-CREF Web Page with Sample QDIA and Auto Enroll Notices

Default Investment Alternatives Under Participant Directed Individual Account Plans; Final Rule,
72 Fed. Reg. 60451 (October 24, 2007) ***

Regulation Relating to Qualified Default Investment Alternatives in Participant Directed Individual Account Plans: Department of Labor Summary of Regulation***

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman Department of Labor Issues Final Regulations on QDIAs

TIAA-CREF ERISA page

Reporting and Disclosure Guide for Employee Benefit Plans issued by the U.S. Department of Labor Oct. 2003

ERISA Compliance Matrix

Resources:
Model General Notice of COBRA Continuation Coverage Rights

Model COBRA Continuation Coverage Election Notice

Frequently Asked Questions about COBRA Continuation Coverage

Other Resources

Benefits Focus Area of The Society for Human Resource Management

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