The Audit Trilogy Part II: Preparing for and Surviving a Health and Welfare Audit

Topics

• The Audit Trilogy Part II: Preparing for and Surviving a Health and Welfare Audit
   

Although health and welfare benefits have been around for a long time, they have (until now) escaped the attention of DOL auditors. With the Affordable Care Act’s many new mandates and notice requirements, however, the DOL has begun to show new interest in these plans and has made health and welfare plan audits an enforcement priority. From here on out, employers and their advisors should expect the DOL to audit health and welfare plans frequently and aggressively. Our experienced panel will help employers and advisors prepare for these audits by:

• Explaining the requirements of ERISA and the ACA applicable to health and welfare plans, and the penalties for noncompliance
• Describing the typical audit, including how and why an audit is initiated, what employers will be required to provide and the typical timeline
• Reviewing a typical audit letter
• Offering practical tips for surviving the audit with your wits and sanity intact
• Describing ways to use technology to communicate with employees, distribute and collect employee notices, and retain documents to help minimize the cost of annual disclosures and to help with audit compliance
• Practical insight based upon actual ACA audits