Patricia Moran is an experienced employee benefits attorney who advises clients on a broad variety of employee benefit plan matters, including:
- Health and welfare matters, including the Affordable Care Act, fringe benefits, cafeteria plans, COBRA, wellness, mental health parity, on-site clinics, health savings accounts, and telemedicine.
- Retirement plan matters, including nondiscrimination testing, plan document design, service provider contract review and negotiation, and correction of errors.
- Benefits-related support on corporation transactions, including drafting, review and negotiation of purchase agreements, due diligence, and post-closing benefits structure.
In addition to her work at Mintz, Patricia has worked with the US Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration investigating private sector employers and venture capital funds with respect to ERISA compliance. She has practiced in the employee benefits departments of two prominent New York City law firms, working primarily on corporate transactions, structured finance, and executive compensation. She has also collaborated with the Harvard School of Public Health on various health policy research projects.
Patricia works with clients of all sizes and in a variety of sectors, including staffing, home health, restaurant, hospitality, consulting, finance, technology and education.
Patricia frequently writes and speaks on a variety of employee benefits related matters.
Education
- Harvard University (MPH)
- Syracuse University (JD)
- University of Notre Dame (BA)
Recognition & Awards
- Chambers USA: Massachusetts - Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation, Recognized Practitioner (2018)
- JDSupra: Named as Top Author in Readers' Choice Awards (2017)
Involvement
- Member, American Bar Association
- Member, Massachusetts Women's Bar Association
- Member, American Health Lawyers Association
- Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce: Boston's Future Leaders (2013)
- Member, Notre Dame Executive Business Council
- Member, Harvard School of Public Health Leadership Council
- Harvard School of Public Health Alumni Award of Merit Selection Committee
- Past board member, Passim Folk Music and Cultural Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts (2008 – 2012)
- Volunteer Chef, Community Cooks
Recent Insights
Viewpoints
Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Law – Focus on the Employer “Private Plan” Exemption
May 22, 2019 | Blog | By Patricia Moran, Emma Follansbee
This post summarizes the requirements of MAPFML and outlines the requirements of the private plan exemptions. We also explain some of the obstacles employers who hope to take advantage of the exemption are likely to encounter.
Breaking News: Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Law – Workforce Notice Requirements and Private Plan Exemptions Deadlines Extended
May 2, 2019 | Alert | By Patricia Moran, Emma Follansbee
On May 1, 2019, the Massachusetts Department of Family and Medical Leave (the “Department”) issued guidance (the “May 1 Guidance”) extending two key deadlines applicable to the Massachusetts Paid Family and Medical Leave Law (MAPMFL).
Will Grandfathered Plans be Rescued?
March 19, 2019 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
On February 25, 2019 the Department of Labor, Department of Health and Human Services, Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (the “Departments”) published a request for information (the “ROI”) on grandfathered plans, signaling that a relaxation of the grandfathering rules may be forthcoming. This post gives a brief history of grandfathered plans and describes the information requested in the ROI (for which responses are due March 27, 2019).
What Employers Need to Know About COBRA Coverage for Terminated Employees
March 11, 2019 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
When the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed some nine years ago, many employers wondered what would become of COBRA (aka, the continuation coverage requirements of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985). COBRA seems as strong as ever. Not surprisingly, however, the COBRA rules are complex, and we frequently field questions from employers who are facing employee terminations and just want to get things right. Here are some of the more common questions we receive from our employer clients.
Recent Developments in the Battle over the Affordable Care Act’s Contraception Mandate
January 30, 2019 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
The Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) requires most health plans to provide first dollar coverage of FDA-approved contraception methods. Nearly nine years after the ACA’s enactment, this contraception mandate continues to be one of the most embattled provisions of the ACA. This post covers recent rulemaking and court decisions impacting the contraception mandate.
The Affordable Care Act’s Contraceptive Mandate: A Loss in Massachusetts and Other Current Events
March 20, 2018 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
The contraceptive mandate, one of the more controversial provisions of the Affordable Care Act, continues to make news as various stakeholders duke it out in and out of court.
No More Delays! New Disability Claims Rules to Take Effect April 2, Says DOL
January 17, 2018 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
On April 2, 2018, significant changes to ERISA’s disability claims procedures will take effect. These new rules will require all ERISA-covered plans which provide disability benefits to make significant modifications to the way disability benefit claims are reviewed and decided.
New Year’s Resolution #5: Four Employee Benefits Resolutions for 2018!
January 11, 2018 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
Happy New Year! It’s that time when we all vow to better ourselves in the months ahead. Resolutions abound, and they need not be limited to individual self-improvement. Employers too have many opportunities for betterment in the New Year.
Want to Save Trees AND Comply with ERISA? Here’s How!
November 13, 2017 | Blog | By Patricia Moran
Tis the season . . . for ERISA disclosure requirements, of course! Between open enrollment and the calendar year end, the list of documents, notices and updates required under ERISA looms large and annoying.
Some Disaster Relief Workers Are Protected Employees under USERRA
October 30, 2017 | Blog | By Patricia Moran, Natalie Young
Hurricanes. Fires. Floods. Shootings. The evening news seems consistently laden with catastrophe. In times like these, a federal agency called the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) often springs into action.
News & Press
Mintz Recognized by Chambers USA 2019
April 26, 2019
Chambers USA 2018 Ranks Mintz Attorneys & Practices
May 03, 2018
Mintz partner and Massachusetts lawyer Julie Korostoff is one of 49 attorneys recognized as “Leaders in Their Fields” by the 2018 Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business guide. Chambers named Korostoff a “Recognized Practitioner” in Technology.
401(k) Plans: A Cybersecurity Afterthought
February 21, 2018 | Society for Human Resource Management
Mintz attorney Patricia Moran’s article was recently published on the Society for Human Resource Management’s website. In it, she elaborates on the matter of cybersecurity awareness, or lack thereof, when it comes to employer management of 401(k) plans.
Mintz Named Top Firm in Energy and Eleven Attorneys Featured in JD Supra’s 2017 Reader’s Choice Awards
March 20, 2017
JD Supra has recognized Mintz in its 2017 Reader’s Choice awards, highlighting the most widely read authors and articles over the past year. Eleven Mintz attorneys were named JD Supra Top Authors in four industries and Mintz was recognized as the Top Firm with readers in the Energy Industry.
AARP Sues EEOC Over Employee Healthcare Plans (Audio)
October 27, 2016 | http://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2016-10-27/aarp-sues-eeoc-over-employee-healthcare-plans-audio Bloomberg
Mintz Employment, Labor, and Benefits attorney Patricia Moran provides commentary in this Bloomberg coverage covering the AARP's suit against the EEOC over employee healthcare plans.
What to Expect from a Health Plan Audit
October 12, 2016 | https://www.shrm.org/ResourcesAndTools/legal-and-compliance/employment-law/Pages/Health-Plan-Audit.aspx Society for Human Resource Management
Mintz Employment, Labor, and Benefits attorney Patricia Moran provides commentary in this Society for Human Resource Management article on the U.S. Department of Labor’s Health Benefits Security Project.
Electronic Distribution of Health and Welfare Benefits Documents: Five Steps to Getting it Right in the Affordable Care Act Age
September 23, 2016
Mintz Employment, Labor and Benefits attorney Patricia Moran authored this Bloomberg BNA column on what employers planning to use electronic distribution to satisfy notice and disclosure requirements inherent in employee health and welfare benefit provision need to know.
Mintz's Patricia Moran authored this Law360 column on the “broad swath of substantive as well as reporting and disclosure requirements under the Affordable Care Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act” to which employee benefits are often subject.
Cadillac Tax Isn’t Being Sent to the Junkyard Yet
January 13, 2016
Mintz attorney Patricia Moran is quoted in this BNA’s Pension and Benefits Blog piece on how the delay in implementation of the Affordable Care Act’s "Cadillac" tax will give employers time to make sure their employee healthcare plans do not exceed the limits stipulated in the tax.
Three Mintz Attorneys Selected for Boston’s Future Leaders Program
January 15, 2013
Events
Moderator
Nov
7
2018
Boston Employment Law Summit
One Financial Center, Boston, MA
Mar
27
2018
New DOL Disability Claims Regulations
Strafford Webinar
Jun
2
2017
Trump Moves to Restrict Access to Birth Control
Bloomberg BNA Radio
Oct
27
2016
AARP Sues EEOC Over Employee Healthcare Plans
Bloomberg BNA Radio
Speaker
Jun
21
2016
Speaker
Apr
19
2016
The Audit Trilogy Part II: Preparing for and Surviving a Health and Welfare Audit
American Bar Association
Speaker
Oct
7
2015
Tax Issues for Health Care Organizations
American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA)
Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City, 1250 S Hayes Street, Arlington, VA
Speaker
Sep
16
2015
Massachusetts Staffing Association (MSA) Annual Meeting
Massachusetts Staffing Association (MSA)
Monster Headquarters, 133 Boston Post Road, Weston, MA
Speaker
May
13
2015
Speaker
Apr
23
2015
10th Annual Executive Leadership Conference
The New Jersey Staffing Alliance
The Borgata/Water Club 1 Borgata Way,08401 Atlantic City, New Jersey
Speaker
Mar
3
2015
Nov
10
2013
Employer Responsibilities Under Health Care Reform: 2015 Checklist
CPAmerica 2014 Tax Conference
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Jun
5
2013
PPACA – What You Need to Know Now
Benefits Fair and Trade Show 2013 - New England Employee Benefits Council
Norwood, Massachusetts
Apr
26
2013
U.S. Department of Labor Regional Training
Boston, Massachusetts
May
12
2011
Massachusetts Fair Share Contribution Enforcement Update
New England Employee Benefits Council
Sep
20
2010
Mental Health Parity
New England Employee Benefits Council
Oct
29
2009
The Legal and Regulatory Environment for Qualified Retirement Plans
New England Employee Benefits Council
Publications
To attract and retain the best employees, a 401(k) plan is a must. Operating a 401(k) plan, however, involves many responsibilities, including drafting and maintaining plan documents, communicating with employees, calculating and distributing benefits, and protecting plan assets. Most employers delegate some or all of these responsibilities to third-party administrators (TPAs) who, to perform services, collect and hold sensitive employee information such as addresses, birthdates, compensation data and Social Security numbers.
Yet, with all of this sensitive information changing hands, 401(k) plan cybersecurity is often an afterthought, even at companies that take great care to protect their businesses from cyberthreats. Because there are no cybersecurity rules or standards that directly and specifically address 401(k) plans, it is hard to know where to begin. It is also tempting to assume that TPAs have adequate cybersecurity controls in place. However, there are many reasons employers should spend more time protecting their plans—and there are ways to do so.
Yet, with all of this sensitive information changing hands, 401(k) plan cybersecurity is often an afterthought, even at companies that take great care to protect their businesses from cyberthreats. Because there are no cybersecurity rules or standards that directly and specifically address 401(k) plans, it is hard to know where to begin. It is also tempting to assume that TPAs have adequate cybersecurity controls in place. However, there are many reasons employers should spend more time protecting their plans—and there are ways to do so.