60-Day Advance Notice of Plan Changes

Under a provision in the new federal health reform law, a plan sponsor must provide persons covered by the plan with notice of modifications at least 60 days prior to the date the change becomes effective. There has been some confusion regarding the effective date of this provision. While the new law provides specific deadlines for many similar rules, this provision lacks an explicit effective date. Knowing the exact date is not crucial at this time, however, as discussed below. It is important to note that the first renewals affected by the new rule and requiring a 60-day advance notice of changes will be October 1, 2011 renewals. Even that advance disclosure obligation is more than 12 months away. Plans with later plan years will have even longer to comply, until later in 2011 through the fall of 2012.

While this discussion focuses on the first renewal, be aware that once the law is effective for a plan, any mid-year changes after that date also will be subject to the prior disclosure rule, even before that first renewal.  60 Day Advance Notice PDF Download