Assessment 5 Instructions: FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA
- Discuss, in 2-3 pages, FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA, including penalties and cases against companies for violating the acts.
Introduction
It is very important for HR professionals, and all members of management, to be familiar with the laws and acts that govern leaves of absences, benefits, medical information and retirement and health plans. The major ones to understand include:
- Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): The 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) applies to all employers having 50 or more employees and entitles all eligible employees to receive unpaid leave up to 12 weeks per year for specified family or medical reasons.
- Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA): In 1985, the Congress enacted Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) to provide current and former employees and their spouses and dependents with a temporary extension of group health insurance when coverage is lost due to qualifying events (for example, layoffs). All employers with 20 or more employees must comply with COBRA.
- Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA): The 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was designed to (1) lessen an employer’s ability to deny coverage for a preexisting condition and (2) prohibit discrimination on the basis of health-related status.
- Employment Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA): The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) is a federal law that sets minimum standards for most voluntarily established retirement and health plans in private industry to provide protection for individuals in these plans.
- Four acts—FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA—passed by the Congress greatly define the arena of benefits.
Instructions
For this assessment, in 2–3 pages:
- Define each act—FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA—briefly.
- Cite one current issue that employers are, or should be, concerned with for each act.
- Describe the violations and penalties that employers can face for violating these acts.
- Describe, for each law, an example of an actual legal case involving an organization that has violated this law.
- You may reference your text, your current work environment, an interview with a colleague, a head of HR, an article from a popular business publication, or related information from the Capella University Library.
To find articles talking about these laws and the impacts on business, see the Searching Business Research Articles tab on this guide:
- Business Research Library Guide.
- Suggested resources to begin with include:
- Business Source Complete.
- ABI/INFORM Global.
- See also the Legal Research library guide for help with locating legal cases.
Additional Requirements
Your assessment should also meet the following requirements:
- Written communication: Written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message.
- Formatting: One-inch margins, appropriate headers, and a title page.
- Length: 2–3 double-spaced pages.
- Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
- Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and scoring guide criteria:
- Competency 2: Analyze base pay programs and the major laws and acts that govern employee pay.
- Explain briefly and accurately the federal acts of FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA.
- Competency 3: Analyze base benefit plans and the primary laws and acts that govern employee benefits.
- Describe, for each of the federal acts of FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA, one current issue with which employers are, or should be, concerned.
- Describe what, if any, penalties a company may incur for violating or for unsuccessfully challenging each of FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA.
- Describe, for each of the federal acts of FMLA, COBRA, HIPAA, and ERISA, an organization that has violated the act, the violation, and the penalties that were imposed.
- Competency 5: Apply the Capella Writing Standards to support professional practice
- Convey purpose, in an appropriate tone and style, incorporating supporting evidence and adhering to organizational, professional, and scholarly writing standards.