Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement provisions of ERISA

E34503

ERISA provision federal employee-benefits regulation

The Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement (MEWA) provisions of ERISA are federal rules that regulate health and welfare benefit plans offered by multiple, unrelated employers to protect workers and ensure oversight of these arrangements.

Statements (46)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	ERISA provision → federal employee-benefits regulation →
administeredBy	Employee Benefits Security Administration → U.S. Department of Labor →
affects	MEWA sponsors and administrators → employers participating in MEWAs → insurance carriers providing coverage to MEWAs →
appliesIn	United States →
appliesTo	health benefit plans offered by multiple unrelated employers → welfare benefit plans offered by multiple unrelated employers →
authorizes	civil enforcement actions against noncompliant MEWAs → injunctive relief to protect plan participants in MEWAs → penalties for failure to file required MEWA reports →
codifiedIn	29 U.S.C. § 1002(40) → 29 U.S.C. § 1021(g) → 29 U.S.C. § 1132(c)(5) → 29 U.S.C. § 1144(b)(6) →
concerns	health and welfare benefits rather than retirement benefits →
defines	term "multiple employer welfare arrangement" →
distinguishedFrom	multiple employer pension plan provisions of ERISA →
distinguishesFrom	single-employer welfare benefit plans →
enforcedBy	Secretary of Labor →
enforcementMechanism	civil actions in federal court → civil penalties per day for reporting violations →
imposes	disclosure obligations on MEWAs → recordkeeping obligations on MEWAs →
interactionWith	state insurance regulation of MEWAs →
legalBasis	Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 →
modifies	ERISA preemption rules for MEWAs →
objective	combat fraud and abuse in multiple employer welfare arrangements → prevent MEWA insolvencies that could harm participants →
permits	enhanced state regulation of fully insured MEWAs → state regulation of self-funded MEWAs to the extent not inconsistent with ERISA →
policyGoal	ensure that multi-employer health and welfare benefits are adequately funded and regulated → protect employee benefit plan participants and beneficiaries in MEWAs →
primaryPurpose	ensure oversight of multiple employer welfare arrangements → protect workers covered by multiple employer welfare arrangements →
regulates	multiple employer welfare arrangements →
relatedTo	ERISA Title I → ERISA enforcement provisions → ERISA reporting and disclosure requirements →
requires	Form M-1 filings by MEWAs → federal reporting by MEWAs to the Department of Labor →
scope	arrangements providing benefits in the event of sickness, accident, disability, or death to employees of multiple employers → arrangements providing medical, surgical, or hospital care benefits to employees of multiple employers → welfare benefit plans involving two or more employers →

Referenced by (1)

Subject (surface form when different)	Predicate
Employee Benefits Security Administration →	legalAuthority