Are carriers providing guidance for reopening and returning employees to work?

Yes. Here are helpful carrier guides for reopening and returning employees to work:  

Humana 

• Workplace Reentry Essentials. A checklist for returning to the workplace safely, effectively, and compliantly. 

Kaiser Permanente 

• COVID-19 Return to Work Playbook. Planning for the next normal at work. 

UnitedHealthcare 

• 5 Employer Considerations to Return to Worksite 

What health benefits concerns should employers be considering as they reopen and return employees to work?

Employers should ensure that employees are aware of the enhancements to benefits and coverage that carriers have introduced in response to COVID-19: 

• Waiving of cost sharing for COVID-19 testing and treatment. 
• Telehealth availability and waiving of cost sharing. 
• Pharmacy: Waiving of early refill limits and availability of no-cost home delivery. 

Most carriers’ COVID-19 enhanced benefits have expiry dates. Employers should ensure that employees are aware of these. Our COVID-19 Carrier Response Guides provide a helpful summary of each carrier’s actions in these areas. 

Employers should also communicate to employees the benefits currently available to them and how best to use them, including: 

• Emotional and Behavioral Health benefits and services 
• Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) 
• UnitedHealthcare has published helpful tips on how employees can make the most of their specialty benefits from home.

Most carriers are providing helpful resources for members on coverage and access to care. (e.g. Blue Shield, UnitedHealthcare)

Employers may want to consider additional benefits to help employees, including emergency response benefits such as Section 139 accounts. 

Employers will want to ensure any recent and upcoming changes to benefits are made in a compliant manner. For example: 

• Reinstatement of benefits/ waiting periods. If an employee’s coverage was terminated during a layoff or furlough, the employer will need to determine if the employee is immediately eligible for benefits on return to work or if the employee needs to complete a new waiting period. 

Benefits compliance concerns will largely be situational. Contact Claremont for assistance. 

Claremont Insurance Services and its affiliates do not provide tax, legal or accounting advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for, tax, legal or accounting advice. You should consult your own tax, legal and accounting advisors before engaging in any transaction. 

Which California counties are permitted to reopen at a faster pace than others?

On May 4 Governor Newsom announced the state’s plan to gradually reopen businesses. California is currently in Stage 2 – the limited reopening of lower-risk businesses that began May 8, 2020. 

 Some California counties have received State approval to move faster into Stage 2. A list of the counties with approval can be found here. 

As of May 25, the counties with approval to move faster into Stage 2 are:
Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Del Norte, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lake, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Modoc, Mono, Napa, Nevada, Orange, Placer, Plumas, Riverside, Sacramento, San Benito, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, Ventura, Yolo, and Yuba-Sutter.

On May 18, Governor Newsom announced relaxed criteria for counties to move more quickly into Phase 2. It’s expected that many more counties will shortly join the above list. Check back for updates. 

In addition to the state-wide list of business types that can open in Stage 2, these business types can open in counties that have received approval to move faster into Stage 2:    

• Shopping centers 
• Dine-in restaurants

Helpful Resources  

California Coronavirus (COVID-19) Response: 

• Resilience Roadmap 

• Resilience Roadmap – County Variance 

LA Times: Which California counties are reopening. A very informative section on the status of business reopening by county.