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No regulations yet for medical insurance
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Posted on Mar 20 2008
The Department of Labor has announced that no regulations will be implemented for medical insurance under the Resident Workers Fair Compensation Act until the Department of Public Health acts on it.
Legal counsel Deanne C. Seimmer said that medical insurance benefit is the biggest single question and that the department is not implementing anything until the Public Health secretary acts on it.
“There won’t be anything on the Compensation Act until after the secretary of Public Health decides on how to deal with medical insurance and we don’t know exactly when he will issue the regulations [for public comments],” said Seimmer.
However, once DPH issues the new regulations, the Labor Department advises all business owners and human resources departments to read through them carefully, as “they are a very important part of the HR equation.”
Through the Compensation Act, resident workers are expected to get the equivalent of the in-kind benefits being given to foreign workers under new regulations proposed by the Department of Labor.
The proposed regulations implement the Resident Workers Fair Compensation Act. They apply to U.S. citizens and permanent residents.
Under the proposed regulations, employers that offer benefits such as housing, food, and transportation to alien workers must offer either the same in-kind benefits or a net cash equivalent to local workers. Except for medical benefits, the option to accept the benefits in kind or in cash is up to the employee. For medical benefits, the employer will choose.
