Overview
McDermott partners are speaking at the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Health and Welfare Benefit Plans National Institute 2025 on October 27 – 28, 2025. Hosted at McDermott’s office in Washington, DC, this is two-day intensive will inform practitioners on trends in the health and welfare benefit plans field. Government speakers will discuss recent and upcoming guidance. In addition to a lively update on regulatory and other developments featuring top speakers, the program will cover perspectives on health care reform, health and welfare plan litigation, offer practical breakouts and an ethics session.
McDermott partners will speak at the following sessions:
ERISA PREEMPTION 2.0: KEEPING UP WITH STATE ACTIVITY (PBMs, AND GENDER AFFIRMING CARE)
October 27, 2025
9:00 – 10:00 am (EDT)
Speaker: Alden Bianchi and Sarah Raaii
The session will reexamine the fundamental principles of ERISA preemption as it has evolved in the wake of recent developments, include the increasingly aggressive efforts by the states to regulate pharmacy benefit managers. The panel will discuss emerging issues involving the ERISA “saving” and “deemer” clause arguments on which the states are beginning to rely in their quest to avoid the preemption of their laws. The panel will also review, explain, and handicap state and federal standards governing gender affirming care, which have been further complicated with the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Skrmetti. Particular attention will be paid to challenges facing employer-sponsored plans as employers seek to accommodate conflicting federal and state laws while also trying to accommodate workforce demands. The session will close with a consideration of how the ERISA preemption doctrine might change in response to litigation that is increasing focused on welfare benefit plans, programs, and arrangements.
AI MEETS ERISA: AUTOMATION, ACCURACY AND PRIVACY ISSUES
October 27, 2025
1:30 – 2:30 pm (EDT)
Speaker: Alden Bianchi
The ubiquity of artificial intelligence (AI) poses no shortage of concerns. The panel will examine the AI’s impact on employer-sponsored group health plans, including claims adjudication and autonomous decision-making based on machine-based systems including large language models. The panel will address the challenges faced by fiduciaries charged with monitoring and overseeing these systems with particular attention on using AI to streamline benefit delivery while navigating data governance and privacy compliance. The session will also review provisions in vendor contracts that govern the use of AI by TPAs and carriers acting in an administrative service only (ASO) capacity.
HOT TOPICS IN HEALTH AND WELFARE PLAN LITIGATION
October 27, 2025
2:45 – 4:00 pm (EDT)
Speaker: Andrew Lyonsberg
Litigation over health and welfare benefits continues to have an important influence on the development of the law affecting health and welfare benefit plans. Our expert panel will review some of the more significant recent court decisions and offer predictions for future trends in ERISA litigation.
2B) JUNK INSURANCE UPDATE: DOUBLE DIPPING; FIXED INDEMNITY INSURANCE
October 28, 2025
2:30 – 3:30 pm (EDT)
Speaker: Alden Bianchi
A 2023 proposed regulation entitled, “Group fixed Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance; Independent, Non-coordinated Excepted Benefits Coverage; Level-Funded Plan Arrangements; and Tax Treatment of Certain Accident and Health Insurance” (a/k/a the “junk insurance” rule), which was not adopted in final form, has nevertheless given rise to and encouraged the adoption of ever more aggressive tax-leveraged benefit programs – including so-called “double dipping” schemes. The session will provide an overview of the treatment of these schemes, how they have evolved in recent years, and how they implicate ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code, HIPAA, the ADA, GINA and state insurance laws.