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DOL Issue[s] Opinion Letter on Whether FMLA Regulations Pertaining to Substitution of Paid Leave Apply When Employees Take Leave Under State or Local Paid Family Leave Programs
SESCO Management Consultants
While the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides for unpaid leave for employees that work for an employer with 50 or more employees, the FMLA also allows the employee to elect, or an employer to require the employee, to “substitute” accrued employer-provided paid leave (e.g., paid vacation, paid sick leave, etc.) for any part of the unpaid FMLA period. The term “substitute” means that either the employer or employee, on their own, can decide to have employer-provided paid leave run concurrently with the unpaid FMLA leave. However, the U.S, Department of Labor (DOL) has explained that neither the employer nor the employee can require substitution, under the FMLA, of employer-provided accrued paid leave during an absence for which the employee receives compensation provided by a disability or workers’ compensation program. Likewise, where an employee, during leave covered by the FMLA, receives compensation from a state or local family or medical leave program, the DOL has now stated that the FMLA substitution provision does not apply to the portion of leave that is compensated.
- Because the substitution provision does not apply, neither the employee nor the employer may use the FMLA substitution provision to unilaterally require the concurrent use of employer-provided paid leave during the portion of the leave that is compensated by the state or local program.
- If the employee is receiving compensation through state or local paid family or medical leave that does not fully compensate the employee for their FMLA covered leave, and the employee also has available employer-provided paid leave, the employer and the employee may agree, to use the employee’s employer-provided accrued paid leave to supplement the payments under a state or local leave program.
If you are not a retainer client, contact us to learn about our services by calling 423-764-4127 or click here. |
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Mandatory OSHA Injury & Illness Reporting
Alliance Daily
Many employers with more than 10 employees are required to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses. Some health care and home care companies must electronically submit injury and illness reports to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) annually through OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application (ITA). The deadline for submission of the 2024 data is March 2, 2025.
It is important to note OSHA has requirements for both recording and reporting work-related injuries and illnesses. A recordable injury or illness includes:
- Any work-related fatality.
- Any work-related injury or illness that results in loss of consciousness, days away from work, restricted work, or transfer to another job.
- Any work-related injury or illness requiring medical treatment beyond first aid.
- Any work-related diagnosed case of cancer, chronic irreversible diseases, fractured or cracked bones or teeth, and punctured eardrums.
- There are also special recording criteria for work-related cases involving: needlesticks and sharps injuries; medical removal; hearing loss; and tuberculosis.
To determine if your organization must submit a report, please review the ITA submission requirement flowchart [found on page 3 of the linked Injury Tracking Application (ITA) User Guide] Note that there may be different and/or additional state-specific reporting differences.
All employers, including those partially exempted by reason of company size or industry classification, must report to OSHA any workplace incident that results in a fatality, in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye (see § 1904.39).
Additional information about OSHA’s recordkeeping and reporting requirements can be found here. |
ACO Growth Inches CMS Toward Value-Based Care Goal
Modern Healthcare / By Bridget Early
More than half of fee-for-service Medicare enrollees are now in accountable care arrangements, putting the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services past midway toward its 2030 goal, according to data the agency released Wednesday.
Accountable care participation rose 4.3% to 14.8 million people from 2024 to 2025, the largest annual increase since CMS started tracking these numbers. That amounts to 53.4% of fee-for-service beneficiaries, according to the agency.
The CMS report illustrates the progress the agency has made promoting value-based care in traditional Medicare since announcing in 2021 that it wanted all fee-for-service enrollees in accountable care arrangements by 2030. It also shows how much is left to do to meet that target, and consummating the endeavor would require President-elect Donald Trump's administration to pick up where President Joe Biden's team leaves off.
“This progress demonstrates that when providers are empowered to manage costs and focus on outcomes, they can achieve high-quality outcomes and drive innovation,” Aisha Pittman, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Association of ACOs, said in a news release.
Tweaks to existing accountable care organizations and the creation of models such as the ACO Primary Care Flex Model support the 2030 goal, but regression in one high-profile model highlights the ongoing challenges. Congress also must decide how to handle bonus payments for providers transitioning into value-based care.
The CMS report covers the permanent Medicare Shared Savings Program and models from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation such as ACO Realizing Equity, Access and Community Health, or ACO REACH…
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Dementia Cases Expected to Double by 2060: Study
The Hill / By Filip Timotija
Alzheimer’s disease is expected to spike nationwide in future years, and according to new data released by the Alzheimer’s Association, there is a significant shortage in the dementia care workforce.
Dementia cases in the U.S. are expected to double by 2060 when around 1 million Americans are projected to develop the memory-losing condition every year, according to a new study that was published Monday in the medical journal Nature Medicine.
The study found that the risk of developing dementia after turning age 55 is around 42 percent. Dementia is a group condition that includes loss of concentration, judgment and memory.
The collaborative study was funded by the National Institutes of Health to NYU Langone. It relied on the data garnered from the ongoing Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Neurocognitive Study, which began in 1987 and has tracked the cognitive function and vascular health of participants.
“Our study results forecast a dramatic rise in the burden from dementia in the United States over the coming decades, with one in two Americans expected to experience cognitive difficulties after age 55,” said Josef Coresh, the study’s senior investigator and epidemiologist.
The researchers discovered that a lifetime risk of suffering from dementia for men after turning 55 is 35 percent while it is 48 percent for women. For the most part, the higher risk among women is because of their lower death rates, according to researchers.
The study also found those who had a variant of the APOE4 gene are at a higher risk of developing dementia.
Blood pressure control and preventing diabetes are one of the ways to slow down cognitive decline and prevent dementia, according to researchers…
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6 Behaviors You Must Unlearn to be a Relevant Leader in 2025
Forbes / By Glenn Llopis
Leadership today isn’t what it used to be. Gone are the days when a title or a corner office automatically commanded respect. Today, business leaders need more than authority, they need relevance. But being a relevant leader is not just about adopting new behaviors; it’s about unlearning bad habits. Especially those that do more harm than good. ... Here are six behaviors you must unlearn that once felt relevant and now may be holding you back. I’ve also included the six behaviors you must relearn.
- Stop Controlling Everything ...
- Transactional Leadership ... "leadership is more than ticking items off a to-do list. Your team needs presence." ...
- Always Need to Lead ...
- Playing It Safe ...
- Separating Work and Emotion ...
- Holding On to Bad Habits ...
Being a relevant leader is about being curious, adaptable, and grounded in reality. Leadership is not static. It’s a continuous process discovery plus action…
Read Article |
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