Annual Contribution Limitation
For calendar year 2016, the annual limitation on deductions for an individual with self-only coverage under a high deductible health plan remains at $3,350. The annual limitation on HSA deductions for an individual with family coverage under a high deductible health plan increased slightly to $6,750. The higher rate reflects a cost-of-living adjustment and rounding rules under IRS Section 223.

High Deductible Health Plan
For calendar year 2016, a qualified HDHP's annual out-of-pocket expenses (deductibles, co-payments, and other amounts, but not premiums) are set at $6,550 for self-only coverage or $13,100 for family coverage. Both limits are slightly higher than 2015 rates.

View the full IRS Revenue Procedure clicking here.

• Require plans and issuers to cover, without-cost sharing, at least one form of contraception in each of the 18 contraceptive methods approved by
  the FDA
• Within each method, plans and issuers may utilize "reasonable medical management techniques" to control costs and promote efficient delivery of care.
• If utilizing reasonable medical management techniques within a specified method of contraception, plans and issuers must have an easily accessible, transparent, and sufficiently expedient exceptions process that is not unduly burdensome on the individual or a provider (or other individual acting as a patient's authorized representative).

The FAQs also address coverage of BRCA genetic testing, coverage of sex-specific recommended preventive services, coverage of well-woman preventive care for dependents, and coverage of colonoscopies pursuant to agency recommendations. 

Cal/OSHA has released new heat illness prevention regulations, which are effective as of May 1, 2015. Key points from the new regulations are presented below:

Coverage
The new standards apply to all outdoor places of employment. In addition, the following industries are subject to additional requirements in high heat (over 95°F or above):

• Agriculture;
• Construction;
• Landscaping;
• Oil and gas extraction; and
• Transportation and delivery of agricultural products and of construction or other heavy materials (e.g., furniture, lumber, freight, cargo, cabinets, industrial or commercial materials).

Water

• Employees must have access to potable drinking water meeting certain requirements, including (but not limited to) the requirements that it be fresh, pure, suitably cool, and provided to employees free of charge.
• When unlimited drinking water is not immediately available from a plumbed system or otherwise continuously supplied, the employer must provide enough water for every employee to be able to drink one quart of water (or four eight-ounce cups) per hour.
• The standard requires not only that water be provided, but that employers encourage employees to drink it frequently.

Shade

• When temperatures exceed 80°F, shade structures must be erected if no other shade is readily available. Even if temperatures do not exceed 80°F, shade must still be available, and it is helpful to have the shade erected if the weather is hot enough that the shade can help employees cool off.
• Employers should monitor predicted weather temperatures in advance (on television, radio, or the Internet) to know when the temperature is likely to exceed 80°F. Employers are expected to know if the temperature is in fact exceeding 80°F at the work site.

High-heat and Emergency Response Procedures

• Covered employers must implement high-heat procedures when the temperature equals or exceeds 95°F. These procedures must include certain standards.
• When temperatures reach 95°F or above, the employer must ensure that the employee takes a minimum ten minute net preventative cool-down rest period every two hours.
• Employers must implement effective emergency response procedures, including (among other things) ensuring that effective communication by voice, observation, or electronic means is maintained so that employees at the work site can contact a supervisor or emergency medical services when necessary.

Acclimatization

• All employees must be closely observed by a supervisor or designee during a heat wave (any day in which the predicted high temperature for the day will be at least 80°F and at least 10°F higher than the average high daily temperature in the preceding 5 days).
• An employee who has been newly assigned to a high heat area must be closely observed by a supervisor or designee for the first 14 days of his or her employment.

Training and Heat Illness Prevention Plan

• Effective training in certain topics must be provided to each supervisory and non-supervisory employee before he or she begins work that should reasonably be anticipated to result in exposure to the risk of heat illness.
• Note: Cal/OSHA offers training materials in PDF and PowerPoint formats.
• The employer must establish, implement, and maintain an effective heat illness prevention plan. The plan must be in writing in both English and the language understood by the majority of the employees and must be made available at the worksite to employees and to Cal/OSHA representatives upon request. The plan must contain certain requirements.
• Note: Cal/OSHA offers sample procedures for the heat illness prevention plan.

Affected employers should review the regulations in their entirety for additional standards and requirements. Cal/OSHA's  heat illness prevention website features several resources for employers, including guidance, Q&As, training materials, and sample procedures.