Employee Benefit Provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill
On July 3, 2025, the United States House of Representatives passed the Senate’s amended version of the One Big Beautiful Bill (“OBBB”), President Trump’s signature legislation, and the bill was signed by the president on July 4th. The key employee benefit-related provisions of OBBB are:
QHDHP/HSA-Related Provisions
- OBBB permanently extends the COVID-era safe harbor allowing QHDHP pre-deductible coverage of telehealth services, and applies the relief retroactively to January 1, 2024. (Note, pre-deductible tele-health coverage is now allowed, but it is not required.) The permanent relief is particularly welcome, ending the uncertainty created by past temporary fixes of this issue.
- OBBB provides that beginning 1/1/2026, direct primary care (“DPC”) service arrangements are no longer disqualifying coverage for HSA purposes, provided the DPC arrangement:
- Is limited to primary care services provided by primary care practitioners for a fixed fee not in excess of $150 per month for singles/$300 per month for two or more individuals; and
- Does not include (i) procedures requiring general anethesia; (ii) access to prescription drugs (other than vaccines) or (iii) lab services not typically administered in an ambulatory primary care setting.
- OBBB provides that effective 1/1/2026, HSA-compatible health plans include any bronze or catastrophic plan offered in the individual market or on an exchange.
Other Fringe Benefit Provisions
- OBBB makes permanent Covid-era tax code provisions allowing employers to provide employees with student loan payment assistance and indexes the overall educational assistance program exclusion for inflation.
- Effective 1/1/2026, OBBB terminates the deduction for moving expenses and the exclusion of qualified moving expense reimbursements, except for certain members of the military and intelligence community.
- Effective 1/1/2026, the maximum exclusion under a Dependent Care Assistance Program account will be increased from $5,000 to $7,500 (or $3,750 for separate returns filed by a married individual). This is the first increase since 1986 (more than time)!
Please visit www.moreton.com/news-events/ for more information and to view other client alerts. This Client Alert was written by Carolyn Cox, who provides our clients with compliance services. For additional questions, please contact Carolyn at 801-715-7110 or [email protected].
© 2025 by Moreton & Company. This Client Alert is intended to alert recipients to recent legal developments. It does not constitute the rendering of legal advice or recommendations and is provided for your general information only. If you need legal advice upon which you can rely, you must seek an opinion from your attorney.
