§ 4110. Employer obligations

(a) Where a parent is required by a court or administrative order to provide health coverage for a child, and the parent is eligible for dependent health coverage, which is available through an employer doing business in this State, the employer is required:

(1) To enroll under dependent coverage any child who is otherwise eligible for coverage without regard to any enrollment season restrictions or any seasonal restrictions on switching from one plan to another upon application of either parent, by the State agency administering the Medicaid program, by any State agency administering health benefits or a health benefit plan for which Medicaid is a source of funding, or the Child Support Enforcement Program.

(2) Not to disenroll or eliminate coverage of any such child unless the employer is provided satisfactory written evidence that:

(A) the court order is no longer in effect;

(B) the child is or will be enrolled in comparable coverage that will take effect no later than the effective date of disenrollment;

(C) the employer has eliminated dependent health coverage for all of its employees if allowed by law.

(3) To withhold from the employee’s compensation the employee’s share (if any) of premiums for health coverage and to pay this amount to the insurer. Any employer failing to withhold as required under this subdivision shall be liable for any premiums not withheld and paid over to the insurer.

(4) To send written notice to the insurer within 10 days of receipt of a notice under 15 V.S.A. § 663(d). The employer shall be liable for any child medical expenses that would have been covered under the employer’s health plan had notice been given to the insurer according to this section.

(5) Notice to the employer under 15 V.S.A. § 663(d), if given by first-class mail, postage prepaid, or by any other method showing actual receipt, shall be presumptive evidence of its receipt by the employer to whom it is addressed. Any period of time that is determined under this section by the giving of such notice shall commence to run from the date of mailing if the notice is mailed, or the date of actual receipt if another method of transmitting the notice is used.

(6) For purposes of this section, “dependent coverage” shall have the same meaning as in 8 V.S.A. § 4100b(a)(3).

(b) Effective October 1, 1998, all employers in the State of Vermont shall report all new hires to the Department of Labor, and reported information will be shared with the Office of Child Support for the purpose of expediting compliance with court ordered wage withholding orders, and location of payers or parents with an obligation to provide parental contact. The Department of Labor may use the information to assist with the administration of the Unemployment Insurance Program.

(1) Employers shall report new hires within 10 calendar days of the first date of employment for a new employee.

(2) Employers shall report the following data elements to the Department of Labor: newly hired employee’s name, address, first date of employment, Social Security number, and the employer’s name, address, and federal identification number.

(3) Employers shall report the required new hire data elements electronically, when practicable, or on a form supplied or approved by the Department of Labor. Forms may be transmitted by fax transmission, first-class mail, magnetic tape, electronically, or inputting data elements via the telephone.

(4) If the failure to report is the result of collusion between employer and employee, the employer shall be liable to the obligee in the amount of the wages required to be withheld but not more than $500.00.

(c) As used in this section:

(1) “Employee”:

(A) means an individual who is an employee within the meaning of chapter 24 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and

(B) does not include an employee of a federal or State agency performing intelligence or counterintelligence functions, if the head of such agency has determined that reporting pursuant to this section with respect to the employee could endanger the safety of the employee or compromise an ongoing investigation or intelligence mission.

(2) “Employer” has the meaning given such term in Section 3401(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and includes any governmental entity and any labor organization.

(3) “First date of employment” is the first day services are performed for compensation as a new hire.

(4) “New hire” means an employee who:

(A) has not previously been employed by the employer; or

(B) was previously employed by the employer but has been separated from that employment for at least 60 consecutive days. (Added 1993, No. 231 (Adj. Sess.), § 6; amended 1995, No. 43, §§ 3, 4, eff. April 17, 1995; 1997, No. 63, § 28, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; 2005, No. 103 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, eff. April 5, 2006; 2009, No. 146 (Adj. Sess.), § C18; 2011, No. 162 (Adj. Sess.), § E.401.10.)