COMPLIANCE ALERT: Proposed Rules on Wellness Program Incentives Withdrawn

On Feb. 12, 2021, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) withdrew two proposed rules it previously issued in January 2021, on wellness programs under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA).

Overview of the Proposed Rules

These proposed rules were issued in response to a federal court decision that vacated a portion of EEOC regulations describing the incentives that an employer could offer:

• Under the ADA as part of wellness programs that ask about employees’ health and/or ask them to undergo medical examinations; or
• Under GINA to an employee whose spouse provides information about the spouse’s manifestation of disease or disorder as part of a wellness program

These proposed rules were withdrawn because they were not published by Jan. 20, 2021, the time of President Joe Biden’s inauguration.