We’re all in this together – working to make ERISA’s goal a reality

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). When ERISA was first enacted in 1974, this landmark legislation transformed the regulation of private sector job-based benefit plans and provided much needed protections for American workers. While a lot of things have changed in the past 50 years, the Employee Benefits Security Administration’s (EBSA) commitment remains the same. We work tirelessly to develop effective regulations, assist participants, educate fiduciaries and workers, and vigorously enforce the law. 

Our work with private sector job-based health plans and retirement plans impacts 153 million American workers and their families at all stages of their lives, from before the cradle to the grave. We accomplish this by offering information, compliance assistance and enforcement relating to: 

• adding a new child or a new spouse to your health coverage 
• health coverage for all stages of life 
• retirement savings.

We make sure that you can look forward to and enjoy a secure retirement when the work days are done. We help you access your health, retirement and other job-based benefits when you need them. We educate you about employee ownership if you have a job that offers it or if you are looking to transition your business. And we do so much more. 

Our benefits advisors across the country assist with inquiries related to job-based benefits in over 105 languages. EBSA’s help is free, confidential and available regardless of immigration status. Last year, EBSA’s benefits advisors closed more than 197,000 inquiries and recovered $444.1 million in benefits on behalf of workers and their families.

Our goal is to ensure that ALL Americans know about EBSA, the assistance we provide and their protections under ERISA – and that’s not limited to English speakers. We’ve partnered with national and local community organizations, conducting over 300 outreach events just in the past fiscal year in non-English languages to build trust with underserved communities. We also have used social media and other marketing efforts to reach these communities. And we have worked with media across the country, conducting interviews in English, Spanish and Vietnamese. We’ve made great progress reaching underserved communities, and we look forward to continuing to build on these efforts. 

While our agency has evolved over the last 50 years, one constant is our collaboration with other federal, state and local partners on a range of activities, from developing regulations and guidance to outreach and education. For example, one long-term partnership directly helps vulnerable workers. Through Rapid Response, EBSA works with a coalition of state and local workforce investment system partners to offer comprehensive services and resources to help workers deal with the effects of layoffs. This program helps EBSA get information to workers so they can make timely decisions to maintain health coverage. Last year, we participated in 751 rapid response sessions. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, EBSA leapt into action, providing assistance with the American Rescue Plan COBRA premium subsidy to help families keep their health insurance in a stressful and confusing time. When the pandemic exposed America’s growing mental health crisis, we responded and prioritized mental health parity laws that require that mental health and substance use disorder benefits substance be offered in a similar way to medical/surgical benefits. 

Not long ago, a family contacted one of our benefits advisors when they could not find an in-network hospital to provide mental health treatment for their daughter. The high cost of out-of-network care meant that the family had to take out a second home mortgage. We were able to help them get an exception under the mental health plan and the family was reimbursed over $200,000, enabling them to pay back their second mortgage.  

Another plan participant we helped described our assistance as “nothing short of a miracle.” An EBSA benefits advisor was contacted by someone whose health plan was denying the pre-authorization request for a desperately needed heart transplant. Within a week of contacting us, we’d helped get the procedure approved.

Another benefits advisor worked to track down a man to let him know he was entitled to a monthly pension benefit from his former employer. A letter was sent to his last known address – a homeless shelter in Michigan.  Our efforts to locate him mean he is now receiving a pension payment of $711 every month in addition to a lump sum of over $82,000, allowing him to make plans for permanent housing. 

Amazing stories like these show that the work we do changes lives. Over the past 50 years, we accomplished many great things by working together with the ERISA community. We look forward to continuing to work together for the next 50 years. Happy anniversary to everyone who has worked to accomplish the goal of ERISA and those whose lives are better because of it. 

Lisa M. Gomez is the assistant secretary for the Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration.