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September 14, 2004
Today's sponsor: Hay Group, Inc.
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
New Hay Group Study Reveals Benefits Cost Increases and Containment Strategies Employers see their fifth year of double-digit medical premium increases with an average increase of 10.5% in 2004. This is down from 2003, but still 3 times the inflation rate, with increases around 10% expected for 2005. Hay Group outlines prevalent cost containment strategies.
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
3rd Circuit Court Says Stricter Standard Needed in Kosiba v. Merck & Co. ERISA Case
Excerpt: "In its June 2000 decision in Pinto v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Co., the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that 'heightened scrutiny' is required when an insurance company both funds and administers an ERISA benefits plan since the combination of such fiduciary and non-fiduciary roles creates an inherent conflict of interest." (The Legal Intelligencer via Law.com)
Massachusetts Hospital Ends Spousal Insurance Plan To Avoid Covering Married G.ays
Excerpt: "Hospitals run by Caritas Christi Health Care in Massachusetts have terminated their own employee health care plan to avoid having to cover the spouses of legally married same-sex couples." (g.aywired.com)
Consultants Forecast Another Hot Year for Health Care Issues and Benefits Outsourcing
Excerpt: "Health care cost containment and HR-benefits outsourcing have drawn considerable C-level attention of late, and next year will be no different, leading consultants indicate." (Employee Benefit News)
Medicare Part B Drugs Regulations Updated for Drug Manufacturers
Excerpt: "Drug manufacturers must follow new procedure to calculate price concessions." (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
Closing a Gap in Health Care Quality for Minority Workers
Excerpt: "Employers and insurance companies are testing ways to help minority workers get the most out of the system." (The Baltimore Sun; one-time registration required)
FY 2003 Was Golden for Non-Profit Health-Care Firms According to Report
Excerpt: "US nonprofit health-care organizations reported an average annual total return of 14.1% on operating funds for fiscal year 2003 according to the Commonfund Benchmarks Study Healthcare Report 2004." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Analyzing the Kerry and Bush Health Proposals: Estimates of Cost and Impact (PDF)
39 pages. Excerpt: "… a team of experienced independent actuaries and cost estimators presented …the most detailed analysis of President George W. Bush's and Senator John Kerry's health care reform proposals that has thus far been made publicly available." (American Enterprise Institute)
Bill Collection Barrier to Health Care: Those Who Owe and Can't Pay Often Put Off Medical Treatment
Excerpt: "… [The] assessment is supported by a study published in July by the Baltimore Community Health Consortium, which interviewed 274 patients at 10 'safety net' providers of health care to the city's poor. About 19 percent said they had delayed seeking medical care either because of medical debts or the pursuit of those debts by collection agencies." (The Baltimore Sun; one-time registration required)
Federal Government Told to Use Leverage to Improve Health Care Quality
Excerpt: "The federal government should use its power as a buyer of health care to spur improvements in quality, leaders of a local group said during a congressional hearing in Green Tree yesterday. Doing so would save both lives and money, said Karen Wolk Feinstein, chairwoman of the Pittsburgh Regional Healthcare Initiative." (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Bush Describes Kerry's Health Care Proposal as a 'Government Takeover'
Excerpt: "President Bush sped across southwest Michigan on Monday, assailing Senator John Kerry for plans that he said would result in nationalized health care." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Commentary: CPI Doesn't Measure YOUR Cost of Living
Excerpt: "Your cost of living may not be as steady as the consumer price index would lead you to think it is. This week, all eyes will be on the CPI, as they are every month around this time. The reason, of course, is to find out how fast prices are rising, thus adding to everyone's cost of living." (CBS MarketWatch.com via Commonfund)
Newly Posted Events
ASPA Benefits Council September Breakfast Meeting
in Ohio on September 28, 2004
presented by ASPA
COBRA for Beginners
Nationwide on September 30, 2004
presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA)
ERISA Workshop
in Texas on November 17, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
ERISA Workshop
in Kansas on November 17, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
ERISA Workshop
in Illinois on November 18, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
ERISA Workshop
in Georgia on November 19, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
ERISA Workshop
in Minnesota on November 19, 2004
presented by SunGard Corbel
New Medicare Prescription Drug Rules: Critical Issues for Retiree Health Plan Sponsors
Nationwide on September 13, 2004
presented by Mercer Human Resource Consulting
Newly Posted Press Releases
ICC Plan Solutions announces giveaway with live demonstration.
(Metrics Partners)
MetLife Leverages Expertise To Address Beneficiaries' Needs
(MetLife)
New American Express Retirement Plan Distribution Education Program Phones Home - American Express Expands Personal Contact to Participants in Transition to Help Them Properly Manage Retirement Accounts
(American Express Retirement Services)
WEDI Announces New HIPAA Security Rule White Papers
(WEDI (Workgroup for Electronic Data Interchange))
First Trust, Lincoln Trust, Resources Trust, Retirement Accounts Now Have 1 Location, 1 Name — Fiserv Investment Support Services
(Fiserv, Inc.)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Retirement Planning Specialist
for 1st Global, Inc.
in TX
Enrollment Coordinator (Rochester & Syracuse, NY and Tampa, FL, and New York City, NY)
for Manulife Financial
in FL, NY
Pension Administrator (Defined Contribution)
for Compliance/Administration Company in Secaucus, NJ
in NJ
Account Executive - Retirement Services
for Principal Financial Group
in NC
Client Service Rep. - Defined Contribution Plans (401(k)/Profit Sharing)
for Decimal, Inc. (www.theonline401k.com)
in CA
Pension Plan Administrator
for Elliott Davis, LLC
in SC
Supervisor, New Business
for BISYS Retirement Services
in PA
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