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April 22, 2004 - 8827 subscribers
Today's sponsor: Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. 


USERRA, Mental Health Parity, and lots more!
Group Health Plans: Federal Mandates Other Than COBRA & HIPAA covers
QMCSOs, health coverage for adopted children, the Mental Health
Parity Act, minimum hospital stays for newborns and mothers, the
Women's Health and Cancer Rights Act, federal employment laws
affecting group health plans (ADA, ADEA, USERRA, etc.), Medicare
Secondary Payer rules, HMO nondiscrimination requirements, etc.
Learn More

(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Employers' Contradictory Views About Consumer-Driven Health Care
Excerpt: "Based on a random national sample of 1,856 employers, this paper examines employers' knowledge, perceptions, and present and future plan offerings for consumer-driven health care plans.... Many employers remain skeptical about its ability to control costs and improve quality, while a majority believe that health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) are likely to attract healthier workers." (Health Affairs)

Consumer Guide To Health Savings Accounts
Excerpt: "Mission: NAHU will educate the public and decision makers about the value health insurance professionals deliver in helping consumers access the health care system and, through education and association involvement, increase members' ability to better serve consumers. We will do so in a financially prudent and responsible manner." (National Association of Health Underwriters)

Federal Government Seeks HSA Proposals from Insurers
Excerpt: "Earlier this week, the Office of Personnel Management, the administrator of the health insurance program the federal government offers to nearly 9 million federal employees, dependents and retirees, notified insurers participating in the program that it wants them to submit HSA proposals for the program." (Business Insurance)

Leapfrog Group To Launch Comprehensive Survey of Hospital Safety Practices
Excerpt: "The Leapfrog Group, a coalition of large U.S. businesses focused on improving health care quality, on Monday will launch a new, comprehensive hospital rating survey that is ultimately designed to help patients better assess hospital safety, the Wall Street Journal reports." (KaiserNetwork.org)

Boost in Medicare Payment Rates Means Good News for Employers and Retirees
Excerpt: "These positive changes are renewing the appeal of the Medicare Advantage plans, which offer pres.cription drug coverage as well as other preventive care benefits to employers and retirees. The payment changes may also bring more health care plans back to the Medicare Advantage market and diminish interest in supplementary Medigap plans ..." (Towers Perrin)

American Benefits Council Urges EEOC to Finalize ADEA Regs on Retiree Health Benefits (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "The proposed rule would clarify that the long-standing practice of coordinating employer-provided retiree health coverage with eligibility for Medicare or a State-sponsored retiree health benefit program is not age discriminatory and does not violate the ADEA. This clarification will help prevent older Americans from losing their retiree health coverage ..." (American Benefits Council)

Bipartisan U.S. Senate Team Unveils Drug Import Bill
Excerpt: "Leading U.S. senators on Wednesday unveiled a bipartisan bill that would let Americans import cheaper U.S.-approved pres.cription drugs from abroad." (Reuters via Yahoo! News Canada)

Fill Out Spencer's 2004 COBRA Survey Today
Spencer Benefits Reports is now collecting information for its 2004 survey of COBRA continuation of health care coverage. Survey forms are available online and by mail. Spencer Benefits Reports has been collecting and analyzing COBRA survey information since 1990. This biennial survey requests information concerning the costs, administrative procedures, and problems associated with COBRA. All survey participants receive a copy of the published survey at no charge. (Spencer Benefits Reports)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Judge Halts Oregon Same-Sex Marriages
Excerpt: "An Oregon judge has put the brakes on same-sex marriages in one Oregon county, but said those licenses that have already been issued are valid." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)

Massachusetts' Highest Court Is Asked to Delay G.ay Marriage
Excerpt: "Seeking to keep same-sex marriages from taking place as scheduled on May 17, the head of a conservative Roman Catholic group filed a petition on Tuesday asking the state's highest court to keep g.ay marriages from occurring for at least two and a half years." (New York Times; one-time registration required)

Britain Moves Toward Endorsing Civil Unions
Excerpt: "A civil partnership bill was introduced in the House of Parliament earlier this month and the House of Lords was set to consider the legislation on Thursday. According to a government spokeswoman, the bill could become law by November, allowing same-sex couples to legalize their partnership a year later." (MSNBC.com)

Opinion: Derelict Directors on the Compensation Committee
Excerpt: "This year, the Executive PayWatch is profiling 10 directors who serve on over-generous compensation committees. Each one of these directors is responsible for a CEO pay package that is out of this world. By voting 'No' on these derelict directors, shareholders can help send a message that excessive CEO pay must be stopped." (AFL-CIO)

Bookmark: Executive Employment Agreements
Dozens of them, in full text. (FindLaw.com)

Opinion: Kumar, Wang Got One-of-a-Kind Pay Plan
Excerpt: "Now that Computer Associates International Inc. Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Kumar has resigned and the company has had a flurry of firings and guilty pleas in connection with a federal investigation of securities fraud, longtime shareholders can look back and, well, simply just look back." (Graef Crystal on Bloomberg.com)

AICPA Launches Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center
Excerpt: "The center will create a community of firms committed to performing quality employee benefit plan audits, including defined benefit, defined contribution and health and welfare benefit plans. It will provide a comprehensive resource for member firms and others in the employee benefit plan arena. The center's Web site is www.aicpa.org/ebpaqc/homepage.htm." (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)

Overview: FASB Issues Draft Statement on Stock Option Expensing (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "Under the Proposed Statement, companies would be required, with limited exceptions, to expense stock options." (Dechert LLP)

Prepared Testimony of Witnesses at 4/21/04 Hearing on Stock Option Accounting
Includes testimony by Jeff Thomas, Altera Corporation; Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Congressional Budget Office; Kevin A. Hassett, American Enterprise Institute; Douglas Kruse, Rutgers University; Phil Smith, Taser International, Inc.; Robert E. Grady, Carlyle Venture Partners; and George M. Scalise, Semiconductor Industry Association. (U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services)

Employees Undervalue Stock Option Grants
Excerpt: "Employees at U.S. companies discount the value of stock option grants by 30 to 50 percent relative to the options' actual value, according to a Watson Wyatt survey of nearly 650 high-income employees who received stock option grants." (Watson Wyatt)

Expensing Stock Options: Can FASB Prevail?
Excerpt: "[A] FASB Exposure Draft, Share-Based Payment, an Amendment of FASB Statements No. 123 and 95, seeks to 'improve existing accounting rules and provides more complete, higher quality information for investors,' according to the Board. The comment period for the exposure draft ends June 30, and FASB plans to hold public roundtable meetings to gather additional input on the proposal." (The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania)

Newly Posted Events

This Friday-National Teleconference on 412i Plans!
Nationwide on April 23, 2004
presented by The 412(i) Company
Newly Posted Press Releases

SunGard Announces New Health Savings Account Plan Service
(SunGard Corbel)

PBGC to Pay Pensions at Ingersoll International
(Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC))

IRS Names New Members to TE/GE Advisory Group
(Internal Revenue Service (IRS))

ERIC Supports EEOC Rule to Exempt Retiree Health Benefits from ADEA
(ERIC (ERISA Industry Committee))

Bradley D. Belt to Head Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
(U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Public Affairs, Washington, D.C.)

Health Management Corporation Expert To Present Strategies For Developing Physician Collaboration At National Disease Management Summit
(Health Management Corporation)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

Sr. Conversion Specialist
for Branch Banking & Trust Company (BB&T)
in NC

Benefit Service Specialist
for Sun Healthcare Group
in CA

Product Manager
for BISYS Retirement Services
in MN

Administrative Assistant
for Retirement Plan Administration and ERISA Specialists
in IL

Benefits Manager
for Hunton & Williams LLP
in VA

Communication Specialist
for Aon Consulting
in MD

Product Manager, Group Products
for GE Financial
in VA

Health and Welfare Specialist
for Aon Consulting
in MD

Director of Pension Administration
for Associated Pension Consultants
in CA

Senior Advisor, Business Integrator & Production Support
for NRECA (National Rural Electric Cooperative Association)
in VA

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