| The BenefitsLink Newsletter - Welfare Plans Edition |  |
October 3, 2001 - 6,365 subscribers
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Mental Health Parity Would Cost $5.4 Billion Over 10 Years
Excerpt: "Legislation scheduled for Senate action in the coming weeks to require parity between benefits for mental health care and other medical services would cost the federal government $5.4 billion over the next decade, mostly due to lost tax revenue, according to the Congressional Budget Office." (Reuters via Medscape; free registration required)
Insurance and the Utilization of Medical Services Among the Self-Employed
Working paper, available for downloading for $5. (National Bureau of Economic Research)
Does Money Affect Health Status? Evidence from South African Pensions
Working paper, available for downloading for $5. (National Bureau of Economic Research)
Domestic Partner Benefit Offerings Up, Says Report
Excerpt: "The number of employers offering health-care benefits to their workers' unmarried domestic partners jumped 20 percent in the last year and 50 percent in the past two years, a gay and lesbian advocacy group said Tuesday. Although there is no way to measure the percentage of American employers that offer benefits to domestic partners, those that do include many of the country's largest companies, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation said in a report." (Reuters Health via Excite News)
Wichita Kansas to Decide Not to Provide Domestic Partner Benefits After All
Excerpt: "The County Manager announced just last week that domestic partners who work for Sedgwick County would be eligible for health benefits just like married couples. We are now told that the county commission will rescind this benefit at Wednesday's meeting." (MSNBC.com)
Texas Attorney General Investigates HMO Payment Practices
Excerpt: "Following millions of dollars in fines exacted in August and the selection of a state ombudsman to monitor prompt payment issues, Texas Attorney General John Cornyn is examining nine HMOs regarding their prompt payment policies." (insure.com)
Supreme Court Declines Review of Several Court of Appeals Employee Benefit Decisions
Excerpt: "On the first day of its new session, the Supreme Court denied review of a number of employee benefit-related cases. Among others, the high court denied review of cases involving fiduciary breach claims, ERISA preemption issues, and standard of review questions." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Bailout Grounds Pay for Some Airline Executives
Excerpt: "Compensation for airline executives is going to be grounded for some time, as a result of their industry's recently enacted federal bailout. The financial-aid package requires executives at major U.S. airlines who earned more than $300,000 in total compensation last year to forgo pay raises for two years, retroactively effective to Sept. 11." (CareerJournal.com)
Clark/Bardes Consulting Announces Results of Eighth Annual Executive Benefits Survey
Press release. Excerpt: "Results indicate increases across the board in Fortune 1000 companies that utilize nonqualified deferred compensation (NQDC) and supplemental executive retirement plans (SERPs)." (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
October 2001 Issue: Legislative Activity on the Benefits Front (PDF)
Includes list of upcoming key dates and a brief 'regulatory roundup." (Milliman USA)
Stock Options Around the World
Excerpt: "Towers Perrin consultants have recently examined the worldwide growth in stock option plans as a compensation practice among large companies headquartered in 22 countries. The published study reports that stock option compensation practices are growing rapidly and that they are much more widely used than: performance plans, restricted stock plans, or other long-term incentive programs, in most countries." (Foundation for Enterprise Development)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings (Post Yours!)
| Executive Benefits | for National Leader in Executive Compensation in TX |
Newly Posted Conferences (Post Yours!)
| Introduction to Retirement Plans Seminar | in KY on November 13, 2001 presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc. |
| 401(k) Plans | in MN on November 6, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| 401(k) Plans | in CA on November 13, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| 401(k) Plans | in TX on November 27, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| 401(k) Plans | in CA on December 4, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| Cafeteria Plans | in MN on November 7, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| Cafeteria Plans | in CA on November 14, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| Cafeteria Plans | in TX on November 28, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| Cafeteria Plans | in CA on December 5, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans | in MN on November 8, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans | in CA on November 15, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans | in TX on November 29, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans | in CA on December 6, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| HIPAA & Other Federal Mandates for Group Health Plans | in MN on November 8, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| HIPAA & Other Federal Mandates for Group Health Plans | in CA on November 15, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| HIPAA & Other Federal Mandates for Group Health Plans | in TX on November 29, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| HIPAA & Other Federal Mandates for Group Health Plans | in CA on December 6, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| COBRA Compliance for Group Health Plans | in MN on November 9, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| COBRA Compliance for Group Health Plans | in CA on November 16, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| COBRA Compliance for Group Health Plans | in TX on November 30, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| COBRA Compliance for Group Health Plans | in CA on December 7, 2001 presented by Employee Benefits Institute of America LLC (EBIA) |
| Focus on Retirement Plans | in DC on October 18, 2001 presented by Capital Chapter ISCEBS |
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Copyright 2001 BenefitsLink.com, Inc., but you may freely distribute this email newsletter in whole. This newsletter is edited by David Rhett Baker, J.D.
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