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May 23, 2003 - 8,255 subscribers
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BenefitsLink Newsletters Will Not Publish Monday, May 26
We'll be observing Memorial Day. Have a good weekend! (BenefitsLink.com)

Aetna Agreement With Doctors Envisions Altered Managed Care
Excerpt: "Aetna, the big health insurance company, and medical leaders said yesterday that their agreement to settle a long-running lawsuit over billing and medical decisions promised a radical change in their often rancorous relationship and better treatment for patients." (New York Times; one-time registration required)

Proposed Excise Tax on Health Plans for Failure to Provide Reconstructive Surgery Coverage Dropped (PDF)
3-page excerpt from Conference Committee report, obtained from House Rules Committee web page at http://www.house.gov/rules/hr2_conf.htm - the Senate version of the tax bill would have added an excise tax under the Code to group health plans that fail to provide reconstructive surgery after a mastectomy, as required by ERISA. (U.S. Congress, House Rules Committee)

Colorado Governor Signs No-Frills Health Plan Law
Excerpt: "Under one of the three bills, insurance companies can offer to firms of 50 or fewer workers at least one plan that allows consumers to decline coverage for mammography, prostate screening, child dental care, alcoholism, hospice and some types of mental illness. It's the 'Chevrolet' plan that Owens has been espousing for years after complaining that current mandates on coverage force Coloradans to buy a 'Cadillac plan' that makes insurance too expensive for many." (Rocky Mountain News)

Health Care Cost and Access Problems Intensify
Excerpt: "Early findings from the Center for Studying Health System Change's ... site visits to 12 nationally representative communities show the retreat from tightly managed care continues to shape local health care markets. Employers are aggressively shifting higher health costs to workers, and absent tight managed care controls to limit the use of care and slow payment rate increases, hospitals and physicians in many markets are competing fiercely for profitable specialty services." (Center for Studying Health System Change)

Researcher Charges PBMs Profit From Generics Markups
Excerpt: "Although long viewed by employers as a cost-saver for prescription drug bills, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) may not save as much as employers think, a Creighton University professor asserts." (BenefitNews.com)

What Obligations Does Our Group Health Plan Have to Employees Returning From Military Leave?
Excerpt: "If your employee meets USERRA's requirements, she is entitled, upon reemployment, to reinstatement in your company's medical and dental plans (as are her spouse and dependents). And any plan exclusions or waiting periods must be applied to the employee and her family as if their coverage had not terminated as a result of the military leave." (EBIA Weekly (Question of the Week))

Study Finds Consumer-Directed Health Plan Design Appeals To Savvy, 35-and-Up Consumers
Excerpt: "[D]espite the conventional wisdom that says CDH plans appeal more to younger people, Dieringer's research shows 67% of consumers interested in the programs are 35 and older. Moreover, half of them are college graduates and half are men who are more likely to use the Internet to research health care cost information." (BenefitNews.com)

Proposed Extension of Archer Medical Savings Accounts Dropped by Conference Committee (PDF)
2-page excerpt from Conference Committee report, obtained from House Rules Committee web page at http://www.house.gov/rules/hr2_conf.htm - the Senate version of the tax bill would have extended the availability of new MSAs through 2004. (U.S. Congress, House Rules Committee)

Employees Do Not Feel Responsible For Higher Health Care Costs: Survey
Employees disagree with their employers about employees' responsibility to help restrain rising health care costs, according to a survey recently released by Towers Perrin. The national survey, Keeping Employees Engaged About Health Care, was conducted in February 2003 with individuals working for an employer with at least 1,000 employees and with employer-sponsored health care benefits. (Spencer Benefit Reports)


Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Executive Comp Reform Provisions Dropped by Conference Committee, Not in Tax Bill (PDF)
7-page excerpt from Conference Committee report, obtained from House Rules Committee web page at http://www.house.gov/rules/hr2_conf.htm - the Senate version of the tax bill contained changes to Code section 83 and would have added a new Code section 409A. (U.S. Congress, House Rules Committee)

Split Dollar Redux
Excerpt: "[T]he IRS has issued revenue notices 2002-8 and 2002-59, as well as proposed regulations, which together make many of the benefits of split-dollar a thing of the past. Here's how the changes affect clients with split-dollar insurance plans and what CPAs can do about them." (Journal of Accountancy)

Report: SEC Finalizes Rules for Section 16(a) Reports (PDF)
Excerpt: "The SEC issued final rules eliminating the use of paper forms and mandating the electronic filing of beneficial ownership reports for 'insiders' under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act. Additionally, companies with websites must provide access to these forms via their website by the end of the business day after filing by the insider." (Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.)

DB-to-Health-Account Asset Transfers Extension Dropped by Conference Committee, Not in Tax Bill (PDF)
Excerpt: "2-page excerpt from Conference Committee report, obtained from House Rules Committee web page at http://www.house.gov/rules/hr2_conf.htm - the Senate version of the tax bill would have extended the current provision, to allow such transfers through 2013; under current law they become uavailable after 2005." (U.S. Congress, House Rules Committee)


Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

Account Executive
for Principal Financial Group
in NY

Conversion Specialist
for New York Life Investment Management
in MA

Employee Benefits Account Manager
for Andreini & Company
in CA

Retirement Plan Specialist
for Diversified Investment Advisors
in MI

DC/DB Plan Administrator
for Columbia Benefits, LLC - Englewood Colorado
in CO
Newly Posted Press Releases
(Post Yours!)

Labor Department Proposes Rules on Notices for COBRA Continuation Health Care Coverage
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration)


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