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July 2, 2003 - 8,349 subscribers
Today's sponsor: EBIA's Group Health Plans: Federal Mandates Other Than COBRA & HIPAA

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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
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(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Employers Seek to Shift Costs of Drugs to U.S.
Excerpt: "The bills to provide drug benefits through Medicare that were passed by the House and the Senate last week offer some of the country's largest employers a long-sought prize: shifting at least some of their burden of soaring drug costs to the federal government." (New York Times; one-time registration required)

Will Private Insurance Companies Support Medicare Drug Reforms?
Excerpt: "While lawmakers hammer out the details, any Medicare drug benefit within a PPO structure will need the backing of managed care plans and the nation's seniors." (HealthLeaders)

Opinion: How Not to Fix Medicare
Excerpt: "The [House of Representatives] bill delivers a prescription drug benefit, but this benefit is simply the attractive window dressing for the legislation's ultimate aim: fundamentally revamping Medicare to create a competitive system based on private health plans." (Jacob S. Hacker in the New York Times; one-time registration required)

Text of DOL Advisory Opinion on Disposition of Surplus Assets at Termination of Welfare Trust Fund
AO 2003-08A (June 26, 2003). Excerpt: "Request for guidance as to the disposition of surplus assets on the termination of the Trust. Specifically, whether, after all outstanding claims for benefits have been satisfied and all surplus attributable to participant contributions has been used for the provision of benefits, the remaining surplus assets may be transferred to a charitable foundation that is not a party in interest in accordance with the terms of the trust document." (U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration)

North Carolina Tightens Definition of Disability for State Workers
Excerpt: "The state employees association wants the legislature to nullify a provision tucked in the new state budget that would make it harder for workers to qualify for state disability benefits. Under the old guidelines, state workers unable to perform their jobs were eligible for disability. With the tightened rules, an employee would have to be unable to perform his or her job or 'any other job available with the state' to qualify." (The [Raleigh, N.C.] News and Observer via International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

Keeping Multiemployer Health Funds Healthy: the Importance of Reserves (PDF)
Excerpt: "In addition to establishing a cushion to fall back on during unfavorable financial periods, there are many other reasons to set aside reserves, including the following: ..." (The Segal Company)

Increased Consumerism Could Make Consumer-Directed Healthcare a Bitter Pill for PBMs to Swallow
Excerpt: "After years of sitting in the driver's seat under managed care, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) don't yet know how to merge with consumer-directed care, where pharmacy usage is driven from the bottom up." (Inside Consumer-Directed Care via AISHealth.com)

Adapting Health Care to Serious Chronic Illness in Old Age
Excerpt: "This white paper synthesizes a growing body of research on the issue of chronic illness in the last phase of life. It describes the demographic and cost components of the problem, examines gaps in the current health care system, explores some reform measures that are addressing urgent needs, and outlines a vision for adapting the health care system to confront the new reality." (RAND)

Opinion: Government is Wrong to Allow Imporation of Drugs from Canada
Excerpt: "The House is expected to vote soon after the Independence Day recess on legislation to allow the reimportation of prescription drugs from Canada, possibly with a new catch: The government would not have to validate the safety of the reimported drugs.... In approving Medicare prescription drug legislation last week, both the House and Senate bills included additional provisions that would meddle in pharmaceutical prices and alter intellectual property rights." (The Galen Institute)


Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

IRS Disallows a Tax Shelter for Stock Options
Excerpt: "The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service disallowed a tax shelter yesterday that executives bought to delay taxes on exercised stock options for 15 years. Public records show unusual transactions by L. Dennis Kozlowski, the indicted former chief executive of Tyco International, that fit the tax shelter's design." (New York Times; one-time registration required)


Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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in AZ, CA, CO, NV, OR, WA

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Newly Posted Conferences
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CEBS Course 8-Human Resources and Compensation Management
in ALL STATES
August 25, 2003
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CEBS Course: Compensation 1-Compensation Concepts and Principles
in ALL STATES
August 25, 2003
IFEBP/CEBS Program
Newly Posted Press Releases
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Ernst & Young to Pay $15 Million to Settle IRS Tax Shelter Marketing Dispute
(Internal Revenue Service)


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