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April 5, 2004 - 8,783 subscribers
Today's sponsor: EBIA's Cafeteria Plans Manual

(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)

Reimbursements for Over-the-Counter Drugs!
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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)
COBRA, HIPAA, State Law May Apply Simultaneously To State, Local Government's COBRA
Contrary to a 'common misperception,' COBRA continuation of coverage programs of nonfederal governmental plans may be subject simultaneously to COBRA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and state laws, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) clarified recently. (Spencer Benefits Reports)

Health Coverage Tax Credits Under the Trade Act of 2002: a Preliminary Analysis of Program Operation (PDF)
68 pages. Shorter, 'Issue Brief' format is online at http://www.cmwf.org/programs/insurance/dorn_tradeact_ib_721.pdf (Economic Research Institute via the Commonwealth Fund)

A 'Flip-Flop' on Patients' Right to Sue?
Excerpt: "[T]he Bush administration's current position on a part of the president's Texas record that he had once unequivocally praised is also a case study in the shifting politics of health care." (Washington Post; one-time registration required)

Following Medical Guidelines Reaps Financial Benefits
Excerpt: "Adhering to evidence-based medical guidelines can result in substantial benefits for both employers and employees, according to new study from the Integrated Benefits Institute (IBI)." (BenefitNews.com)

Joint EAP Work/Life Programs Cut Costs
Excerpt: "A growing number of employers are moving toward integrated work/life and employee assistance programs, spurred by cost savings, ease of use for employees and higher utilization rates." (Workforce.com)

A Case for Employer-Paid Child Care
Excerpt: "While many employers steer clear of providing child care and are leery of the cost, complications and regulation, others are examining the matter in a new light. Abbott Laboratories, IBM and Procter & Gamble have developed cost-effective models for analyzing and meeting employees' child-care needs. The motivation is not humanitarian or altruistic. Some companies now regard child care as something they must do to be competitive." (Workforce.com)

Gifts That Gall
Excerpt: "The reward program that your company thought was so fabulous could instead turn out to be a swamp of ill will, malice, sabotage, fraud and even litigation. Here's why reward programs fall flat on their faces, and what companies can do to ensure that their efforts will reap better performance, not productivity-killing backlash." (Workforce.com)

Panel Seeks Better Health Care Benefits for Federal Workers
Excerpt: "The House Government Reform Committee Thursday called for the Office of Personnel Management to study and recommend improvements in dental, vision and hearing benefits for federal workers." (GovExec.com)

Retiree Healthcare Outlook Dims for Many
Nice chart of survey results. Excerpt: "Here's how ... companies plan to alter retiree health benefits in the near future." (Managed Care Magazine)

Consumer-Directed Plans Begin Measuring Patient Satisfaction
Excerpt: "Today, at a time when employee satisfaction with benefits is declining in general, employers -- and insurers -- are finding that satisfaction with consumer-directed health plans is high." (Managed Care Magazine)

Mental Health Parity's Nice, But Is Federal Bill Too Costly?
Excerpt: "Big majorities of lawmakers and a laundry list of health care backers were behind the bill last year, [but] it never had a prayer of getting out of committee, where House Republican leaders led by Dennis Hastert very carefully arranged for it to stay." (Managed Care Magazine)

Assessing the Health Savings Account Option
Excerpt: "As health plan providers scramble to develop and market products for the newest approach to employee health coverage -- the health savings account (HSA) -- HR departments are assessing how HSAs can be worked into their mix of employee benefits." (HR Magazine)

IRS Provides Preventive Care Safe Harbor and Helpful Transition Relief for HSAs
Excerpt: "On March 30th, the IRS issued the following guidance (Notice 2004-23, Notice 2004-25, Rev. Rul. 2004-38, and Rev. Proc. 2004-22) on Health Savings Accounts ('HSAs') that provides: ..." (Groom Law Group)

Program Supports Breastfeeding At Work
Excerpt: "Breastfeeding is on the rise among American mothers, and studies show the practice can lead to lower health care costs for children and reduced absenteeism among parents. Yet many new mothers find it difficult to continue breastfeeding after returning to work." (BenefitNews.com)

Depressed Employees Underutilize Mental Health Benefits
Excerpt: "Despite broad access to mental health benefits, depressed employees aren't getting the help they need, according to new research from the University of Michigan Depression Center. That's bad news for employers, who lose an estimated $52 billion each year from depression-related absenteeism and reduced productivity." (BenefitNews.com)

Association Health Plans Might Leave Plan Members With Unpaid Bills, Report Finds
Excerpt: "Brokers may want to rethink any positive stances on association health plans (AHPs), both for their clients' sakes and their own." (BenefitNews.com)

Opinion: Controlling the Employer's Health Care Costs
Excerpt: "Is it possible to manage a health benefits program to a reasonable cost level without massive cost-shifting to workers or reducing the benefits?" (Richard D. Quinn in Employee Benefit News)

New Analysis Lowers Cost of Kerry's Health Plan
Excerpt: "A new analysis reduces the estimated cost of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry's health care plan by more than one-quarter by accounting for savings the government might achieve from a more efficient system of medical care." (AP via Washington Post; one-time registration required)

Cost and Coverage Analysis of 10 Proposals to Expand Health Insurance Coverage (PDF)
57 pages; published October 2003. (The Lewin Group via the Economic and Social Research Institute)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Another Question is Answered in the Stock Options, Restricted Stock and Other Long-Term Employment Incentives Q&A Column
A small software company has 100% of the equity distributed but only 10% of the stock issued. The current stockholders are unwilling to dilute their ownership position. We are trying to secure long-term funding. Is there a way to offer stock options to current employees based on the event of securing this funding? (BenefitsLink.com)

What Does Same-Sex Marriage Controversy Mean to Employers? (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "A state court decision in Massachusetts late last year has sparked a far-reaching controversy over whether same-sex couples should be allowed to marry and thus be entitled to the benefits of marriage. Although there are many areas of uncertainty that will have to be decided in the courts, the same-sex marriage controversy should have only minimal implications for employers." (Mellon's Human Resources & Investor Solutions)

Newly Posted Events

What Does It All Mean? Late Day Trading Webcast
Nationwide on August 18, 2004
presented by ASPA (American Society of Pension Actuaries)

Great Lakes Conference Moves To A New Location!
in Illinois on April 29, 2004
presented by ASPA & IRS

Disease Management & Managed Care Strategies For Military Healthcare
in District of Columbia on June 28, 2004
presented by International Quality & Productivity Center (IQPC)

Pay For Performance & Physician Incentives
in Massachusetts on May 24, 2004
presented by International Quality & Productivity Center (IQPC)

Consumer-Directed Pharmacy Benefits
in Nevada on June 28, 2004
presented by International Quality & Productivity Center (IQPC)

Cost Containment – Prescription Drugs
in Georgia on April 15, 2004
presented by Worldwide Employee Benefits Network (WEB) - Atlanta Chapter

2004 WP&BC Phoenix Chapter Spring Conference
in Arizona on May 11, 2004
presented by Western Pension & Benefits Conference - Phoenix Chapter
Newly Posted Press Releases

Business Growth Expectations Dwindle: Prelude to Higher Growth or Indicator of Downturn?
(eePulse, Inc.)

Option Expensing Announcement Has No Impact on Share Price, Towers Perrin Event Study Affirms; Business Goals, Not Accounting Treatment, Should Drive Incentive Plans
(Towers Perrin)

Keenan Appoints CA Medical Association Head, Jack C. Lewin, MD, To Newly Formed Advisory Board
(Keenan)

Keenan Appoints Robert Margolis, MD, Founding Partner And CEO Of Healthcare Partners, To Newly Formed Advisory Board
(Keenan)

Short-Term Pension Bill Approved by Conferees; Proposal Ready for House Floor Action
(Committee on Education and the Workforce)

Proposed Accounting Standards Threaten Job Creation and Economic Growth; Westly Joins Boxer, Feinstein, Pelosi and Eshoo in Supporting Alternative to FASB Proposal
(California State Controller's Office)

FASB Proposal Would Systematically Overvalue Employee Stock Options
(International Employee Stock Options Coalition)

Coalition Renews Call for FASB to 'Field Test' Valuation Models, Including the Untested, Unproven and Extraordinarily Complicated Binomial Method
(International Employee Stock Options Coalition)

2nd American Express National Survey Finds Worker Financial Stress Lingering Into 2004
(American Express Retirement Services)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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