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Welfare Plans
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April 15, 2004 - 8843 subscribers
Today's sponsor: Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. 


Bring Your Welfare Benefits Plans Into ERISA Compliance
ERISA Compliance for Health & Welfare Plans is an authoritative
resource for employers, administrators and advisors. Written by leading
employee benefits attorneys, this manual has all the information
you need to bring your welfare benefit plans into compliance with
ERISA, including reporting and disclosure, fiduciary duties, claims
procedures, plan documents, and much more.
Learn More

(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Text of Milliman USA Comments on Proposed FASB Staff Position on Accounting for Medicare Drug Law (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "We support the FASB's reasoning and decisions in its overall approach to accounting for the subsidy. An employer's provision of drug benefits and its qualification for receipt of the subsidy are so interdependent that we agree that accounting for them in a dependent manner under Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (SFAS) 106 is the correct methodology. We believe the following issues should be considered ..." (Milliman USA)

Complying with the HIPAA Security Rules: the Countdown Begins to 4/21/05 (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "Sponsors of health plans must soon face a new compliance challenge associated [HIPAA]: the security rules. These rules require group health plans and other 'covered entities' to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of electronic protected health information (ePHI) that they create, receive, maintain or transmit, either internally or to external entities (e.g., health care providers, insurance carriers and third party administrators)." (The Segal Company)

Overview: HIPAA Compliance for Small Group Health Plans
Excerpt: "April brings two HIPAA compliance deadlines. April 14 is the privacy compliance date for small group health plans--those with 'receipts' of less than $5 million for the last plan year. It is also the last date for covered entities to enter into business associate agreements with contractors who receive or create health information. This update contains some suggestions for small group health plans, and some lessons learned from the past year of business associate contracting." (Davis Wright Tremaine LLP)

'E-Pres.criptions' Could Save United States $29B Per Year, Study Finds
Excerpt: "A nationwide e-mail pres.cription system, or 'e-pres.cription,' could prevent medical errors that stem from illegible handwritten pres.criptions and save the nation's health care system $29 billion annually, according to a report released Wednesday by the eHealth Initiative, the Wall Street Journal reports." (KaiserNetwork.org)

Tech Rx For Health Care?
Excerpt: "Washington Post columnist Steven Pearlstein was online to talk about why the health care system has been hesitant to adopt technology advances that could save billions for American consumers. In his latest column, he writes that in terms of information technology, the health care industry is now about where the auto industry was in 1980." (Washington Post; one-time registration required)

Overview: COBRA Premiums-- Do You Know the Rules?
Excerpt: "The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) dictates how you must handle payments for COBRA continuation coverage. Here are five of the most important COBRA payment issues: When is a change in premium amounts permitted? How often may premiums be paid? How are premium amounts calculated? How should payments that are less than the full amount due be handled? and When are payments considered late?" (OnQue Technologies, Inc.)

Ninth Circuit Holds State-Law Subrogation/Reimbursement Claim Not Preempted by ERISA
Providence Health Plan v. McDowell (9th Cir. 2004). Excerpt: "This is a typical ERISA health plan reimbursement claim, but with an interesting twist in the outcome.... The plan sued in state court for breach of contract ... but the suit was dismissed on the ground that it was preempted. The plan then sued in federal court ... The Ninth Circuit ... held that the state-law claim for breach of contract ... was not preempted by ERISA." (Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA))

Employer Misinformation Entitles Retired Employees to Enhanced Termination Benefits
Mathews v. Chevron Corp. (9th Cir. 2004). Excerpt: "[T]he Ninth Circuit concluded ... that the enhanced benefits were not under 'serious consideration' at the time any of the pre-retirement inquiries were made.... Nevertheless, the court found that about a month before serious consideration began, company representatives realized that enhanced benefits might be provided and thus breached their fiduciary duties by telling inquiring employees that enhanced benefits would not be provided." (Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA))

Obesity Projected To Cut Life Insurer Profits, Lead To Higher Premiums
Excerpt: "Life insurance plan rates might soon be based on risk of early death through obesity, which could mean higher premiums for clients." (BenefitNews.com)

Task Force Holds Hearing On Drug Reimportation
Excerpt: "Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, in testifying Wednesday before a federal task force, urged the group to certify that pres.cription drugs can be safely reimported from Canada." (Business Insurance)

Overview: Second Round of HSA Guidance
Excerpt: "The following are some highlights of the new guidance." (Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA))

What the New Medicare Law Means to Employers (Revised April 2004) (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "Beginning Jan. 1, 2004, employers will be able to offer ... HSAs – that are closely modeled on the Archer Medical Savings Accounts currently available only to small employers or the self-employed. HSAs, which can be funded either solely by employer contributions, through pre-tax payroll deductions under a cafeteria plan, or by an employee without employer involvement, could offer a way to help employees accumulate funds over time to pay for retiree medical coverage." (Gardner Carton & Douglas)

A 401(k) for Healthcare Costs
Excerpt: "Keeping a lid on soaring health care costs almost always means passing the pain on to employees. But finally there's a way to control costs without sticking it to your staffers--HSAs, or health savings accounts." (Inc. Magazine)

Overview: Health Savings Accounts-- Favorable IRS and DOL Guidance
Excerpt: "In a strong Administration-backed effort to promote the use of HSAs by employers and individuals, the IRS and DOL have issued substantial helpful guidance within a relatively brief time frame. A summary of the IRS guidance, and the favorable DOL position that exempts most HSAs from ERISA regulation, follows." (Groom Law Group)

Allowing Pres.cription Drug Reimportation Might Not Harm Drug Companies' Profits, Study Says
Excerpt: "While many pharmaceutical companies say pres.cription drug reimportation cuts into profits, they actually might be breaking even or earning profits from the practice because lower-cost medicines available elsewhere might 'spur new pres.criptions,' according to a study released Thursday, the Boston Globe reports." (KaiserNetwork.org)

Supporters, Opponents of Pres.cription Drug Reimportation Make Cases Before Federal Panel
Excerpt: "The federal Task Force on Drug Importation on Wednesday held a third meeting to allow the public to comment on the reimportation of pres.cription drugs from other nations, Reuters/Philadelphia Inquirer reports." (KaiserNetwork.org)

Bookmark: CoverTheUninsuredWeek.org
Excerpt: "Learn more about the efforts of the diverse coalition of national organizations coming together for Cover the Uninsured Week 2004 in our Media Center." (CoverTheUninsuredWeek.org is a project of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)

Home Care Reimbursement, Long-term Care Utilization, and Health Outcomes
Working paper. Excerpt: "Long-term care currently comprises almost 10% of national health expenditures and is projected to rise rapidly over coming decades. A key, and relatively poorly understood, element of long-term care is home health care." (National Bureau of Economic Research)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in Private Industry, March 2003 (PDF)
16 pages. Excerpt: "About 6 out of 10 workers in private industry had access to medical care and retirement benefits in the United States in 2003. This summary presents benefits data from the National Compensation Survey (NCS) for: Worker characteristics; Establishment characteristics [and] Geographic areas." (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)

GAO Report: Certain Postretirement Benefits for Energy Dept. Contractor Employees Are Underfunded
43 pages. Excerpt: "Given DOE's long history of using contractors and the rising cost of postretirement benefits, you asked GAO to (1) analyze DOE's estimated financial obligation for postretirement health and pension benefits for contractor employees at the end of fiscal year 2003, (2) determine how DOE evaluates its contractor postretirement health and pension benefit programs and assesses the comparative levels of benefits offered by contractors ..." (U.S. General Accounting Office)

Why Are So Many Older Women Poor? (PDF)
8 pages; by Alicia Munnell. Excerpt: "The economic status of older Americans has improved dramatically since 1960. Today, the poverty rate for those 65 and over is about the same as for those aged 18-64. But substantial pockets of poverty remain, especially among older non-married women. This brief will focus on why older women are particularly vulnerable." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)

Same-Sex Marriage in Massachusetts: Employee Benefits and Employment Law Implications (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "As a result of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court's decision in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, same-sex marriages are authorized to occur in the Commonwealth as early as May 17, 2004. While the court made clear that same-sex marriages must be treated in the same manner as opposite-sex marriages for purposes of Massachusetts law, the Goodridge decision did not provide any direct guidance regarding ... the areas of employment and employee benefits." (Goodwin Procter)

G.ay Marriage Debate Moves Into Workplace
Excerpt: "Activists want the same benefits long considered the domain of traditional married couples, including health insurance, family leave, access to a partner's pension, company scholarships for children and adoption benefits." (USA Today)

Understanding Nonparticipation in Employee Stock Purchase Plans
Working paper. Excerpt: "The picture that emerges from the analysis of these data suggests that there is substantial non-participation in these plans even though all employees could increase gross compensation through participation. We discuss a number of potential explanations for non-participation." (National Bureau of Economic Research)

Newly Posted Events

412i National Teleconference
Nationwide on April 23, 2004
presented by The 412(i) Company

How to Comply With the New FLSA Regulations Audio Conference
Nationwide on May 4, 2004
presented by Thompson Interactive, A Division of Thompson Publishing Group

Rising Health Care Costs ... Strategies for Containment
in California on April 28, 2004
presented by No. Calif. Chapter of Certified Employee Benefits Specialists (ISCEBS)
Newly Posted Press Releases

SEC Adopts Fund Disclosure Rules and Foreign Bank Loan Exemption; Proposes Shell Company Rules
(U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)

Verizon Retirees Wage Shareholder Battle Against Corporate Excesses
(Association of BellTel Retirees Inc.)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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Qualified Plan Administrator
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Counsel
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in MN

Director of Compliance
for Charles W. Cammack Associates, Inc. New York, NY
in NY

Product Manager
for New York Life Investment Management LLC
in MA

Pension New Business Analyst
for Minnesota Life
in MN

Account Manager Group Insurance Benefits
for Fickewirth & Assoc. Inc.
in CA

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