| BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter |   |
August 27, 2004
Today's sponsor: The National Underwriter Company
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National Underwriter publications in the BenefitsLink Bookstore! The National Underwriter Company is regarded as one of the premiere publishers of professional references. A leader in publications and online services in the areas of Financial Planning, Employee Benefits & Retirement Planning as well as Life & Health and Risk Management since 1897. Click above to see the list of informative publications.
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
Health Costs to Rise, Mercer Survey States
Excerpt: "According to preliminary results of a survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, a 9.6% increase in total health costs per employee is projected for next year." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Record Level of Americans Not Insured on Health
Excerpt: "Rising costs for health coverage and a continuing fall-off in the number of workers in employer-sponsored health plans are among the reasons that a greater number of people did not have health insurance last year, experts say." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Opinion: America's Failing Health
Excerpt: "Working Americans have two great concerns: the growing difficulty of getting health insurance, and the continuing difficulty they have in finding jobs. These concerns may have a common cause: soaring insurance premiums." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Updated Overview on GASB's Final Standards (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "The technical calculations and reporting requirements in the accounting standards will highlight the long-term liability of retiree health costs for public sector employers and the plans they sponsor. This can translate into lower bond ratings for employers that would drive up the cost of capital for these entities. Public sector plans seeking to respond to GASB's final standards should consider the following actions: ..." (The Segal Company)
Obesity-related Diseases Cause Rise in STD Claims
Excerpt: "Benefit advisers might want to educate their clients about the importance of wellness and disease management programs, as disability insurance provider UnumProvident releases ... statistics about the increase in short-term disability claims associated with obesity." (The Adviser via BenefitNews.com)
U.S. Government Releases Plan Focusing on Obesity
Excerpt: "The U.S. National Institutes of Health said on Tuesday it was launching a systematic campaign to fight obesity, which now affects close to two-thirds of the U.S. population and threatens to overtake smoking as the leading cause of death." (Medscape; one-time registration required)
Higher Costs, Fewer Choices Coming: State Workers Brace for Health Plan Changes
Excerpt: "Aiming to cut expenses, Gov. Ernie Fletcher's administration will soon inform state employees and teachers of new health insurance plans that provide fewer choices and benefits and, by one estimate, could cost the average public worker an extra $830 a year overall." (Lexington Herald-Leader)
Feds Get First HIPAA Privacy Criminal Conviction
Excerpt: "Richard Gibson admitted to using a patient's name, date of birth and Social Security number to obtain four credit cards between October 2003 and January 2004. He then charged more than $9,100 on two of the cards for video games, home improvement supplies, clothing, jewelry, porcelain figurines, groceries and gasoline, according to federal prosecutors." (Health Data Management)
Seniors Find Cure for Pricey Drugs: Hop on the Bus
Excerpt: "Flanagan said the U.S. should adopt the Canadian policy of buying drugs in bulk and negotiating lower prices with pharmaceutical companies, who have too much lobbying power in Washington." (The Vancouver Sun (British Columbia) via the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights)
Health Care Benefit Crisis: Cost Drivers and Strategic Solutions (PDF)
16 pages. Excerpt: "This article examines the driving forces behind the [healthcare] rate increases including the aging baby boomers, technology cost, legislative initiatives, managed care saturation, direct-to-consumer pres.cription drug marketing, insurance industry consolidation and profit-taking, medical malpractice, poor quality health care, preventable and avoidable accidents and health problems, the uninsured, and consumer cost insulation or detachment." (Journal of Financial Service Professionals, reprinted by Grant Thornton LLP)
Some Businesses Say Providing Mental Health Coverage Saves Money
Excerpt: "Treatment for mental illness is a major driver of health care inflation and second only to heart disease, according to a new study in the journal Health Affairs.... These growing costs have led many employers to view mental health benefits as a potential drain on profits ... In the third part of a series on SSRIs, NPR's Joanne Silberner reports on the role employers play in getting treatment for their workers with depression." (National Public Radio)
Small Businesses Are on Cutting Edge of Keeping/Losing Company Health Plans
Excerpt: "Zeke Montes used to provide health insurance for all his employees. But as premiums escalated, the owner of Teleguia Inc. in Cicero, which publishes a Hispanic newspaper and magazine, has trimmed the benefit." (Chicago Tribune via the Journal Inquirer)
Group Criticizes Consumer-Driven Health Care
Excerpt: "A private health care foundation has warned employers against offering consumer-directed health plans. The Commonwealth Fund recently unveiled a report indicating that consumer-driven health plans might worsen health outcomes and fail to reduce health costs. Increased cost sharing in consumer-driven plans is designed to eliminate unneeded care, but it may cause patients to avoid seeking necessary care, the group fears." (BenefitNews Connect via BenefitNews.com)
Two Cents: On Employee Health Plans: Has Your Share of Health Care Costs Gone Up?
Excerpt: "[Here is] a representative sampling of responses to [health care cost] questions [posed] via e-mail." (San Francisco Chronicle via SFGate.com)
Canada's Health Fix Taking Longer Than Promised
Excerpt: "It was supposed to fix health care for a generation, but a much-ballyhooed summit between Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin and the provincial premiers has been downgraded to just another in a series of wrangles." (Reuters via Medscape; one-time registration required)
Health Insurance Mandates in the States, 2004: a State-by-State Breakdown (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "A health insurance 'mandate' is a requirement that an insurance company or health plan cover (or offer coverage for) common -- but sometimes not so common -- health care providers, benefits and patient populations." (Council for Affordable Health Insurance)
Opinion Piece Says Kerry Plan Would 'Transform' Health System
Excerpt: "The 'bold new health plan' proposed by Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (D) would 'completely transform the health care system,' is 'far more radical than even he has let on' and will cost 'in excess of $1 trillion,' John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis, writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece (Goodman, Wall Street Journal, 8/26)." (Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation)
The Greatest Challenge for Employee Benefits: Government Compliance ...
Excerpt: "The greatest risk & deterrent for employers offering employee benefits to their workers is not the fear of some huge medical bill. No, the biggest concern is compliance with the many laws, regulations, and requirements. It is a veritable alphabet soup of HIPAA (3 parts), COBRA, EDI, ADA, FMLA, MSP, VASP, QDRO, QMSCO, OBRA, etc. etc. etc. for a few hundred more. Unfortunately, many of the laws carry draconian penalties, even for unknowing or unintentional oversights." (Society of Professional Benefit Administrators (SPBA))
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers) About Employee Benefits
Excerpt: "If you're looking for fast answers to basic questions about retirement and health issues, we've repackaged a lot of our most popular data in an effort to get you the data you need quickly. In short, we've now posted FAQs (as in frequently answered questions, complete with answers) on the EBRI Web site. It's the perfect venue when you need a quick factoid or data bit rather than the comprehensiveness of an EBRI report." (Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI))
FASB Modifies Options Expensing Proposal
Excerpt: " A split Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has retreated a bit on its planned stock option expensing plan by deciding to stick with existing rules on accounting for income taxes of option awards. FASB voted to keep the approach in nine-year old rules on employee stock compensation (FASB Statement No. 123), which the board's March 31 draft expensing plan would replace or amend." (PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required)
Newly Posted Events
Fundamentals of Health & Welfare Plans
in Massachusetts on September 14, 2004
presented by International Society of CEBS - Greater Boston Chapter
New Rules, New Opportunities for Consumer Driven Health Care Plans
Nationwide on August 27, 2004
presented by Hewitt Associates LLC
The Monsanto Decision: What Does It Mean For Pension Plan Sponsors and Members?
Nationwide on September 10, 2004
presented by International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans
Trend-Setting Conference Analyzes The Impact of Same Sex Marriage on Employer Benefits Costs
in New York on October 25, 2004
presented by Wall Street Transcript
Newly Posted Press Releases
Ceridian Expands Employee Effectiveness Offerings with Workstream’s Employee Discount Program
(Ceridian)
Mullin Consulting Promotes Segal to VP Post
(Mullin Consulting)
Great-West Healthcare Rolls Out Free Employee Education; Program Will Help Employers Control Health Care Costs
(Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company)
Statement of Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao - Association Health Plans Needed to Ensure More Americans Have Access to Affordable Health Insurance
(U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Public Affairs, Washington, D.C.)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Pension Paralegal / Plan Administrator
for Actuarial consulting and administration firm
in NY
Pension Administrator
for The Nolan Company
in KS
Human Resource Legal Consultant
for Hewitt Associates
in IL
ERISA Attorney
for Large Philadelphia based law firm with over 480 attorneys nationwide.
in PA
Supervisor, Benefits (Retirement)
for Allied Waste Industries, Inc.
in AZ
ESOP Administrator
for Polycomp Administrative Services, Inc. in Roseville-Northern California
in CA
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Search BenefitsLink
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research
- Employee Benefits Library
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