| BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter |   |
September 28, 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.
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Overview of the Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004 (H.R. 1308) (PDF)
8 pages. The Act was adopted in the House by a vote of 339-65 and in the Senate 92-3 on September 23. The bill now waits for the President's signature. Among other provisions, the Archer Medical Savings Account provisions have been extended through December 31, 2005. (CCH Tax and Accounting)
Employers Cautioned Not to Oversell Health Savings Accounts to Employees
Excerpt: "Employers should be careful to not overstate the capabilities of health savings accounts to workers because they cannot cover all health expenses in retirement, even if participants save the maximum permissible amount and avoid using the funds to pay for current expenses, warns the Employee Benefit Research Institute." (Employee Benefit News)
Overview: HIPAA Privacy and Security Compliance Services for Health Plans
Excerpt: "[This Q & A addresses how to approach] compliance with the privacy regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, including the final modifications to the regulations and the final security regulations.' A link to the five page PDF of the Q & A is available. (Haynes and Boone, LLP)
Wal-Mart, General Motors May Use Bush Plan to Cut Health Costs
Excerpt: "Texas Plywood & Lumber Co., a seller of homebuilding products with 130 workers, has adopted a Bush administration plan to reduce health-care costs that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and General Motors Corp. may follow." (Bloomberg.com)
AARP Marketing a Dental Policy for Members Unable to Buy Coverage Otherwise
Excerpt: "If you're long in the tooth or soon to become so, AARP has plans for you. Dental plans. The nonprofit has begun marketing an insurance program in partnership with Delta Dental, whose other products cover more than 20 million people nationwide. Open to all AARP members -- anyone over 50 who pays the group's dues of $12.50 a year -- and to their dependents, the plan is aimed at people who can't buy dental coverage through an employer or other group sponsor." (The Washington Post; one-time registration required)
Health Insurance Coverage in America: 2003 Data Update Highlights
40 pages. The PDF consists of the Chartpack and Tables for the report. (Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured)
Report: The Economic Downturn and Changes in Health Insurance Coverage, 2000-2003
Excerpt: "This report shows that number of uninsured Americans under age 65 increased by 5.1 million between 2000-2003 largely driven by continuing declines in employer sponsored insurance." (Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured)
National Committee on Evidence-Based Benefit Design Formed for Employers' Benefit (PDF)
Excerpt: "Mission: To promote value in health care by using benefit design to encourage effective care and discourage ineffective care. By linking benefit design to medical practices with demonstrated effectiveness, the Committee seeks to improve employers' return on benefits investment and enhance the health and quality of life of employees and their dependents." (The National Business Group on Health)
Higher Costs, Less Care: Data Show Crisis In Health Insurance
Excerpt: "In the past four years, Americans have spent an ever-growing portion of their paychecks on health care and for the most part gotten less for their money, forcing millions into the ranks of the uninsured or personal bankrup.tcy, according to government figures and several independent assessments." (The Washington Post; one-time registration required)
Information Needed to Assess Medicare Rate-Setting Methodology for Hospital Outpatient Payments (PDF)
Excerpt: "The rate-setting methodology used by CMS may result in payment rates for drugs, devices, and other services that do not uniformly reflect hospitals' costs of providing those services, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Sept. 17." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
Inquiry on Medicare Finds Improper Limits on Choices of Health Care Providers
Excerpt: "Federal investigators said Monday that the Bush administration had improperly allowed some private health plans to limit Medicare patients' choice of health care providers, including doctors, nursing homes and home care agencies." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Proposed Salary and Benefit Changes Anger Kentucky State Workers and Teachers
Excerpt: "The news in Northern Kentucky this week was dominated by Gov. Ernie Fletcher's decision to call a special session of the General Assembly to deal with health insurance benefits and compensation for teachers and state employees. Teachers and state workers across the commonwealth are in open revolt against the new health insurance package the Fletcher administration has negotiated for the coming year." (The Kentucky Post)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Same-Sex-Marriage Bay State Ruling Has Benefits Administration Ramifications for Other States
Excerpt: "The advent of state-recognized same-sex marriage in Massachusetts earlier this year creates a number of perplexing questions for employers in neighboring states that may employ Massachusetts residents." (New Hampshire Business Review via Gallagher, Callahan & Gartrell)
Voters in 10 of 11 States Are Seen as Likely to Pass Bans of Same-Sex Marriages
Excerpt: "With the recent passage of two state ballot measures banning same-sex marriage, opinion polls and advocates on both sides of the debate say similar initiatives are likely to be approved in as many as 10 other states in November, leading advocates of such marriages to pour money and manpower into a last stand in Oregon." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Opinion: Domestic Partners' Employment-Based Benefits Safe in Georgia Marriage Amendment
Excerpt: "The American Civil Liberties Union and Lambda Legal Foundation are at it again. The two organizations are using legal scare tactics to affect the outcome of the Nov. 2 Georgia ballot question on marriage. A similar lawsuit to the one filed in Georgia was attempted in Missouri, which voted by an overwhelming 71 percent in favor of a constitutional amendment recognizing traditional marriage." (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution; one-time registration required)
Analysis: Companies Trimming Grants of Incentive Stock
Excerpt: "Major corporations have trimmed their grants of incentive stock over the past year, helping to address long-standing investor concerns about the impact of equity-based compensation plans on the level of outstanding shares, according to a Towers Perrin analysis. The study also determined that for most large employers, the amounts of stock set aside for executive incentive plans remain at levels that investors generally consider tolerable." (Towers Perrin)
Overview: Executive Compensation Practices Targeted by Congress in Current Tax Bills
Excerpt: "Congress is seeking to eliminate a variety of bonus, stock-based and nonqualified deferred compensation practices widely used by large employers to reward senior executives and other employees. Final legislation with provisions that could affect your organization may be close at hand." (Towers Perrin)
FASB Responds to Public Input on Option Expensing Proposal
Excerpt: "The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has made tentative decisions to revise a number of key aspects of its proposal to begin requiring companies to expense stock options and other forms of stock-based compensation." (Towers Perrin)
The Future at Work -- Trends and Implications
Excerpt: "What does the future hold for work in the 21st century? In a new study for the U.S. Department of Labor, RAND researchers Lynn Karoly and Constantijn Panis seek to answer this question. In particular, they examine how three major trends that will shape the future at work in this century -- shifting demographic patterns, the pace of technological change, and the path of economic globalization -- will evolve over the next 10-15 years." (RAND)
Newly Posted Events
14th Annual National Employee Health Benefits Conference & Expo in Tampa at New Renaissance Hotel
in Florida on January 27, 2005
presented by Employers Health Conferences
Newly Posted Press Releases
Standard Insurance Company Introduces Online Retirement Plan Loan and Distribution Approval Service for Plan Sponsors
(Standard Insurance Company)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
401k Account Executive
for BISYS Retirement Services
in PA
Administrative Support
for 401(k) Advisors
in CA
Career Professionals
for Dynamics Worldwide, Inc.
in NY
Plan Reporting Administrator - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Benefits Administrator - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Operations Supervisor (RMU)
for ICMA Retirement Corporation
in DC
Compliance Administrator - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Institutional Trust Consultant III
for Branch Banking and Trust Company (BB&T)
in SC
Defined Benefits Data Administrator - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Defined Benefits Data Implementation Administrator - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Qualified Domestic Relations Order Manager - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Recordkeeping Services Manager - PA
for The Vanguard Group
in PA
Employee Benefits Specialist
for Goodman & Company
in VA
Investment Specialist Opportunities
for Prudential Financial
in CT
401(k) Support Specialist
for 401(k) Advisors
in CA
401(k) Client Service Representative
for ADP TotalSource
in FL
Retirement Services District Manager (Indianapolis)
for ADP Retirement Services
in IN
Senior Plan Administrator
for American National Insurance Company
in TX
Pension Administrators
for Associated Pension Consultants
in CA
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