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March 21, 2005
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Overview: Health Info in Disability Discrimination Case May Be Released Only as Provided by HIPAA
Excerpt: "Many of the reported HIPAA privacy cases involve access by defense attorneys to the health-related information of plaintiffs in personal injury or discrimination cases. .... The results in the cases have been mixed, depending, in part, on whether the information sought is protected health information (which is subject to the HIPAA privacy rule) or information held by an employer in its role as an employer (which is not subject to the HIPAA privacy rule)." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA))

Do Americans Need More Vacation Time?
Excerpt: "The reality is that the amount of vacation time available to U.S. workers is at the whim of U.S. employers. While there may be some truth to the fact that a lack of government intervention in this matter is a major reason for the global dominance of the U.S. economy, we are at an extreme end of the work-life balance spectrum. And to many, the end is the wrong one." (AskMen.com)

Overview: Additional HIPAA Actions Required
Excerpt: "HIPAA compliance continues, with several new requirements and deadlines looming. Group health plans (except for 'small' health plans) face an April 20, 2005 deadline for compliance with HIPAA's security standards. Proper compliance will include adoption and implementation of security policies, as well as the amendment of business associate contracts." (Buchanan Ingersoll PC)

How to Boost Participation in Company Wellness Programs?
Excerpt: "Pinpoint barriers to participation through surveys and other means. Establish a wellness committee to brainstorm. Make clear the link between employee wellness and insurance premiums." (The Segal Company via Workforce Management)

The Ernst & Young Automotive Report for Winter 2005 (PDF)
16 pages. Excerpt from PLANSPONSOR.com; one-time registration required: 'The E&Y report suggests that the size of the industry and foreign advantages in health care, employee consumption, and retiree to current employee ratios make the auto industry especially prone to health-care cost problems." (Ernst & Young)

Fact Sheet: Medicare Program; Establishment of Medicare Advantage Program; Interpretation (4069-F2) (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "Because this is a clarifying interpretation to the preamble of the final regulation, we are required to publish this final rule prior to the effective date of the Medicare Pres.cription Drug Benefit Final Rule, which is March 22, 2005. Our interpretation of the word 'entity' in this final rule would be deemed to be included in that final rule." (The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services via The ERISA Industry Committee)

Fact Sheet: Medicare Program; Medicare Pres.cription Drug Benefit; Interpretation (CMS-4068-F2) (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "This final regulation clarifies these four issues. Because these are clarifying interpretations to the preamble of the final regulation, we are required to publish this final rule prior to the effective date of the Medicare Pres.cription Drug Benefit Final Rule, which is March 22, 2005. These interpretations would be deemed to be included in that final rule." (The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services via The ERISA Industry Committee)

Health Coverage Alphabet Soup: HMO, PPO, FSA, HSA
Excerpt: "Twenty-five years ago, most people had traditional, or indemnity, insurance plans, according to the group America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). Someone with indemnity (fee-for-service) insurance could go to any doctor, hospital or other provider, and both the insurance company and the patient would pay a portion of the bill." (South Florida Business Journal via bizjournals.com; one-time registration required)

Blue Cross of California Taps Small Firms Without Health Insurance Coverage
Excerpt: "Blue Cross of California is looking aggressively for business in a seemingly unpromising place - among companies that historically don't provide employee health-care coverage. [B]lue Cross, ..., started offering a package of benefit plans late last year specifically targeting the estimated 500,000 California small businesses that don't offer health coverage. Dubbed BeneFits, the portfolio of five small-employer health plans is designed for companies with two to 50 employees." (East Bay Business Times via bizjournals.com; one-time registration required)

States Move to Retract Health Insurance Mandates
Excerpt: "In a bid to make health insurance more affordable, some state legislators want to peel back laws requiring insurance companies to cover certain procedures. The New Mexico Senate passed a bill Friday that would allow consumers and small businesses to buy health policies without state mandated health benefits. The same day, Georgia senators passed a bill that would let insurers slash certain mandates while preserving coverage for such things as cancer screenings and diabetes treatment." (BenefitNews Connect)

Empower Small Businesses with Health Savings Plans
Excerpt: "[U]se of health savings accounts, soon may revolutionize the way consumers, employers and insurance providers pay for health care. President Bush signed the Health Savings Account plan into law as part of the Medicare overhaul bill in December of 2003, but it's a new approach to an old idea, the Medical Savings Account." (Business First of Columbus via bizjournals.com; one-time registration required)

Executive Summary: Overwork in America -- When the Way We Work Becomes too Much (PDF)
13 pages. Excerpt: "There is little question that the way Americans work and live has changed in recent years. The fast-paced, global 24/7 economy, the pressures of competition, and technology have blurred the traditional boundaries between work life and home life. Furthermore, this new economy calls for new skills -- skills like responding quickly to competing demands and jumping from task to task." (Families and Work Institute)

Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Overview: Plan's Deadline for Claims Appeal Enforced Despite Attorney's Mistake
Excerpt: "This decision is a textbook example of clear plan communications helping to ensure that a plan can be operated according to its terms. It is worthwhile reading for anyone charged with drafting SPDs or claim denial notices because the court quotes the language from the plan's denial notice and SPD that it found persuasive." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc. (EBIA))

Alzheimer's Trends Make Case for Retirement Preparation
Excerpt: "A study on the financial ravages of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia asserts that these diseases could bankrupt the nation's health care system if a breakthrough in prevention or treatment is not found, making it necessary for advisers to make sure their clients' employees prepare for retirement and old age expenses." (The Adviser)

General Motors Offering Buyout Deals to Some White-Collar Workers to Help Cut Rising Costs
Excerpt: "General Motors Corp., the world's biggest automaker, has offered buyout and early retirement packages to some of its nonunion, salaried workforce in North America as the company grapples with cutting costs. The offers were sent in the first quarter in hopes of speeding the normal amount of attrition the company usually has, Toni Simonetti, general director of financial and international communications, said yesterday in an interview." (Bloomberg News via The Washington Post; one-time registration required)

Newly Posted Events

Final 401(k) Regulations: A Discussion With the IRS
in New York on March 23, 2005
presented by WEB (Worldwide Employee Benefits Network) New York Chapter

The World Congress 1st Annual Human Capital Management Congress
in District of Columbia on October 31, 2005
presented by World Congress

Movers and Shakers: Newly Posted Announcements of Promotions and New Personnel
(Post Yours!)

Vince A. Daboul
(Banknoth Insurance Group)

Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

Defined Benefit Calculation Specialists
for Constantin Control Associates
in NJ

Benefits Project Manager
for Hewitt Associates
in IL

Pension Administration Assistant
for Corporate Plans & Services
in NC

ERISA Associate
for Trucker Huss, APC
in CA

Actuarial Apprentice
for Pacific Coast Actuaries, Inc.
in CA

Pension Professionals
for Associated Pension Consultants
in CA

Assistant Administrator - Pension Services
for Aris Corporation of America
in PA

Account Manager - Benefits Consultant - Southern New Jersey
for Commerce Insurance Services
in NJ

Account Executive - Small Group Sales - Southern New Jersey
for Commerce Insurance Services
in NJ

Retirement Assistant Director, Member Services
for San Diego County Employees Retirement Association
in CA

Benefits Training Manager - Southern New Jersey
for Commerce Insurance Services
in NJ

HM Pharmacist Consultant
for Hewitt Associates
in IL

Client Services Representative
for WHA Financial Solutions
in WI

Time/ Labor Require Analyst
for Hewitt Associates
in IL

Account Executive - Large Group Sales - Northern New Jersey
for Commerce Insurance Services
in NJ

Compliance Manager
for CDM Retirement Consultants, Inc.
in MD

Director, Employee Benefits
for Raley's
in CA

ERISA Tax Associate - Part-Time
for Potter Anderson & Corroon LLP
in DE

Senior Manager, Client Services
for Craford Benefit Consultants
in CA



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