| BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter |   |
April 15, 2005
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A Bonus for Health -- Medicare Offers Financial Incentives to Meet Goals for Quality
Excerpt: "By the end of this year, more than 600,000 Medicare recipients will be in test programs that pay doctors and hospitals bonuses for achieving better results, like increasing the number of diabetic patients whose blood sugar is under control. Some see this experiment as the last best hope for a medical system in crisis, facing soaring costs and questions about what all that money is buying." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
American Health Care Is 'Going South' and Should Look to the North for a Remedy
Excerpt: "Proof is everywhere that health care in the U.S. is in 'Critical Condition,' as Steele and co-author Don Barlett titled their most recent book. But nothing bodes a health care revolution like Americans purchasing Canadian drugs. Defying federal laws, states and cities have joined private citizens buying Can.ada's affordable pharmaceuticals. Changes in how this country organizes and pays for health care must come from the ground up, Steele said last week ...." (The Denver Post via Physicians for a National Health Program)
Health Care: The Most Expensive Diseases and the Fastest-Growing Diseases
Excerpt: "This itemized version of the U.S.' health bill is based on data provided by the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality, a U.S. government outfit charged with figuring out where Americans' health care dollars are going. [Article links to innovative presentation of the most expensive diseases and the fastest-growing diseases. Patience is required]" (Forbes.com)
Opinion: American Health Care -- The Medical Money Pit
Excerpt: "In 2002, the latest year for which comparable data are available, the United States spent $5,267 on health care for each man, woman and child in the population. Of this, $2,364, or 45 percent, was government spending, mainly on Medicare and Medicaid. Can.ada spent $2,931 per person, of which $2,048 came from the government. France spent $2,736 per person, of which $2,080 was government spending." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
In Switch, Minnesota Blue Cross Lets Stores Fill 90-Day Pres.criptions for Its Members
Excerpt: "Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota said yesterday that it was encouraging its members to buy their 90-day pres.criptions for chronic problems at retail stores, bucking a national trend among health plans of forcing workers to order drugs from mail-order pharmacies to cut costs." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Opinion: Need Only the Healthy and Wealthy Apply for Health Savings Accounts? (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) became available in January 2004 as part of the Medicare Pres.cription Drug, Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003. These accounts were designed to fix the flaws in the original 1996 Medical Savings Account (MSA) legislation -- .... Since its inception, there has been a groundswell of individuals attracted to HSAs, and by most accounts that interest will grow significantly in the next few years." (The Council for Affordable Health Insurance)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Stock Option Expensing Rule Is Postponed by Securities and Exchange Commission
Excerpt: "The Securities and Exchange Commission said yesterday that it was giving United States companies that report earnings on a calendar year an additional six months before they must begin treating employee stock options as expenses. S.E.C. commissioners voted to delay options expenses until the start of a company's first fiscal year after June 15." (Bloomberg News via The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated as of April 12, 2005
Excerpt: "Hewitt's Federal Legislation Quick Guide provides short updates on federal legislation that is currently under active consideration by Congress or has recently been enacted into law regarding health and welfare benefit plans, retirement plans, and human resources and employment law." (Hewitt Associates)
Report Says Carriers Do Not Set Aside Resources for Voluntary Benefits
Excerpt: "A recent report by Eastbridge Consulting Group should give brokers a good idea of how the carriers with which they are partnering work. Almost all carriers ... do offer Web sites with tools for brokers, plan administrators and employees. But employee Web sites, arguably those that need the most functionality to help them make their decisions, have the lowest level of functionality, and usually are restricted to offering the ability to download forms and generic education materials." (The Adviser)
Newly Posted Events
April Brown Bag Luncheon - "Health Savings Accounts, Everything You Want to Know...and More"
in Ohio on April 26, 2005
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of Greater Cincinnati
Newly Posted Press Releases
DOL Audits 1 in 5 Employers, BLR Survey Finds
(Business and Legal Reports, Inc.)
23rd Annual Creative Pension & Benefits Seminar Targets Human Resource, Law, Insurance, and Financial Professionals
(The Ohio State University Office of Continuing Education (CEd))
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Search BenefitsLink
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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