BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter May 27, 2005 Today's sponsor: The BenefitsLink Jobs Board (Click on company name or banner to learn more.) Where the best benefits employers find the best candidates Fill your employee benefits job openings fast by advertising on BenefitsLink. What better place to find qualified candidates? Your help wanted ad will be listed in the BenefitsLink Newsletter, will be seen by thousands of candidates who view our listings online, and will be emailed to over 3,000 job-seekers. Click here to see how easy it is to place an ad! New Accounting Rules Threaten Public Sector Retiree Health Programs Excerpt: "Beginning next year, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) will require state and local governments to account for the full long-term cost of committed retiree health benefits for bond rating purposes. A similar FASB rule governing the private sector has contributed to an acceleration in the reduction of retiree health benefits." (HR Policy Association) Containing Rising Medical Costs: A Pay-for-Performance Wellness Strategy (PDF) 77 pages. WorldatWork Conference presentation on containing medical costs through financial wellness incentives. (The Hay Group) Overview: IRS Modifies Flexible Savings Account's 'Use-It-or-Lose-It' Rule (PDF) 1 page. Excerpt: "On May 18, 2005, the IRS announced that a health or dependent care flexible spending account ('FSA') plan may reimburse expenses incurred during the first few months of the next plan year." (Ceridian Corporation) Push to Revamp FMLA: U.S. Chamber of Commerce Wants to Limit Leave to Serious Illnesses Excerpt: "If some corporate groups have their way, the Family and Medical Leave Act will undergo the biggest changes in its 12-year history. .... Groups ranging from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to the Society for Human Resource Management say rogue employees are using FMLA to take time off for colds instead of for serious illnesses. The groups want the Labor Department, which missed an informal March deadline for modifications to the act, to tighten rules." (Workforce Management; one-time registration required) Blues Plan of Minnesota Settles with Employer Groups Over Tobacco Suit Funds Excerpt: "Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Minnesota has settled a lawsuit with employer groups challenging its plans for distributing more than $400 million of the proceeds the insurer received from a lawsuit it filed against several tobacco companies. The employer lawsuit -- filed in May 1998 in the U.S. District Court in Dakota County, Minn. -- alleged that the proceeds from the insurer's settlement with cigarette manufacturers and their trade associations should be paid directly to its members." (Business Insurance) Employers Seek Benefit Cost-Sharing: Families Paying More for Health Care While Share of Costs Slows Excerpt: "A number of prominent companies are requiring their rank and file to pony up more money for health insurance, either in the form of high co-payments or a larger share of the premiums. Indeed, the average family of four covers about 17 percent of its total health care costs, according to a new report from Milliman, .... The out-of-pocket costs for such a family would rise to $2,035 this year, based on a typical plan design for a preferred provider organization (PPO)." (CFO.com) Rate of Rising Health Care Costs Slows, According to Survey of Chicago Area Businesses Excerpt: "Health care costs in Illinois and nationally are still rising at double-digit levels, but they've risen at a slower rate than a year-ago, according to a survey of mid-size companies. .... The report was prepared by Bannockburn-based financial services company GCG Financial Inc., which surveyed 252 companies in the Chicago area employing nearly 200,000 workers with projected 2005 health care costs of $1.75 billion." (Chicago Sun-Times) Overview: Considerations in Applying for the Medicare Part D Employer Subsidy Excerpt: "Regardless of which option an employer ultimately takes to reduce benefit costs, as related to the Medicare Act, there are many decisions and issues to consider. Employers offering retiree medical coverage and opting for the employer subsidy need to consider plan design, legal, administration and communication issues. Employers who successfully navigate their way through the maze of considerations can achieve a win-win scenario for both themselves and their retirees." (Chicago Consulting Actuaries, LLC) Health Savings Accounts Mean Employers Can Offer More Choices, and, Therefore, More Confusion Excerpt: "Few companies will be offering HSAs as the only option, and the premium savings for employees likely won't be as significant as the savings for self-employed individuals. Moreover, HSAs could be a pain, particularly in their early days. The sort of price and quality information that could let a patient comparison-shop isn't yet readily available. And, depending on how you use your HSA, there can be extra paperwork." (Forbes.com) All Soldiers Deserve Equal Benefits Treatment, Says Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon Excerpt: "An Oregon representative is calling for equity in benefits for all soldiers serving in Iraq, whether they are regular military personnel or activated reservists. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, spoke on the House floor earlier this week about hearing from a reservist ... who had had his bad front teeth yanked out ... after his National Guard unit was called up. [T]he Army would not replace the reservist's teeth because he was not yet on active military duty." (National Underwriter Life & Health; free one-time registration or paid subscription) Work/Life Balance: It's About Relationships, Meaning and Skills -- Studies Paint a Dismal Picture Excerpt: "Marjorie Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager Balances Work and Life, says too many companies define work/life programs as fitness programs satisfied by an on-site exercise room or health fair. Instead, companies should think more broadly about what contributes to work/life balance and the well-being of employees, she says. 'I think that 'wellness' is about everything in your job,' she says." (Workforce Management; one-time registration required) Social Security Disability Benefits Includable in Gross Income When Received Excerpt: "In 1999, the taxpayer suffered an injury and applied for Social Security disability benefits. The Social Security Administration resisted the claim, but ... the taxpayer prevailed, receiving a lump-sum payment of benefits in 2001 .... For 2001, the taxpayer received a Form SSA-1099, Social Security Benefit Statement, from the Social Security Administration, showing 'benefits for 2001' of $21,656.00. [T]he taxpayer included no benefits [in gross income reporting for 2001]." (Cypen & Cypen) Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General Audio/Video/Transcript: Graying of America -- A NewsHour with Jim Lehrer Transcript Excerpt: "As the government continues to debate Social Security, the fastest growing age group in America is people over 85. Social Security analysts talk about the growing number of senior citizens in America and the impact they could have on Social Security." (MacNeil/Lehrer Productions via PBS) Newly Posted Events Form 5500 Preparation Workshop in District of Columbia on June 9, 2005 presented by International Brotherhood of Teamsters Fundamentals of 401(k) Plans Nationwide on June 9, 2005 presented by SunGard Corbel Newly Posted Press Releases Seventy Percent Of PBGC'S Losses Incurred In 2000-2004 (Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)) New Data from Transamerica Retirement Services Highlights Importance of EGTRRA; Important Provisions from 2001 Federal Tax Law at Risk Unless Congress Acts Now to Make EGTRRA Permanent (Transamerica Retirement Services) New Survey Results Focus on Vacation Benefits and Paid Time Off Banks (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans) International Foundation Introduces New Job Posting Feature (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans) Second Edition of HSA Road Rules Released; More than 30,000 Copies of First Edition Downloaded (HSA Insider) Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings Requirements Analyst 1 - H&W for Hewitt Associates in IL Pension Administrator for Coble Pension Group, LLC in AZ Client Services Manager/Trust Associate for WySTAR Global Retirement Solutions in MN Pension Analyst for Giant Eagle in PA Manager, Health and Welfare Benefits for Giant Eagle in PA Handy Links: View Today's Active Message Threads Search BenefitsLink Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article) Employee Benefits Library Copyright 2005 BenefitsLink.com, Inc.; except that you may reprint this newsletter in full (including this sentence) without obtaining our permission. 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