BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter July 15, 2005 Today's sponsor: ALM (Click on company name or banner to learn more.) Complete Benefits Law Guidance from Law Journal Press The nation's workforce and health care system are constantly evolving and so are the legal issues. Law Journal Press helps you handle any benefits law question with up-to-date, authoritative books on all aspects of the field. Get legal and practical advice from leading experts on everything from COBRA to ERISA, "contingent" employees to family and medical leave, and more. Browse our product listings for detailed information and special offers. (Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor) Overview: Treatment of Account-Based Health Arrangements under the MMA -- CMS Guidance (PDF) 2 pages. This Segal Company Bulletin discusses recent guidance by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the treatment of flexible spending arrangements, health reimbursement arrangements, Archer medical savings accounts and health savings accounts under the Medicare Modernization Act. A table that provides more information about the treatment of account-based health arrangements under the MMA is at http://www.segalco.com/publications/presentations/accounts.pdf. (The Segal Company) Employers Still Considering Whether to Offer FSA Extension Excerpt: "Employers are weighing the pros and cons of adopting a grace period for their FSAs, according to a recent survey of plan administrators. About 50% of plan administrators expect to adopt an extension for their FSAs ending on Dec. 31, 2005, while 27% are waiting for further guidance from the federal government, according to Data Path, which surveyed 65 plan administrators, employers, brokers and consultants." (BenefitNews Connect) Avoiding the Communications Breakdown Lane When Driving Your New Retiree Drug Benefit (PDF) 4 pages. The paper discusses how to develop a communications strategy for the Medicare Part D program. (Milliman) Employers Cite Reasons for Hiring Company Nurses Excerpt: "The top reasons employers hire occupational health nurses are to combat workplace injuries or illnesses, high absenteeism, and a rise in worker's compensation cases, the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses finds." (BenefitNews Connect) Bariatric Surgery and Pharmacotherapy Use and Costs Are on the Rise Excerpt: "The use and costs of bariatric surgery and pharmacotherapy are increasing, according to a report published in the July/August issue of Health Affairs. Coverage across insurers is inconsistent and only a fraction of those eligible have received the procedure or medications." (Medscape Medical News) Is Your Organization Data-Driven? A Guide for Health Care Organizations (PDF) 3 pages. The paper discusses how health care organization can use claims and enrollment data more effectively. (Milliman) Predictive Modeling for Health Insurance: Using Claims Data to Find Trends and Cost Drivers (PDF) 3 pages. The paper discusses how employers can more accurately predict the next year's health care costs. (Milliman) North Carolina Blue Cross Works to Lower Profits Excerpt: "The idea behind the creation of nonprofit health insurance plans was that people could pool their risk with a premium based on what it costs to care for those people, plus some administrative costs. Nonprofit health plans generally don't even like to use the word 'profit' when they describe their earnings. So it was awkward and complicated when Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina found itself recently making too much money while many people in the state were uninsured." (HealthLeaders, Inc.) Report Claims Other Reports Inflate Claims about Pres.cription Drug Prices (PDF) 8 pages. Excerpt: "Reports from AARP and Families USA have heightened concerns among policymakers and the public about the affordability of pres.cription drugs. Those reports are misleading. A growing number of people are becoming informed consumers, purchasing their medicines at a discount, and turning to lower-cost generics and over-the-counter versions of brand-name drugs. The new Medicare drug benefit will also result in sharply lower drug costs for seniors." (American Enterprise Institute) New Benefit Designs Attempt to Rein in Rx Costs (PDF) 3 pages. This paper provides an explanation of some new drug benefit designs for employment-based programs. (Milliman) Overview: Medicare Part D Strategies for Plan Sponsors (PDF) 5 pages. The article focuses on the options and strategies employers need to consider in response to the Medicare Modernization Act of 1993. (Milliman) House Panel Approves Bill to Provide Grants to States to Create High-Risk Health Insurance Pools Excerpt: "The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health on Thursday approved by voice vote a bill (HR 3204) that would reauthorize $15 million in grants for fiscal year 2005 to states that establish high-risk health insurance pools, CQ Today reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation) Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General Seven Habits of Highly Effective Employee Benefits Communicators (PDF) 2 pages. The paper discusses how to develop and maintain an effective employee benefits communications program. (Milliman) Regulatory Developments in Employee Benefits this Year Excerpt: "This issue of Regulatory Developments covers 19 developments dealing with new legislation, retirement plans, health and welfare plans, and human resources policies and practices that have occurred since our December 2004/January 2005 issue." (Aon Consulting) Hewitt Federal Legislation Quick Guide Updated as of July 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) American Bar Association Employee Benefits Committee Posts 2005 Q & A Session Transcripts Excerpt: "The Joint Committee on Employee Benefits (JCEB) of the American Bar Association has posted transcripts of the 2005 Q & A Sessions with the following governmental agencies: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS); Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC); Health and Human Services (HHS); Internal Revenue Service & U.S. Department of Treasury (IRS); Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)." (Attorney B. Janell Grenier via BenefitsBlog.com) Overview: Determining FAS 123R Expense: Straight-Line vs. Accelerated Attribution Excerpt: "[The article on the target page describes] the two broad categories of expense attribution for awards with time-based vesting, straight-line and accelerated, while offering illustrations of these techniques. It will also touch on some of the arguments that have been made in favor of each of the methods and some of the factors that should be considered when choosing between the two." (Chicago Consulting Actuaries, LLC) Newly Posted Events 72(t) Payments Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 27, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Advanced Distribution Issues and Loans Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 21, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Basic HSAs Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 22, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Conversions and Recharacterizations Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 20, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Direct Rollovers and Other Portability Issues Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 29, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Fall Forum in Georgia on September 26, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Fall Forum in Minnesota on October 10, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Fall Forum in Massachusetts on October 24, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Fall Forum in California on November 14, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Handling IRA Legal Issues Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 8, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services IRA Contributions Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 13, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services IRA Update Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 14, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Plan Design Trends I - Safe Harbor 401(k) Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 7, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Plan Design Trends II - New Comparability and Age-Weighted Plans Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 13, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services SIMPLE IRA Plans Web/Telephone Seminar Nationwide on September 15, 2005 presented by BISYS Retirement Services Waiting for the Rabbit: Retirement Savings and Social Security Reform Looking for Votes and Revenue Nationwide on July 21, 2005 presented by Employers Council on Flexible Compensation (ECFC) Newly Posted Press Releases Great-West Healthcare Plan Reduces Use of Medical Services by over 9%, Delivers Savings to Employers; Consumer-Driven PPO an Alternative to High-Deductible Plans (Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company) Remarks by Asst. Secretary for Economic Policy Mark Warshawsky on Social Security Reform and the Implications for National Savings (U.S. Department of Treasury) BasicPlus Vows to Help Fight Health Condition Discrimination (BasicPlus Insurance Services, LLC) Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings Actuary for The Mayer Benefits Advisory, LLC in CT Enrollment Specialists for National Automobile Dealers Association in VA AVP, Health Management & Insurance Programs for UnumProvident Corporation in ME Plan Consultant for Weaver Partners, Inc. in ANY STATE Compliance/Conversion Specialist for Employee Benefits Firm in MD Administrator - Pension Services for Aris Corporation of America in PA Daily Retirement Plan Consultant for Long Island, NY Benefits Consulting firm in NY Employee Benefit Recordkeeper/Tester for WySTAR Global Retirement Solutions in MN 401(k) / Defined Contribution Administrator for Pension Investors Corporation in FL Client Services Specialist for U.S. Bank in MN Benefits Service Manager-Defined Benefit for Hewitt Associates in IL 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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