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August 24, 2005
Today's sponsor: World Congress

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Consumer-Centric Healthcare Strategies for Employers, Payers and Providers

1st Annual World Congress Leadership Summit on Consumer-Centric Healthcare Strategies for Employers, Payers and Providers, November 2 - 3, 2005- Marriott Fisherman's Wharf Hotel- San Francisco, CA.

The Summit will address the major opportunities and challenges in the growing consumer-centric marketplace.

For more information, please visit: www.worldcongress.com/consumer, call 800-817-8601 or email e.musto@worldcongress.com.


(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)

Reports on the 2005 Basic Medical Coverage Survey of Small Businesses
Excerpt: "Salary.com surveyed over 300 small businesses about their basic medical coverage policies and practices. Topics include: benefit availability; employee eligibility standards; employee participation levels; cost of coverage; employer/employee contribution levels; and cost-containment strategies. Final reports (tailored to the needs of companies of varying sizes) are available in PDF format." (Salary.com)

Overview: New Illinois Law Provides Protected Leave for Military Families (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "Employers with employees in the State of Illinois should take note that effective August 15, 2005, they may be required to provide leave to eligible employees who have a spouse, son or daughter who has deployment orders in effect for active military duty. On August 15, 2005, Governor Blagojevich signed into law the Family Military Leave Act (Public Act 094-0589). The Act went into effect immediately upon being signed by the Governor." (Gardner Carton & Douglas LLP)

Employee Benefits and Incentives for Company Car Drivers
Excerpt: "Rewarding drivers for saddling you with nothing costly during the year-- such as having no accidents-- could be an effective but controversial way of improving your fleet's safety as well as saving costs. .... There are several ways fleet managers can introduce initiatives .... Some of these will have to be agreed beforehand with either company directors or the human resources (HR) team and the rewards need to be handled carefully so drivers don't incur additional tax bills." (Emap Automotive via Fleet News)

Women Owners Use Unique Benefits at Work to Show Employee Appreciation
Excerpt: "Do women business owners bring more perks to the workplace than men? Maybe not, but the perks they offer employees often have a decidedly feminine touch." (Entrepreneur.com via MSNBC.com)

Opinion: Optional Plastic Surgery Has No Place As Public Employee Health Benefit
Excerpt: "Put into the category 'shamefully wrong' three public sector labor agreements that pay for workers' elective cosmetic surgery. Employees of Buffalo, its school district and Niagara County can have the nose, face and eyelids of their dreams while taxpayers live with a nightmare. " (The Buffalo News)

HHS Says Plan Sponsors Can Access Employee Health Data Despite HIPAA
Excerpt: "Employers submitting data to Medicare officials as part of the application for the new Medicare Part D retiree drug subsidy may get their workers' protected health information, .... According to the answer of the newest question and answer posted by ... the US Department of Health and Human Services, plan sponsors can amend their plan documents to allow the plan to receive the protected health information (PHI) from the group health plan or insurer for plan administration functions." (PLANSPONSOR.com: one-time registration required)

Overview: Complying with Final HIPAA Portability Regulations
Excerpt: "HIPAA includes an array of provisions that affect employer-sponsored health plans. As reported in our newsletter dated February 10, 2005, certain regulations under the so-called 'portability' provisions of HIPAA have recently been finalized. These regulations offer guidance on a variety of subjects, including: Preexisting Condition Limitations; Certificates of Creditable Coverage; Special Enrollment Rights; Benefits not subject to the portability rules." (Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP)

U.S. Waistlines Continue to Expand, According to Report from Trust for America's Health
Excerpt: "Health policy analysts maintain that obesity increases the burden on taxpayers because it requires the Medicare and Medicaid programs to cover the treatment of diseases caused by obesity. The report issued Tuesday said taxpayers spent $39 billion in 2003 for the treatment of conditions attributable to obesity." (CBS News)

Wall Street Journal Examines Evaluations of Clinical Trials by Health Insurers, Others
Excerpt: "The Wall Street Journal [August 24, 2005] examined research by insurers, state Medicaid programs and not-for-profit groups to evaluate clinical trials for pres.cription drugs and identify any 'marketing spin' included in studies published in medical journals. For example, officials at Kaiser Permanente say they have reduced costs by 'vetting drug studies to ensure they choose the drugs that work best,' the Journal reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)

Opinion: The Moral-Hazard Myth -- The Bad Idea Behind Our Failed Health-Care System
Excerpt: "One of the great mysteries of political life in the United States is why Americans are so devoted to their health-care system. Six times in the past century -- during the First World War, during the Depression, during the Truman and Johnson Administrations, in the Senate in the nineteen-seventies, and during the Clinton years -- efforts have been made to introduce some kind of universal health insurance, and each time the efforts have been rejected." (The New Yorker)

Health Savings Accounts: The New 'Medical IRA'
Excerpt: "Sick of costly health insurance premiums? Tired of HMO restrictions? Then maybe an 'HSA' is for you. A health savings account, or HSA, is like an individual retirement account for medical care. You can contribute up to $2,650 for an individual and $5,250 for a family, and that nest egg can be invested to earn additional income." (RedNova.com)


Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

Most Multiemployer Benefit Plans Sue over Missed Employer Payments, According to Survey
Excerpt: "A Brookfield, Wisconsin group has found that nine in 10 multiemployer benefit plans use the courts in their efforts to collect required employer contributions. A survey by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans of 153 US and Canadian salaried and third-party administrators who work with multi-employer plans found that 89% of the funds charge interest on late or missed payments, according to a news release from the group." (PLANSPONSOR.com: one-time registration required)

Perspective on Public Company Director Compensation Trends
Excerpt: "[D]irector pay resumed its upward climb last year and became more important in recruiting, given the shrinking pool of available independent directors. Concurrently, director pay philosophy is being reexamined to reflect how directors carry out their duties and to demonstrate companies' sensitivity to shareholders and shareholder advisory groups, which expect directors to own shares and have a stake in the long-term financial future of the organization." (Mercer Human Resource Consulting LLC and Mercer Investment Consulting, Inc.; one-time registration required)

Long-Term Incentive Programs Growing More Common Around the World, According to Survey
Excerpt: "A news release from Towers Perrin HR Services said its 2005 Equity Incentives Around the World Survey found that large employers in nearly every industrialized nation have increased the use of equity incentives as integral parts of compensation." (PLANSPONSOR.com: one-time registration required)

Executive Summary: The American Workplace 2005 -- The Changing Nature of Employee Benefits (PDF)
11 pages. Excerpt: "[EPF] released its tenth-annual American Workplace Report [today]. The report focuses on the changing role benefits play in the American workplace. Since they were originally introduced, health and retirement benefits have grown from 'fringe' benefits to a central part of employee compensation packages. In addition to health and retirement, employee benefit packages now include a vast array of benefits designed to improve the quality of employees' lives, ...." (Employment Policy Foundation)


Newly Posted Events

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in Minnesota on September 21, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in California on October 5, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in Texas on October 5, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in California on October 7, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in Arkansas on October 12, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in District of Columbia on October 19, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in Florida on October 21, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Advanced IRAs: The Ever-changing IRA
in Maryland on October 21, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in Minnesota on September 20, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in California on October 4, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in Texas on October 4, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in California on October 6, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in Arkansas on October 11, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in District of Columbia on October 18, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in Florida on October 20, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs
in Maryland on October 20, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Basic IRAs Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on October 6, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

ERISA Update Seminar with Charles Lockwood - Orlando
in Florida on October 13, 2005
presented by Global Benefit Advisors and Gray Robinson, P.A.

ERISA Update Seminar with Charles Lockwood - Tampa
in Florida on October 14, 2005
presented by Global Benefit Advisors and Gray Robinson, P.A.

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

General Traditional IRA Distributions Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on October 20, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

IRA Excess Contributions Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on October 4, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

IRA Required Reporting Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on October 27, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

IRA to IRA Transfers and Rollovers Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on October 18, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

IRA Withholding Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on October 25, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services

Positioning Group Life to Enhance Your Benefits Package
Nationwide on September 20, 2005
presented by SourceMedia


Newly Posted Press Releases

Petition to Support Cash Balance/Hybrid Plans
(ASPPA (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries))

New Health Savings Account Answer Book From Aspen Publishers Answers Tough Questions About Newest Consumer-Driven Healthcare Plan
(Aspen Publishers)


Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Post a Help Wanted Ad

Pension Administration Specialist
for Miami Valley Pension, a Brady Ware Company
in OH

Account Manager
for Kibble & Prentice
in WA

Benefits Specialists
for BeneTemps, Inc.
in FL

Regional Sales Consultant
for DailyAccess Corporation
in AZ, CO, CT, DC, DE, ID, MA, MD, ME, MT, ND, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OK, PA, RI, SD, TX, UT, VT, WY

Senior Sales Representative
for Arnerich Massena Education
in OR

Defined Benefits Analyst
for Fidelity Investments
in NC

Defined Contribution Administrator
for PENTEC, INC.
in CT

Pension Manager
for Hogan & Hartson L.L.P.
in DC

Special Markets Coordinator
for Transamerica
in CA

Regional Vice President
for ING US Financial Services
in CA, MI, MO, OH

Defined Benefit Calculations Specialists
for Constantin Control Associates
in NJ

Employee Education Consultant
for PNC Advisors
in KY

401K Administrator - PA
for Vanguard
in PA

Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for Enterprise Pensions
in AZ




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