| BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter |   |
October 11, 2005
Today's sponsor: Chicago Consulting Actuaries
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Introducing RewardSmart from CCA! |
| Chicago Consulting Actuaries has developed an affordable and flexible total rewards statement for employers of all sizes. RewardSmart features:
For more information, call Mark Shields at 214-492-3204 or click on our link above. |
| (Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor) |
Big Changes for Health Plans This Year
Excerpt: "It's open-enrollment season, and if workers don't check the right boxes, they might end up without coverage. Every year, workers are advised to look closely at their benefits package during open enrollment season. This year, they have even more reasons to read the fine print. Companies are increasingly requiring 'active enrollment' -- meaning that if employees don't check the right boxes, they could end up without health insurance, or find themselves enrolled in a 'default' plan." (Los Angeles Times; one-time registration required)
General Motors' Salaried Worker and Retiree Out-of-Pocket Health Costs Going Up
Excerpt: "Salaried employees at General Motors Corp. will face higher out-of-pocket health care costs next year. Workers and retirees were notified of the change last week, The Detroit News reported Sunday. Active workers will have to pay 50 percent more next year." (AP via The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Health Insurance Cost Jumps May Level Off: Survey Sees a Leap in 2006, Then Steady Rises
Excerpt: "Health insurance costs for Houston employers are expected to rise significantly next year, but the rate of increase should begin to level off, according to a national survey released Monday. .... What's more, that trend apparently will continue, with the rise in health care costs projected to remain steady next year, according to employee benefits consultant Hewitt Associates." (Houston Chronicle)
Overview: Impact of ADA and ADEA on Wellness Program Design
Excerpt: "In this article, the various design aspects of wellness programs are considered where potential problems with other statutes might arise. Because ADA, ADEA and OWBPA are potentially the most problematic, these legislations receive the primary focus." (Chicago Consulting Actuaries, LLC)
A Reversal of Fortune: Retiree Health Plans May Soon Officially Coordinate Benefits with Medicare
Excerpt: "The five-year saga initiated by the Erie County litigation has taken another turn that, in this case, favors sponsors of retiree health plans. Although the litigation on this issue continues, it now appears as if employers and other plan sponsors may be given specific authority to reduce or eliminate retiree health benefits for Medicare-eligible retirees." (Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP)
Overview: Treasury & IRS Address Dependent Care Form W-2 Reporting for New 2-1/2-Month Grace Period (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "This simplified reporting approach is an extension of guidance provided by Notice 89-111, which allows employers to report participant and employer contributions (instead of actual reimbursements) on Form W-2. This earlier notice grew out of the problem created by the need to prepare Form W-2 well before the deadline (usually the end of March) for submitting and receiving reimbursement of dependent care expenses incurred before the end of a plan year." (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)
Salaries and Benefits of U.S. Congress Members
Excerpt: "Members of Congress are not eligible for a pension until they reach the age of 50, but only if they've completed 20 years of service. Members are eligible at any age after completing 25 years of service or after they reach the age of 62. Please also note that Members of Congress have to serve at least 5 years to even receive a pension." (U.S. Gov Info / Resources)
West Virginia Small Business Plan for Health Insurance Coverage
Excerpt: "SCI talks with Sonia Chambers, chair of the West Virginia Health Care Authority, and Sally Richardson, executive director of the Institute for Health Policy Research at West Virginia University, about the West Virginia Small Business Plan." (State Coverage Initiatives)
Rhode Island Governor Pushes Affordable Health Insurance Coverage
Excerpt: "Governor Carcieri yesterday unveiled a five-part plan to make health care more affordable by refocusing the system on primary care and prevention. Carcieri proposes to put the financial and moral weight of state government behind a variety of efforts to promote wellness, boost the development of electronic health records, and make health insurance less costly for small employers." (The Providence Journal; one-time registration required)
Reimbursing Employee's COBRA Premiums under Former Employer's Plan Did Not Create COBRA Obligations
Excerpt: "An employee had COBRA coverage under a former employer's plan, and his new employer reimbursed his out-of-pocket expenses for that coverage. The employee never became covered under the new employer's health insurance plan, and no COBRA election notice was provided to him when his employment with the new employer terminated." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc.)
Employee Has No Private Right of Action under HIPAA for Disclosure of Medical Information to Others
Excerpt: "The court did not address whether the information at issue was protected health information or employer information (which would not fall within HIPAA's protection). But the case nevertheless reminds us that employers should be constantly vigilant in their efforts to keep protected health information behind the appropriate firewall." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc.)
Insurers Split on Pennsylvania Health Insurance Legislation Affecting Small Business
Excerpt: "The latest measure of discontent came yesterday from the National Association for the Self-Employed, which released a survey showing more than 50 percent of businesses with 10 or fewer employees do not offer health insurance, primarily because of cost. Of those small businesses surveyed that do provide health insurance, 85 percent said their premiums had increased during the past 12 months, with the median premium increase at 17.3 percent." (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
As Deadline Nears, Sorting Out the Medicare Drug Plan
Excerpt: "Information issued by the government, while generally accurate, tends to give an upbeat assessment of the new benefit, emphasizing the advantages. But the new program is so complex that the government, by its own account, has made two significant errors in explaining it to the public." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Overview: Medicare Part D -- Immediate Action Required (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "Employers that offer pres.cription drug benefits to retirees and wish to apply for the retiree drug subsidy for 2006 must submit a completed application by October 31, 2005. To complete the application process, you must have your pres.cription drug benefits analyzed by an actuary to determine if they are actuarially equivalent to the Medicare Part D benefit, fill out the application, and provide specific retiree information to the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services." (Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP)
Good Health Pays Off! The Fundamentals of Health Promotion Incentives
Excerpt: "How do you get employees to focus on maintaining and improving their health rather than seeking treatment once they are sick? Here we discuss various employer wellness options and the pros and cons of each in reducing health care costs." (Chicago Consulting Actuaries, LLC)
Limited Medical Plans May Be a Viable Option for Hourly Employees
Excerpt: "Limited medical plans, also referred to as 'mini-meds,' are quickly growing in popularity nationwide. Much attention in the medical insurance industry has been focused on how limited medical benefit programs work, and the value they provide to employers and the employees who use them." (Austin Business Journal via bizjournals.com; one-time registration required)
I.B.M. to Put Genetic Data of Workers Off Limits
Excerpt: "[I.B.M.] plans to announce a new work force privacy policy today. I.B.M., the world's largest technology company by revenue, is promising not to use genetic information in hiring or in determining eligibility for its health care or benefits plans. Genetics policy specia.lists and privacy rights groups say that the I.B.M. pledge to its more than 300,000 employees worldwide appears to be the first such move by a major corporation." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Health Savings Accounts Called Future of Health Insurance
Excerpt: "Roy Ramthun told business leaders Monday that HSAs are the future of health insurance and may, in fact, become the dominant form of health insurance in the next 5 to 10 years." (Journal Register News Service via The Middletown Press)
Health Savings Accounts Help Tackle Medical Costs and May Offer Tax-Free Savings
Excerpt: "Health savings accounts (HSAs) and high-deductible plans have become important new options for individuals to consider in improving their health care. Since their creation for the years beginning after 2003, the numbers of enrollees and insurers offering the arrangements have increased dramatically. When used properly in the financial plans of certain individuals, HSAs also can be very powerful savings tools." (Financial Advisor)
HSA Marketplace
Excerpt: "According to the Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust (HRET)'s 2005 Annual Employer Health Benefits Survey, 800,000 nonfederal workers are enrolled in a plan that allows a health savings account (HSA). Click here for the most recent product and partnership HSA news." (Spencer Benefits Reports)
Overview: Employers in India Subject to New Fringe Benefits Tax (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "Employers in India are facing higher costs due to a new tax on pension plan contributions and outlays for certain other employee benefit programs. Guidance issued by the government at the end of August makes it clear that the fringe benefits tax (FBT), as it's called, applies to employer-provided life, disability and health care insurance in addition to pension plan contributions." (Towers Perrin)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Heads-Up on Deferred Compensation Guidance (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "This alert letter highlights the major aspects of the proposed regulations, which are lengthy and extensive." (Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.)
Overview: Proposed Regs for Nonqualified Deferred Comp Plans under Code Section 409A-- Part IV (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "The fourth and final installment of our coverage of the proposed regulations issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on September 29, 2005, under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the 'Code'), addresses the application of Code Section 409A to Code Section 457(f) plans. This bulletin also discusses the aggregation of plans for Code Section 409A purposes, the treatment of performance based compensation, and the concept of short term deferrals." (Sherman & Howard L.L.C.)
FAS 123(R) Resource Group Discussion Document of Meeting No. 3 Held September 13, 2005 (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "On September 13, 2005, the FASB staff ... held a meeting with the FASB Statement 123(R) Resource Group ... to discuss several issues relating to the implementation of Statement 123(R), Share-Based Payment. The issues and the summary of the issues were provided by the FASB staff, while the grey shaded boxes represent the discussions of the Resource Group. The information ... summarizes the issues and discussion of the Resource Group." (Financial Executives International)
Adams and Reese Employee Benefits Bulletin, Fall 2005 (PDF)
6 pages. This issue includes articles titled: Time To Care About Medicare Pres.cription Drug Program and Roth 401(k) Plans and the Cary Brown Thesis. (Adams and Reese)
Rethinking the Role of Older Workers: Promoting Older Worker Employment in Europe and Japan (PDF)
32 pages. Excerpt: "Concern about the sustainability of public pension and health care systems in the face of aging populations has policymakers in developed countries looking to the contributions that older workers might make to economic growth and the alleviation of rising support burdens." (AARP)
Overview: Hurricane-Related Relief for Benefit Plan Sponsors, Participants and Beneficiaries
Excerpt: "This article summarizes recent regulatory and legislative Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief relating to employee benefit plans. Primarily, the relief discussed below affects plan sponsors, participants, and plans located directly in the Hurricane Katrina and Rita disaster areas. However, some relief extends to participants who have certain relatives who are directly affected by the Hurricane Katrina." (Ice Miller)
Bill Introduced to Aid Continued Employment of Retirement Age Workers
Excerpt: "US Senator Herbert Kohl (D-Wisconsin) has introduced a bill to help older workers and baby boomers who chose to pass on retirement keep working. In a press release The Democratic Party of Wisconsin said the bill addresses the problems faced by those who want to continue working and by businesses who want to retain the experience of older workers as the workforce is drained by the 77 million baby boomers approaching retirement age." (PLANSPONSOR.com: one-time registration required)
Milliman's Monthly Benefit News and Developments, October 2005 (PDF)
The newsletter summarizes benefits legislative activity and provides a regulatory roundup. (Milliman)
Informal DOL Views on Claims Procedures, MEWAs, Transferring Assets to TPAs, and Other ERISA Issues
Excerpt: "The American Bar Association's Joint Committee on Employee Benefits (JCEB) has posted the report of its annual question and answer session with DOL officials. These sessions address questions submitted to the DOL in advance; the 2005 session involved several ERISA compliance issues." (Employee Benefits Institute of America Inc.)
A New Tool for Searching the Top Benefits and ERISA Related Web Sites
Excerpt: "[Attorney B. Janell Grenier has] created a new search tool at Rollyo ... which will allow you to search all of the ... sites in one fell swoop ...." (Attorney B. Janell Grenier via BenefitsBlog.com)
Major Post-ERISA Benefit Legislation Listed by Hewitt Associates
Excerpt: "[Hewitt provides] lists of major post-Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) legislation, and descriptions of each piece of legislation, [by five-year groups]." (Hewitt Associates)
Book Review: The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism: How the Financial System Undermined Social ...
Excerpt: "Here is Mr. Bogle's clear, well-reasoned and forcibly stated argument in a nutshell: Over the last 100 years, we have moved from 'owner's capitalism,' a system in which the bulk of investment returns went to the people who put up the risk capital, to 'manager's capitalism,' which provides 'vastly disproportionate rewards' to those hired to watch their interests - people like company executives and mutual fund managers." (The New York Times; one-time registration required)
Baby Boomers Augur Old Age, New Needs
Excerpt: "In little more than five years, the oldest members of the baby boom generation will turn 65, causing alarms in some quarters about a retirement tsunami that will challenge state policy planners severely. But many experts believe the impact of this demographic shift on budgets and services won't be as negative as doomsayers claim." (Stateline.org via Kansas City infoZine)
Newly Posted Events
24th Annual ISCEBS Employee Benefits Symposium Rescheduled
in Arizona on December 4, 2005
presented by International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists (ISCEBS)
72(t) Payments Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on December 15, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Advanced HSAs Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on December 13, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Advanced IRAs: The Ever-Changing IRA
in New Mexico on December 7, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Advanced IRAs: The Ever-Changing IRA
in Arizona on December 9, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Advanced IRAs: The Ever-Changing IRA
in California on December 14, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Advanced IRAs: The Ever-Changing IRA
in California on December 16, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Basic IRA's
in Arizona on October 8, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Basic IRA's
in Arizona on December 8, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Basic IRAs
in New Mexico on December 6, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Basic IRAs
in California on December 13, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Basic IRAs
in California on December 15, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Code Section 409A
in Colorado on November 1, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Code Section 409A
in Kansas on November 2, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Code Section 409A
in Illinois on November 3, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Code Section 409A
in Michigan on November 3, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Code Section 409A
in Ohio on November 4, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Code Section 409A
in Minnesota on November 4, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Defined Contribution Plan Year-End Roundup
Nationwide on October 25, 2005
presented by Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP
Defined Contribution Plan Year-End Roundup
Nationwide on November 3, 2005
presented by Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP
Direct Rollovers and Other Portability Issues Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on December 8, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Estate Planning Considerations for Qualified Plans and IRAs
in Kansas on November 1, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Estate Planning Considerations for Qualified Plans and IRAs
in Illinois on November 2, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Estate Planning Considerations for Qualified Plans and IRAs
in Minnesota on November 3, 2005
presented by SunGard Corbel
Internal Revenue Code Section 409A Series: Year-End Deadlines for 2005
in California on October 13, 2005
presented by Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP
IRA Compliance Web/Telephone Seminar
Nationwide on December 6, 2005
presented by BISYS Retirement Services
Long-Awaited Guidance on Deferred Compensation Rules Arrives
Nationwide on October 17, 2005
presented by Trucker Huss
Update on Employee Compensation for 2006 Teleweb
Nationwide on October 27, 2005
presented by International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans
Newly Posted Press Releases
U.S. Companies Face Lowest Health Care Cost Increases Since 1999
(Hewitt Associates LLC)
PSCA Applauds Senators Santorum and Bennett for 401(k) Enhancement Act
(Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America (PSCA))
PSCA Releases 48th Annual Survey of Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plans
(Profit Sharing/401(k) Council of America (PSCA))
Expert Consultant added to Pension Consultants, Inc. Staff
(Pension Consultants, Inc.)
Ameriprise Retirement Services to Host President's Council
(Ameriprise Retirement Services)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Compliance Administrator - PA
for Vanguard
in PA
Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for New York Life Investment Management LLC
in NJ
Service Center Representative
for Employee Benefit Solutions, Inc.
in TX
Health & Benefit Team Leader
for Mercer HR Services
in MA
Compliance Manager, Employee Benefits
for ABD Insurance and Financial Services
in CA
Retirement Plan Consultant
for CDM Retirement Consultants, Inc.
in MD
Defined Contribution Administrator
for Merit Benefits Group, Inc.
in IL
Account Executive - Client Services
for Diversified Investment Advisors
in OH
Marketing Consultant
for Diversified Investment Advisors
in NY
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Quantum Plan Services, Inc.
in WA
Field Sales Coordinator
for Transamerica
in IL
Pension Administrator
for San Diego Pension Consultants, Inc.
in CA
401(k) Administrative Assistant
for 401(k) Advisors
in CA
Defined Benefit Data Implementation Administrator - PA
for Vanguard
in PA
Defined Benefit Data Implementation Project Lead - PA
for Vanguard
in PA
Health and Welfare Benefits Analyst
for Aon Corporation
in MD
Defined Benefit Pension Plan Administrator
for The Angell Pension Group, Inc.
in ANY STATE
OmniPlus Consultant
for DC Specialists, Inc
in ANY STATE
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.
Published by:
BenefitsLink.com, Inc.
https://benefitslink.com/about.html
1298 Minnesota Avenue, Suite H
Winter Park FL 32789
(407) 644-4146
Fax: (407) 644-2151
Editor and Publisher: David Rhett Baker, J.D.
Housekeeping: