| BenefitsLink Welfare Plans Newsletter |   |
January 31, 2007
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Presenteeism: Limited Awareness... Big Bottom-Line Impact (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "A rude wake-up call awaits well-meaning plan sponsors who obsess over medical and pharmacy claims experience without considering the other -- potentially more financially impactful -- cost of poor employee health: presenteeism. We know that employee health status is linked to productivity: better health leads to enhanced productivity, while poor health degrades productivity." (Aon Consulting)
Big Three Automakers Will Participate in Administration Plan to Provide Quality, Price Information
Excerpt: "The CEOs of General Motors, Ford Motor and the Chrysler Group . . . in a meeting with HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt endorsed a Bush administration initiative that calls for U.S. employers to collect and release more data on the quality and cost of health care provided to insured employees, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports . . . ." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Companies Can Encourage Employee HSA Involvement
Excerpt: "A Minneapolis-based Health Savings Account (HSA) provider asserted that there are ways for employers to generate more worker interest in the account by, among other things, offering online enrollment." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
New HSA Rules Give Consumers and Employers More Reason to Enroll
Excerpt: "As of Jan. 1, the maximum allowable HSA contribution is no longer tied to the health plan deductible. Under a set of new rules, signed into law on Dec. 20, high-deductible health plan (HDHP) enrollees can contribute up to the full statutory maximum to their HSAs each year." (via AISHealth.com)
Overview: DOL Requests Public Comments on the FMLA (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "In response to complaints from employers and criticism from federal courts, the DOL is soliciting suggestions on how the FMLA could be revised to make it more effective, understandable and easier to administer." (Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP)
California Gov.'s Universal Health Proposal Could Conflict with Effort to Balance Federal Budget
Excerpt: "A proposal recently announced by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) that would require all state residents to obtain health insurance is 'putting him on a collision course with budget hawks in the nation's capital and leaders in other states seeking assistance,' the Los Angeles Times reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Some Concerned That Massachusetts Health Insurance Connector Employees Over-Compensated
Excerpt: "Some Massachusetts leaders and lawmakers expressed concern that members of Massachusetts Health Insurance Connector, the agency responsible for overseeing the state's health insurance law, have salaries averaging $111,000 per year, the Boston Globe reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
New Jersey Officials To Propose Plan for Universal Health Coverage
Excerpt: "New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine (D) and legislative leaders are expected to propose a universal health coverage plan that could include provisions of the Massachusetts health insurance law as soon as they complete a property tax overhaul, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports . . . ." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
First HIPAA Case That Goes to Trial Ends in Conviction
Excerpt: "A federal jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., convicted Fernando Ferrer Jr., of Naples, Fla., of eight counts, including computer fraud, wrongful disclosure of individually identifiable health information (the HIPAA violation), conspiring to defraud the United States (the Medicare fraud) and identity theft." (REPORT ON MEDICARE COMPLIANCE via AISHealth.com)
Aon Fall 2006 Health Care Trend Survey (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "Results from Aon's Fall 2006 Health Care Trend Survey show health care costs continuing to moderate but still increasing at double-digit rates. The survey is based on forecasted trend data reported by over 90 top medical, dental, pharmacy benefit manager, and vision vendors. This information should be useful for evaluating health insurance premium renewals and developing self-funded health plan claim projections." (Aon Consulting)
Opinion: Hiding Health Care's Costs
Excerpt: "Our health-care system will inevitably combine government regulation and private enterprise. But what should the mix be? How important is health care compared with other public and private goals? Will an expanding health-care sector spur the economy -- or, through high taxes and insurance premiums, retard it?" (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Florida's Corrections Secretary Proposes Mandatory Fitness Levels, to Dismay of Prison Staff Union
Excerpt: "As the state's new secretary of Corrections, Mr. McDonough has proposed mandatory fitness levels for 19,000 of his employees -- some of whom have desk jobs. It's meeting resistance from a union representing prison and probation officers and making experts wonder whether requiring workers to become physically fit, or risk losing their jobs, is the best way to tackle the country's growing obesity crisis." (The Christian Science Monitor)
Video: Getting Paid To Stay Healthy
Excerpt: "A new phrase is buzzing among employees of some companies: 'wellness incentive.' Employers are offering rewards for staying healthy." (CBS News)
Changes in Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Sponsorship, Eligibility, & Participation: 2001-2005 (PDF)
64 pages. Excerpt: "This report provides a detailed account of how ESI coverage changed between 2001 and 2005, particularly among employees . . . . The report begins with a short description of the major forces driving employer-sponsored insurance: changes in the workforce and the rising costs of health insurance over the four year period. Next, the report examines the decline in ESI among employees and the reasons determining whether or not an employee has ESI . . . ." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Health and Welfare -- Updated January 29, 2007 (PDF)
9 pages. Excerpt: "These charts summarize selected federal legislation that would affect employee benefit programs. The bills included on the charts are based on judgments regarding the prominence of the issue, the likelihood of enactment, and the influence of the sponsors." (Towers Perrin)
Will Health Care Reform Lead to a Single-Payer System?
Excerpt: "One way to make sense of . . . competing proposals is to classify the components in each plan as long-term or short-term solutions. In one crucial context, four of the five measures now on the table can be construed as short-term solutions because they're predicated on a system whose days might be numbered. There is growing agreement that the current employer-provided health insurance system can't last forever." (California HealthCare Foundation)
Insurer Sees Employers Backing LTC Plans
Excerpt: "About 92% of employers that buy group long term care coverage from UnumProvident Corp. now pay a portion of the premiums." (National Underwriter Life & Health; free registration or paid subscription required)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Can SPDs Be Written with the Reader in Mind? (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "Improving plan communication for retirement plan participants, particularly as it pertains to Summary Plan Descriptions ('SPDs'), has been a challenge since ERISA. Many plan participants express frustration in understanding their rights and benefits, and employers are caught between providing accurate content that passes law department muster and reader-friendly language, tone, and style." (Aon Consulting)
Third Circuit Extends 'Clear Repudiation' Rule to Erroneous Benefit Award Claims
Excerpt: "The Third Circuit handed down an important decision yesterday that bears careful reading by ERISA practitioners. On the somewhat tedious subject of when an action accrues for purposes of the applicable limitations period, the Court extended the 'clear repudiation' rule applied in benefit denial cases to cases of inaccurate benefit awards." (Health Plan Law blog by Attorney Roy F. Harmon III)
Company Boards Clueless on CEO Pay
Excerpt: "Shareholders worried about runaway executive pay are likely to be stunned by the findings of a new study that shows many board directors still have no idea how much their CEOs would collect if they retire, are fired or bought out." (AP via The Washington Post; free registration required)
How Long Do Boomers Plan to Work? (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "[N]ew research shows that as the boomers approach retirement they intend to work longer than people born a dozen years earlier, promoting economic growth and partly offsetting the economic pressures created by an aging population." (Urban Institute)
Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Human Resources -- Updated January 29, 2007 (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "These charts summarize selected federal legislation that would affect employee benefit programs. The bills included on the charts are based on judgments regarding the prominence of the issue, the likelihood of enactment, and the influence of the sponsors." (Towers Perrin)
Average Worker May Be Hurt by Stock Options Scandal
Excerpt: "There's a largely overlooked class of victims from the stock option backdating scandal: rank-and-file workers. Across Silicon Valley and the nation, hundreds of thousands of workers who played no role in manipulating options nonetheless could pay a price, from lost stock options and lost investment opportunities to looming tax bills." (The Mercury News)
Idaho Court Rules Stock Options are not Wages
Excerpt: "The Idaho Supreme Court ruled that stock options are not considered wages under state law, handing a defeat to a former Albertson's Inc. employee who claimed the company violated wage laws when it fired him for intending to exercise his stock options." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
SEC OKs Auction System for Options Valuation
Excerpt: "Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chief Accountant Conrad Hewitt said in a recent letter that the auction system put together by Zions Bancorp of Salt Lake City was permissible to use so the company could determine market values for its employee stock options, the Wall Street Journal reported." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Newly Posted Events
5th Annual 412(i) Summit
in Illinois on August 1, 2007
presented by Executive Benefits Design Group
ASPPA Benefits Council of Chicago
in Illinois on September 20, 2007
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of Chicago
ASPPA Benefits Council of Chicago
in Illinois on December 6, 2007
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of Chicago
ASPPA benefits Council of Chicago Meeting
in Illinois on June 14, 2007
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of Chicago
ASPPA Benefits of Chicago Meeting
in Illinois on March 22, 2007
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of Chicago
Holiday Gifts for Retirement Plans: Year-End Guidance Under PPA
Nationwide on February 22, 2007
presented by ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits
Managing Retirement Income Consumer Workshop - 2007 NAVA Marketing Conference
in Arizona on February 26, 2007
presented by International Foundation for Retirement Education (InFRE)
Strategies for Managing Retirement Income course - 2007 NAVA Marketing Conference
in Arizona on February 27, 2007
presented by International Foundation for Retirement Education (InFRE)
The New Regulatory and Political Landscape for Consumer Driven Care
in California on February 1, 2007
presented by Healthcare Web Summit
Newly Posted Press Releases
Communication Challenges Loom Large in Benefit Enrollment Process
Watson Wyatt
Allied Pilots Association Emphasizes Support for Retirement at Age 60 as FAA Announces Proposal to Raise Limit
Allied Pilots Association (APA)
Unum Says Long Term Care Buyers Are Getting Younger, Selecting Home Care Option
Unum
Zions Bancorporation Receives SEC Clearance for Market-Based Employee Stock Option Valuation Method
Zions Bancorporation
Chronic Pain Up Almost 40 Percent Among U.S. Workers in Past Decade
Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, Inc
Noncompliance Still Unravels Health Care - Survey
National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Client Service Representative
for The Online401(k)
in CA
Pension Analyst - Quality Assurance
for MassMutual Financial Group
in MA
Education / Enrollment Specialist
for USI Consulting
in CT, MA, ME, NH, NY, RI, VT
Compliance Analyst
for Great-West Corporate
in WI
Senior Benefits Analyst
for Watson Wyatt Worldwide
in VA
Marketing Director - Multi-Cultural Departments
for MassMutual Financial Group
in CT, MA
Retirement Services Account Manager
for SunTrust Bank
in FL
Senior Director, Insurance Program Development & Management
for National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA)
in VA
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Fred S. Shapiro & Associates, Inc.
in MD
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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