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| July 16, 2007 |
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'Snapshot' of Employer Health Insurance Costs in the United States (PDF)
24 pages. Excerpt: "This snapshot examines trends in employer-sponsored health insurance costs in the United States. It looks at the percentage of businesses offering coverage, the growth of insurance premium costs relative to salaries and wages, and the proportion of payroll that is taken up by premium contributions." (California HealthCare Foundation; free registration may be required)
Employers' Guide to the 2006 Massachusetts Health Care Reform Act, Updated July 9, 2007 (PDF)
65 pages. Excerpt: "Following a brief overview of the Act and a description of the Act's individual mandate, this paper examines the Act's effects on Massachusetts employers and multi-state employers that operate in Massachusetts. In particular, it explains . . . features of the Act and, in each case, what employers will need to do to comply . . . ." (Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.)
Blue Cross of Massachusetts to Bump Back up Employer Premium Payment Threshold
Excerpt: "Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts has agreed to end a new policy that would have required small business owners to contribute only a third of employee health plan premiums." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Free Care May Come at a Cost to Massachusetts Poor: State Proposes Copayments
Excerpt: "For the first time, many low-income patients seeking free care at hospitals will face deductibles and copayments similar to those charged to insured patients, under proposed rules . . . that are designed to push more Massachusetts residents to get health insurance." (The Boston Globe)
Overview: EEOC Revises Age Discrimination Regulations (PDF)
Excerpt: "[T]he U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ('EEOC') revised its age discrimination rules to allow employers to favor older workers over younger ones." (Winston & Strawn LLP)
Chart: Working at Home in 2006
Excerpt: "On the days that they worked, 21 percent of employed persons did some or all of their work at home." (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Holiday Pay Can Be Problematic
Excerpt: "The July 4th holiday is recently behind us, and in these lazy days of summer it appears that a fair number of people are focused on pay issues related to holidays. 'Not all employees are treated equally' is the recurring mantra. And as explained in response to the questions [in the target page], in the context of paid leave or other benefits, differentiation may be entirely lawful." (Human Resource Executive Online; free registration required)
Failure to Follow Plan Procedures by Plan Participant Defeats Provider's Reimbursement Rights
Excerpt: "This case stands for the proposition that health care providers have no recourse against ERISA health plans that deny coverage based upon a patient's failure to follow procedures required under the plan. The provider's only recourse is to pursue claims as an assignee and, as such, will be subject to the same requirements as the plan participant." (Health Plan Law blog by Attorney Roy F. Harmon III)
N.Y. Attorney General Objects to Insurer's Ranking of Doctors by Cost and Quality
Excerpt: "In a sharply worded letter, the New York State attorney general's office asked a health insurance company yesterday to halt its planned introduction of a method for ranking doctors by quality of care and cost of service, warning of legal action if it did not comply." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Global Health Financing, July/August 2007 Edition of Health Affairs
The articles include: Financing: Mission Unaccomplished; Why Is A Systemic View Of Financing Needed? What Should A Country Spend? and, Health, Equity & Political Economy. (Health Affairs; access to most articles requires subscription)
What Should a Country Spend on Health Care? (PDF)
9 pages. Excerpt: "What Of four approaches to answering this question, the budget approach appears to be the most feasible and quantifiable." (Health Affairs)
Firm Basing Deductibles on Health Tests Sees Costs Fall
Excerpt: "Three years ago, the non-profit organization in Berne, Ind., switched its 120 health insurance eligible employees from a $500 annual deductible on their health insurance to $2,500. To help offset the cost increase, workers were offered a supplemental policy that would grant them credits worth up to $2,000 if they kept their weight in check, didn't smoke and met specific standards for blood pressure and cholesterol." (USA TODAY)
Pricing Prescription Medicine by the Results
Excerpt: "Drug companies like to say that their most expensive products are fully worth their breathtaking prices. Now one company is putting its money where its mouth is -- by offering a money-back guarantee." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Companies Find Employee Wellness Programs Pay Off, According to Report
Excerpt: "The International Foundation report, based on surveys from 464 employers in the United States and Can.ada, found that 62 percent of the organizations had wellness programs for their workers. Another 15 percent said they intended to offer such plans. When asked to identify the perceived benefits of their initiatives, employers cited improved employee health, higher morale, lower medical claims, reduced absenteeism, increased productivity and decreased turnover." (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via The Journal News)
Mental Parity Bill in Congress Raises Concern of State Regulators
Excerpt: "The concerns of state insurance regulators that federal standards on mental health parity legislation serve as a floor and not as a ceiling to state action constitute a major barrier to enactment of such legislation, according to testimony at a House hearing last week." (The National Underwriter Company; free registration or paid subscription required)
Brief: Meeting the Future Long-Term Care Needs of the Baby Boomers (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "Even under the most optimistic scenario long-term care burdens on families and institutions will increase substantially in coming decades." (Changes in Healthcare Financing and Organization)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Overview: Harkin Bill Links Executive Pay to Employee Pensions
Excerpt: "Building upon the inequality theme in the current Congress, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) has introduced legislation that would virtually prohibit nonqualified deferred compensation plans for companies that do not maintain at least one defined benefit plan." (HR Policy Association)
Disclosing Executive Perks May Lead to Scaling Back as Firms Struggle to Defend Fringe Benefits
Excerpt: "[W]ith new rules that force companies to provide more details on perks than ever before, compensation experts say companies will have a harder time offering the golf club memberships and generous tax reimbursements that have been standard benefits for executives." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
New SEC Rules Make Executive Pay More Transparent
Excerpt: "This year's executive pay reports are the first since the government mandated clearer disclosure, and even some people responsible for setting compensation have been surprised at what they show." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
New Rules Expose Total Executive Pay, But Comparisons Can Be Misleading
Excerpt: "The perennially complex exercise of measuring executive compensation became much more contentious this year as new disclosure rules scrambled the way companies tally the numbers. Companies . . . say the totals they were required to report in public filings don't really describe what their executives took home last year." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Spencer Begins Collecting Data for 2007 Survey of Benefits Managers
Excerpt: "[F]rom Spencer's Benefits Reports: Spencer's Benefits Reports has launched the 2007 Spencer survey of benefits managers and employee benefits departments. This eleventh biennial survey requests information concerning compensation, organization, and functional responsibilities of corporate employee benefits departments. All employers with employee benefits departments are encouraged to respond to the survey." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)
Milliman's Monthly Benefit News and Developments, July 2007 (PDF)
2 pages. The newsletter provides a summary of the previous month's legislative, regulatory, and judicial information on employee benefits. (Milliman)
Newly Posted Events
ERISA Fiduciary Basics: What You Need to Know
Nationwide on August 16, 2007
presented by ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits
Newly Posted Press Releases
PBGC Protects Pensions At Keller Manufacturing Co. Inc.
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
PBGC Protects Pensions At Oklahoma Fixture Company
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
U.S. Labor Department Secures 401(k) Plan Assets for Former Rycor Fabrication Employees in Dayton, Ohio
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
(Post a Job | View All Jobs)
Pension Administrator
for The Senex Group
in CA
Senior Relationship Manager
for Fidelity Investments
in TX
Senior Benefits & HRIS Specialist
for CitiStreet
in FL
Retirement Analyst
for Stanford University
in CA
Corporate Communications Writer
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA
Pension Plan Administrator
for IPA Northeast, LLC
in NJ
Pension Administrator
for Primark Benefits
in CA
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Tegra Financial Partners
in GA
Daily 401k Plan Administrator
for The Newport Group
in NC
Retirement Plan Technical Consultant
for Charles Schwab
in OH
Staff Attorney
for Dallas Police & Fire Pension System
in TX
Client Service Manager, Health & Welfare
for Fidelity Investments
in NH
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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