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| October 7, 2008 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
Today's sponsor is Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA)
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| EBIA's In Person Seminar Series |
| EBIA's In Person seminars provide education on employee benefits topics to professionals, including TPAs, attorneys, benefits consultants, human resources managers, plan administrators, insurance professionals, and accountants. For information about CE credit, course materials, speakers, locations, and agenda details, and to register, please visit EBIA's In Person Seminars. |
[Official Guidance] Text of Advisory Opinion 2008-07A: Bend, Oregon, Chamber of Commerce on Offering Fully Insured Benefits to Employees of Member Employers
Excerpt: "[The DOL was asked w]hether a proposed arrangement offered by the Chamber of Commerce in Bend, Oregon would be a multiple employer welfare arrangement (MEWA) within the meaning of section 3(40) of ERISA, and whether such an arrangement would itself be an employee welfare benefit plan within the meaning of section 3(1) of ERISA." (U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Guidance on FSA Distributions under the Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "HEART amended Internal Revenue Code Section 125 to allow employers to provide 'qualified reservist distributions' (QRDs) from health flexible spending accounts (FSAs) to employee-reservists who are called to active duty for 180 or more days, or for an indefinite period of time. . . . The IRS has issued Notice 2008-82, which provides important guidance for plan sponsors who wish to add this feature to their FSAs." (Buck Consultants)
[Guidance Overview] Massachusetts Division of Health Care Finance and Policy's New Regulation Implementing Fair Share Contribution Requirement
Excerpt: "This client advisory explains the key features of this newly minted final regulation. Please see An Employer's Guide to the 2006 Massachusetts Health Care Reform Act [at www.mintz.com/newsletter/2008/Advisories/EBEC_EmpGuide/MHCRA-Emp-Guide.pdf] for a comprehensive explanation of the provisions of the Act affecting employers with employees at Massachusetts locations." (Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo P.C.)
[Guidance Overview] Early Retirees Not Vested in Employer-Provided Health Benefits
Excerpt: "Simpson Paper Company closed its mill for economic reasons. Early retirees, who retired at ages over 55 and under 65, sued in Federal Court. They sought continued healthcare benefits that were made available through a collective bargaining agreement in force at time of their retirement. The collective bargaining agreement provided that the early retirees' healthcare insurance would continue until the earliest of eligibility for medicare, attainment of age 65 or death. During the period, the cost was to be paid on the same basis as active employees. Finally, Simpson reserved the right to alter, amend, delete, cancel or otherwise change the benefits at any time, subject to negotiation with the union." (Cypen & Cypen)
[Guidance Overview] ERISA Does Not Preempt San Francisco's Fair Share Law, According to Court
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Interestingly, the Ninth Circuit saw no inconsistency between its holding and that of the Fourth Circuit in Fielder, and it concluded that its decision does not create a circuit split. Explaining that it neither adopts nor rejects the analysis in Fielder, the three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit distinguished the San Francisco law, noting that it offers employers a 'meaningful alternative' to establishing or altering ERISA plans (i.e., employers can choose the City-payment option and its employees will be eligible for free or discounted enrollment in the City-administered, non-ERISA health care program)." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
An Actuarial Perspective on Health Spending Growth (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "Researchers and industry specialists have been commenting on the drivers of health care cost increases for some time, yet despite some temporary periods of lower growth, high spending growth continues to challenge us today. This issue brief, prepared by the American Academy of Actuaries' Uninsured Work Group, reviews some of the major causes of health spending growth. It focuses on drivers of health spending growth that are actuarial in nature and examines various options that have been proposed to address them." (American Academy of Actuaries)
Health Insurance Coverage and Reimbursement Decisions: Implications for Increased Comparative Effectiveness Research (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "Comparative effectiveness research is being pursued as a way to better assess the value of health care treatment options. Proponents believe that this research can help identify the best courses of treatment and lead to more standardized practices, thus increasing the quality and value of health care while reducing the wide variation in practice patterns." (American Academy of Actuaries)
Study Shows Weight Surgery Pays Off for Employers
Excerpt: "In the largest study of its kind, researchers looked at health care costs of more than 3,000 patients who underwent bariatric surgery. They concluded that payers recouped the cost of the surgery -- which varied from $16,000 to $25,000 -- within two to four years." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
The Changing Effect of Managed Care on Physician Financial Incentives
Excerpt: "Objective: To examine how managed care affects physician financial incentives to reduce services to their patients, particularly how this relationship has evolved over time and whether the effects of capitated managed care and noncapitated managed care are different. . . . Conclusion: Managed care and traditional indemnity plans were substantially more similar in their effects on physician incentives to provide care by 2004-2005 than they were just 3 years earlier. This should alleviate policy concerns that managed care is providing physicians with the 'wrong' financial incentives to provide care." (The American Journal of Managed Care)
Business Cool Toward McCain's Health Coverage Reform Plan
Excerpt: "American business, typically a reliable Republican cheerleader, is decidedly lukewarm about Senator John McCain's proposal to overhaul the health care system by revamping the tax treatment of health benefits, officials with leading trade groups say." (The New York Times; free registration required)
The 10 Benefits of Conducting a Personal Health Assessment
7 pages. Excerpt: "Far and away the most significant benefit of offering a personal health assessment at the workplace is the fact that the entire process creates significant levels of engagement for both employers and employees. For some time now, we've been pushing the mantra that health promotion programs are something we do with and for employees . . . not something we do to them." (Wellness Council of America)
The 2008 Health Confidence Survey: Rising Costs Continue to Change the Way Americans Use the Health Care System (PDF)
Pages 2-13 of 16 pages. Excerpt: "]T]he long-term consequences of these changes remain to be seen, as some changes are positive but others could have a negative outcome. Perhaps largely because of their experience with rising health care costs, Americans continue to view the country's overall health care system negatively, feeling it needs a major or even a complete overhaul. They believe reform needs to balance multiple goals, including making health care more affordable and providing high-quality health care." (Employee Benefit Research Institute)
Future Funding for Mental Health and Substance Abuse: Increasing Burdens for the Public Sector
Excerpt: "Spending on mental health (MH) and substance abuse (SA) treatment is expected to double between 2003 and 2014, to $239 billion, and is anticipated to continue falling as a share of all health spending. By 2014, our projections of SA spending show increasing responsibility for state and local governments (45 percent); deteriorating shares financed by private insurance (7 percent); and 42 percent of SA spending going to specialty SA centers. For MH, Medicaid is forecasted to fund an increasingly larger share of treatment costs (27 percent), and prescription medications are expected to capture 30 percent of MH spending by 2014." (Health Affairs)
What Are Health Insurance Options After Job Loss?
Excerpt: "Q: I just lost my job. What are the best options for preserving some form of health insurance? A: Don't confuse 'best' with 'affordable.' One of the first lessons many unemployed people learn is how expensive health insurance really can be. If you're lucky, you can switch to coverage from the job of a spouse or family member. For most people, though, the best option lies with coverage provided under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, or COBRA." (AP via FindLaw)
Health Web Sites Merger to Challenge WebMD
Excerpt: "Privately held online health sites Revolution Health Network and Waterfront Media agreed to merge in a deal that could challenge WebMD Health Corp's dominance in the health care space. The companies did not disclose the financial terms in a joint statement, but The New York Times said on Friday the deal was worth $300 million. The combined company is projected to have more than 20 million unique users, the companies said, citing a comScore Media Metrix report." (Thomson Reuters via eWeek.com)
Sponsored by: Financial Research Associates
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| MADE IN AMERICA 2009: The 6th Annual Taft-Hartley Benefits Summit |
| Hot Topics in Pension Fund Performance and Investments: Harnessing the ideal asset mix to boost your fund's performance What we can learn from the corporate fund and endowment/foundation worlds Updates on the Pension Protection Act And much more!
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| (Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor) |
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
[Guidance Overview] Final Form 990 for Tax-Exempt Organizations Requires Extensive Reporting of Executive Compensation (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "The major changes to the Form 990 include a new summary page, a new governance section, increased details on executive compensation and the organization's relationships with insiders and other organizations, along with new reporting for hospitals, tax-exempt bonds, noncash contributions, and foreign activities. This For Your Information will focus on the executive compensation reporting requirements." (Buck Consultants)
[Guidance Overview] Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation Issues Connected to Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
Excerpt: "This alert focuses on the limits imposed on executive compensation for troubled financial institutions that participate in the TARP." (Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP)
[Guidance Overview] Q&A on 409A: Compliance Deadline for Deferred Compensation Plans and Agreements
Excerpt: "Time is running out on employers who have yet to ascertain whether the written terms of their plans and agreements providing for deferred compensation are in compliance with the requirements of 409A. A lengthy (396 pages to be exact) and complex set of 409A final regulations, issued in April 2007, will be enforced as of January 1, 2009." (Janich Law Group)
[Guidance Overview] Congress Curbs Compensation of Executives Under Financial Rescue Plan (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "As part of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (commonly referred to as the 'Financial Rescue Plan' or 'Bailout Bill' . . . signed into law on October 3, various limitations have been imposed on executive compensation including: New limits on tax deductibility, Prohibition of certain golden parachute payments, Enhanced 'clawback' provisions to recoup compensation, and Prohibition of incentives that involve 'unnecessary and excessive risks.'" (Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.)
Benefits Pricing a Leading Concern with Credit Harder to Come By
Excerpt: "With credit harder to come by and credit costs increasing, senior executives surveyed by Grant Thornton LLP ranked employee benefits as their number one pricing pressure concern. According to a press release, 55% of CFOs and senior comptrollers chose employee benefits as the pricing pressure about which they are most concerned . . . ." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
International Executive Pay: Current Practices and Future Trends
Excerpt: "This article compares executive pay practices in the U.S. with those employed elsewhere in the world. [It provides an overview of current practices and analyzes] whether there is likely to be a convergence of these practices. It first examines the influence of market based factors, such as evolving share ownership patterns, cross-border hiring, transnational mergers and acquisitions, and the growth of multinational enterprises, on the likelihood of convergence occurring. It concludes that these factors point in the direction of increasing convergence in executive pay." (Social Science Research Network)
Newly Posted Events
2008 Legislative Update
in California on October 30, 2008
presented by International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists, Northern California Chapter
Newly Posted Press Releases
U.S. Department Of Labor Issues Final Rules Under Pension Protection Act On Missing Pension Beneficiaries, Annuities And Cross Trading
U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
Accounting Rules Help Pension Plans, But Losses Continue, According To Mercer
Mercer
Fiduciary Prudence Is Key In Times Of Market Extremes
OneFiduciary Group, LLC
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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401(k) Administrator
for Redwood Administrators, Inc.
in NJ
Retirement Benefits Specialist
for HR Placement Group
in MA
Benefits and Accounting Manager
for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
in IL, NY
Plan Document Specialist
for Redwood Administrators, Inc.
in NJ
Retirement Plan Benefits Professional
for Huntington National Bank
in IN, OH, PA
Retirement Plans Analyst
for Saks Fifth Avenue
in NY
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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