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| January 12, 2009 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
Today's sponsor is Health Benefits Conference & Expo (HBCE)
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Nat'l Health Benefits Conference & Expo (HBCE), Feb. 3-4, Tampa, FL |
| Sessions by: Intel, Corning, Toyota, TECO Energy, Broward County Schools, Burger King, SAS, Gulf Power/Southern Company, Pepco Holdings, Inc. (PHI), Univ. of Pittsburgh Medical Center, U.S. Xpress, PSEG, Mayo Clinic, University of Rochester, Pinellas County, CEO Roundtable on Cancer, City of Clearwater, C-Change, Manatee County...and more. Satisfaction guaranteed...or your registration refunded. Best Value in Health Benefits Continuing Education (HBCE) - highest quality and registration only $295 - $345. SHRM credits. www.HBCE.com |
[Guidance Overview]
New Support for Avoiding ERISA Subrogation
Excerpt: "From the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri comes a recent noteworthy case involving the scope of ERISA preemption and the efforts of a health insurer to assert a reimbursement, a/k/a subrogation, claim. You can read the decision in Pruitt v. United Healthcare Services, Inc., [on the target site] in the website library. The case provides some insights into strategies ERISA plan participants and beneficiaries can use to fend off insurers or other entities who try to interfere with personal injury recoveries." (Brian S. King on ERISA Law Blog)
[Guidance Overview]
No Award Where Qualified Beneficiary Suffered No Actual Harm from Late Election Notice Because He Could Not Afford COBRA
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: An award of penalties for failure to provide a COBRA notice on a timely basis is discretionary with the court. In deciding whether to assess penalties, courts sometimes will weigh various factors, including prejudice or injury to the qualified beneficiary and bad faith by the plan administrator. However, plan sponsors and administrators should be aware that courts generally hold that a plan administrator can be liable for statutory penalties regardless of whether the qualified beneficiary was injured or prejudiced, and that other courts have rejected the argument that a qualified beneficiary had no claim because he or she could not afford the COBRA premiums. As one court explained, the purpose of the COBRA notice penalty is not to compensate the qualified beneficiary, but to punish the plan administrator and to teach ERISA fiduciaries a lesson." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
[Guidance Overview]
IRS's 2008 Version of Publication 969 on HSAs, HRAs, Health FSAs, and MSAs
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Publication 969 is a handy tool for comparing the basic features of various consumer-driven health care vehicles without getting too bogged down in the details. The updated version of Publication 969 is also a reminder of the considerable amount of pertinent guidance that the IRS issued in 2008, particularly on HSAs." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
Obama's Health Care Headache
Excerpt: "Open-ended insurance reimbursement encourages expensive medicine by making it easier to recover the costs of clinical advances. Economist Amy Finkelstein of MIT has estimated that roughly half the real increase in per capita health spending from 1950 to 1990 reflected the spread of comprehensive health insurance. In 2006, consumers' out-of-pocket spending represented 13 percent of total health spending, down from about half in 1960. Unfortunately, this semi-automatic system may now frustrate other national goals by displacing other spending and spawning ineffective or unneeded care." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
An Analysis of Leading Congressional Health Care Bills, 2007-2008: Insurance Coverage
Excerpt: "This report analyzes and compares leading bills of the 110th Congress aimed at expanding and improving health insurance coverage. Bills and proposals from members of Congress and President-elect Barack Obama include plans to fundamentally reform the health insurance system through mixed private-public approaches that build on our current system; a public insurance option available to the entire population; bills to change the tax treatment of employer benefits; federal-state partnership to provide grants to states to expand coverage; and bills that would expand coverage for children or disabled individuals, among others. Using analysis from the Lewin Group, the authors provide coverage and cost estimates for the proposed bills, which range from 48.9 million uninsured people gaining coverage to a net loss of coverage for 283,000 people; proposals could increase national health spending by as much as $64.1 billion or create savings of $58.1 billion." (The Commonwealth Fund)
FMLA Rule Tweaks Help Ease Concerns
Excerpt: "Recent regulations governing the Family and Medical Leave Act, which take effect this week, will help ease employers' administrative burden in some respects, say observers. But the regulations fail to substantively address two major issues for employers: the permitted use of frequent, short periods of intermittent leave and the definition of serious medical conditions, according to observers." (BusinessWeek)
Fast Facts on Health Care Reform / 2008 Corporate Health Care Policy Forecast Survey (PDF)
2 pages. (American Benefits Council)
Connecticut District Court Allows Retiree Health Challenge
Excerpt: "An employer bound by a court-approved lawsuit settlement to provide lifetime retiree health benefits could potentially have breached its fiduciary duties by not adequately capitalizing a retiree health benefit trust fund. U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut issued that ruling in a lawsuit against CRA Holdings Inc. by retiree Robert Frulla who said his former employer had violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) by not making sure the trust providing the retiree benefits was properly funded." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
State High Risk Pools for Health Coverage: Information Updated January 2009
Excerpt: "In response to the problems of uninsurable individuals, at least 36 states have implemented 'high risk health pools.' Most were established by state statute, creating a non-profit organization to offer comprehensive health insurance to individuals who are unable to buy regular health insurance because of their health status. The programs offer coverage of last resort for 1) Uninsurable individuals, 2) federally-eligible individuals specified by HIPAA and 3) those eligible for the federal Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC). The agencies that run these programs created the 'National Association of State Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans' (NASCHIP), which provides detailed information on the operational state programs listed [on the target page]. Their web site, www.naschip.org contains extensive descriptions of individual programs as well as news of recent developments affecting high risk pools." (National Conference o State Legislatures)
Congress Pondering Federal COBRA Subisdy
Excerpt: "Senator Max Baucus (D-Montana), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, says Congressional negotiators have 'pretty much agreed' to include in their latest economic stimulus bill federal government subsidies for COBRA health care premiums for workers who lose their jobs." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
2008 Version of Form 8889 Released for Use by HSA Account Holders
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Perhaps the biggest surprise in the 2008 versions is the Instructions' explanation of how to take a current year deduction for undistributed excess contributions from previous years -- something we have not seen addressed previously. On the whole, however, the 2008 versions remain substantially similar to their 2007 counterparts, which were significantly overhauled to reflect HSA changes made by the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 (TRHCA)." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
[Opinion]
Should the Government Force You to Buy Health Insurance? (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "After passing health care 'reforms' in the mid-1990s, Massachusetts residents now face one of the most expensive health insurance markets in the country. Instead of fixing the problems, Governor Mitt Romney (R) and the legislature passed an unprecedented mandate requiring both individuals and employers to purchase health insurance. While the new law has significantly reduced the number of uninsured, the state is also straining under the exploding costs. Should the government require people to buy health insurance, just as many states mandate auto insurance coverage? Or is it better to create a competitive market so that the uninsured have access to affordable coverage?" (Council for Affordable Health Insurance)
[Opinion]
Report: Ten Prescriptions for Reforming Health Care Quality, Cost and Coverage (PDF)
36 pages. Excerpt: "The American Benefits Council . . . believes we can, and must, achieve a more affordable, more inclusive and higher quality health care system before health care in America reaches the critical condition stage. Our vision of reform was shaped by the diverse expertise and experience of our members, particularly our Board of Directors, which shaped a set of 10 practical prescriptions for our health care system. Each of these prescriptions is aimed at achieving a stronger, more sustainable health care system to serve the needs of all Americans." (American Benefits Council)
[Opinion]
Should Patients Be Told of Better Care Elsewhere?
Excerpt: "An article published online in October in the journal PLoS Medicine really hit home with me. Noting that the quality of cancer care is uneven, its authors argued that as part of the informed-consent process, doctors have an ethical obligation to tell patients if they are more likely to survive, be cured, live longer or avoid complications by going to Hospital A instead of Hospital B. And that obligation holds even if the doctor happens to work at Hospital B, and revealing the truth might mean patients will take their business someplace else." (The New York Times; free registration required)
ALM (Sponsor)
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Complete Benefits Law Guidance from Law Journal Press |
| The nation's workforce and health care system are constantly evolving and so are the legal issues. Law Journal Press helps you handle any benefits law question with up-to-date, authoritative books on all aspects of the field. Get legal and practical advice from leading experts on everything from COBRA to ERISA, "contingent" employees to family and medical leave, and more. Browse our product listings for detailed information and special offers. |
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
[Guidance Overview]
Initial Guidance and Limited Transition Relief for Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans Subject to New Section 457A
Excerpt: "The U.S. Treasury Department and the IRS anticipate issuing additional guidance under Section 457A and have requested comments regarding Notice 2009-08 and Section 457A. Until further guidance is issued, taxpayers may rely on this guidance for purposes of Section 457A. Any further guidance that would expand the coverage of Section 457A will be prospective." (McDermott Will & Emery)
New Article on Stock Options, Restricted Stock, Phantom Stock, SARs, and ESPPs
NCEO Executive Director Corey Rosen has written a new article for the NCEO's Web site on stock options, restricted stock, phantom stock, stock appreciation rights, and employee stock purchase plans. (National Center for Employee Ownership)
Newly Posted Events
Cafeteria Plan Election Changes: What's Permitted and What Isn't?
Nationwide on February 12, 2009
presented by EBIA / Thomson Reuters
Executive Compensation Proxy Disclosure: Best Practices When Storm Clouds Are Ready to Burst
Nationwide on February 10, 2009
presented by ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits
Health and Welfare Plan Management for Mid-Sized Employers
in Massachusetts on April 26, 2009
presented by University Conference Services
Just Released! IRS Notice 2009-9 - RMD Relief Reporting Requirements
Nationwide on January 13, 2009
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC
Newly Posted Press Releases
Council Issues Landmark Health Care Reform Proposal
American Benefits Council
Millennium Trust Adds Senior Vice President for Business Development
Millennium Trust Company, LLC
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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Pension Consultants/Administrators
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Employee Benefits Attorney
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ERISA Investments Litigation Attorney
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401(k) Plan Administrator
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in FL
401(k) Administrator
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Retirement Plan Document/Conversion Specialist
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Pension Administrator/Consultant
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in MA
Pension Benefits Manager
for TIC International Corporation
in MI
ERISA Attorney
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in WI
Account Manager/Sales Representative
for Westchester Risk Management/Benefits Consulting Firm
in NY
Handy Links:
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- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
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