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| February 2, 2009 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
Today's sponsor is University Conference Services
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Weighing the Value of Your Health Care Plan |
| As health care costs continue to increase faster than inflation and the faltering economy exacts its toll on businesses, employers are struggling to balance the costs of their health care programs with the value these benefits provide to employees. The Orlando Health and Welfare Plan Management for Mid-Sized Employers Conference, March 1–4, 2009, gives you access to expert speakers and valuable information that will help you find the right solutions for your plan and equalize your costs and benefits. |
[Guidance Overview]
HEART: Plan Operational Changes and Amendments Required (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "This article summarizes what employe[r]s must do for compliance." (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans via Michael Best & Friedrich LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
2009 Reporting Forms and Instructions for HSA, Archer MSA, and Medicare Advantage MSA Trustees and Custodians
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Remember that these 2009 forms aren't to be used by trustees and custodians until 2010, when reporting for the 2009 tax year is due. We note that the mention of economic stimulus payments in the Form 1099-SA instructions for 2009 presumably relates to IRS guidance allowing individual account holders to withdraw without penalty payments made by direct deposit under the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 . . . ." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
[Guidance Overview]
2009 Brings Changes to the San Francisco Health Care Security Ordinance
Excerpt: "The effect of the 2009 changes to the Ordinance will be to increase the cost of a covered employer's compliance with the Ordinance. The decrease in the number of hours an employee must work per week in San Francisco (from 10 hours to 8 hours) to qualify as a covered employee and the increase in the dollar threshold for the managerial, supervisory and confidential employees exemption mean that more employees will qualify as covered employees in 2009. Moreover, for each covered employee, a covered employer must now spend a greater amount on health care expenditures." (Cooley Godward Kronish LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Health and Welfare -- Updated January 29, 2009 (PDF)
5 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)
House Stimulus Bill Widens Healthcare
Excerpt: "For the first time ever, newly unemployed workers and their families will be eligible for Medicaid coverage and healthcare subsidies if the economic stimulus package passed by the House Wednesday becomes the law of the land. Those are just two of the healthcare initiatives included in the omnibus $819 billion stimulus bill. They're aimed at pumping cash into the ailing economy at the same time they shore up the nation's unravelling healthcare system." (The Christian Science Monitor)
House-Passed COBRA Expansions Differ from Senate Finance Markup
Excerpt: "Significant expansion of COBRA continuation of coverage is included in H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which the House approved by a vote of 244-188 on January 28. Similar, but not identical, COBRA provisions were approved by the Senate Finance Committee on January 27." (Wolters Kluwer)
Health Savings Accounts and High-Deductible Health Plans: Fighting the Spiraling Cost of Health Insurance for Companies and Employees (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "An editorial by Steve Forbes on Health Savings Accounts presented the most intriguing partial solution. After a lot of research (and despite our small size of fewer than 50 eligible employees), we decided to give our employees a choice between a traditional but somewhat costly Point of Service (POS) plan, as we had always offered, and a newer, high-deductible health plan (HDHP) accompanied by a Health Savings Account (HSA). Overall, that decision has proved to be one of the best moves we've ever made." (Institute of Management Accountants, Inc.)
Making the Most of Flexible Spending Accounts
Excerpt: "In this column, we offer some tips on getting the most from these health accounts, whether you're using up leftover 2008 money, wanting to plan how to use your 2009 account or considering signing up for a plan in the fall, when open enrollment rolls around again." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Insurers Overcharged Medicare for Prescriptions, Report Finds
Excerpt: "If you buy medicine through Medicare's prescription drug program, you could be paying too much. The taxpayers who finance Medicare aren't doing too well, either. Insurance companies involved in the Medicare prescription drug benefit have overcharged subscribers and taxpayers by several billion dollars, according to the inspector general for the Department of Health and Human Services. Eighty percent of the participating insurance companies owe the program an estimated $4.4 billion for 2006 alone." (The Miami Herald)
Bill Proposed in N.J. Would Bar Hospitals and Doctors from Charging Patients for Medical Errors
Excerpt: "A bill introduced in the New Jersey state legislature Jan. 13 would prohibit hospitals and physicians from charging patients for certain medical errors, according to state records. According to the bill, a hospital could not charge a patient for costs associated with a hospital-acquired condition that is subject to Medicare's payment provisions." (AISHealth.com)
California Mandates Interpreter Services for Commercial Health Plans
Excerpt: "On Jan. 1, California became the first state in the nation to implement a mandatory interpreter law for commercial health plan members, according to DMHC. Patients who have primary languages other than English can now ask their health plans to provide interpreters when they make appointments at doctors' offices, clinics or hospitals." (AISHealth.com)
[Opinion]
Union-Managed Retirement Funds: Do They Protect or Expose Auto Workers?
Excerpt: "[I]n hindsight, it's a good thing that the auto industry and the union in the latter months of 2007 decided to restructure retiree health benefits rather than turn them over to the federal government. In relatively short order, negotiations produced highly complex agreements ratified by workers." (Townhall.com)
[Opinion]
Privacy and Your E-Health Records
Excerpt: "As part of the stimulus package, $20 billion will be pumped into the health care system to accelerate the use of electronic health records. The goal is both to improve the quality and lower the costs of care by replacing cumbersome paper records with electronic records that can be easily stored and swiftly transmitted. The idea is sound, but it also raises important questions about how to ensure the privacy of patients. Fortunately, the legislation would impose sensible privacy protections despite attempts by business lobbyists to weaken the safeguards." (The New York Times; free registration required)
ALM (Sponsor)
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| 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]
Notice 2009-8 Provides Interim Section 457A Guidance But the Devil Is in the Details
Excerpt: "The Notice clarifies that a '§ 457A short-term deferral' is not deferred compensation under § 457A. Unlike § 409A which uses a 21/2-month rule, a § 457A short-term deferral is compensation paid no later than 12 months after the end of the service provider's (e.g., an employee) taxable year during which the service recipient's (e.g., an employer) right to payment is nonforfeitable. The Notice also clarifies that a service recipient is the person for whom the service provider directly provides services when the compensation becomes nonforfeitable. For example, if an individual provides services to a wholly owned subsidiary, the service recipient is the subsidiary, not its parent corporation." (Tax Management Inc.)
[Guidance Overview]
Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Human Resources -- Updated January 29, 2009 (PDF)
2 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)
Firms Find Sabbaticals Are Worthy Investments
Excerpt: "Historically, sabbaticals have been associated with academia, but businesses began adopting them as early as the 1960s, with fast-food giant McDonald's Corp., computer chip maker Intel Corp., and some U.S. law firms among the trailblazers. Although they are still relatively rare in the accounting sector, sabbatical programs have been tapped by firms ranging from small to large as a robust retention and recruitment tool. They provide a platform for invaluable talent development that exposes individuals to growth opportunities. They also encourage a team approach to client service, since sabbaticals rely on collaboration to make sure service is never compromised." (Journal of Accountancy)
Wage and Benefits Costs Rise in Q4 2008
Excerpt: "Wages and salaries rose 0.5% and benefits rose 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the Employment Cost Index (ECI). Compensation costs for private industry rose 0.5% from September to December 2008, down from the prior quarter's increase of 0.6%. For the fourth quarter, state and local government compensation increased 0.5%, half the prior quarter's increase of 0.9% . . . ." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Employee Assistance Programs for a New Generation of Employees (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "For decades, EAPs have demonstrated their value, both to the individuals whose lives they have improved and to the employers and work organizations that benefit from having healthy workers. As Millennial generation adults enter the workplace, they bring with them an array of unique personal concerns as well as some of the same mental health and substance use issues that employ-ers have been addressing for many years. By developing new strategies and resources, and by strengthening partnerships and linkages with work/life, human resources, health and wellness, absence and disability management, and accommodation efforts, EAPs will be even more effective in assisting this new generation in becoming productive workers in the 21st Century workplace." (U.S. Department of Labor)
Newly Posted Events
Advanced Cafeteria Plans Conference 2009
in Washington on July 8, 2009
presented by EBIA / Thomson Reuters
Federal Securities Law for Employee Benefits Lawyers
Nationwide on February 24, 2009
presented by ABA Joint Committee on Employee Benefits
First Quarter Update
Nationwide on February 10, 2009
presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc.
First Quarter Update
Nationwide on February 11, 2009
presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc.
Generational Considerations Affecting Recruitment and Retention
in Illinois on February 26, 2009
presented by WEB - Chicago West
Managing Benefits Risks in a Recessionary Economy
Nationwide on March 3, 2009
presented by Spencer Fane Britt & Browne LLP
Qualified Transportation Plans: Design and Compliance Issues (Including the New Bicycle Commuting Benefit)
Nationwide on January 29, 2009
presented by EBIA / Thomson Reuters
Retirement Savings Plans: Fiduciary Considerations in the Current Economic Climate
in Washington on February 27, 2009
presented by International Society of CEBS - Pacific NW Chapter
Newly Posted Press Releases
ExpertPlan Partners with American Pension Services to Offer Non-Traditional Investments
ExpertPlan
Benefit Software Inc. Announces Results of Eighth Annual Client Employee Online Enrollment Satisfaction Survey
Benefit Software Inc.
Corporate Voices for Working Families Releases Employer Guide Providing Companies with the Tools to Help Employees Take Advantage of Tax Credits and Other Federal Benefits
Corporate Voices for Working Families
Nationally Acclaimed Advisory Team Joins CAPTRUST Financial Advisors
CAPTRUST Financial Advisors
Clarity Adds Two New Consultants To Its Actuarial Practice
Clarity in Numbers, LLC
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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Senior Pension Sales Consultant
for Executive Benefit Design Group
in ANY STATE
Defined Benefit Administration Consultant (ProAdmin)
for Winklevoss Technologies
in CT
401(k) Administrator
for GAP-Pension Inc.
in NJ
Benefits Manager
for CRAssociates, Inc.
in VA
Administrative Assistant
for Actuarial Enterprises, Inc.
in NJ, PA
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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