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March 10, 2009 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (Adv.)
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| E-learning from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans |
| The International Foundation’s E-learning courses provide the fundamentals as well as the latest on compliance. Courses are continuously updated to reflect recent regulatory changes. Many courses include fun interactive features that will help you fully understand concepts and implications—not just memorize terms. If you are interested in training your team, ask us about our convenient, cost-effective token program. For more information on e-learning courses and team training, visit www.ifebp.org/elearning. |
[Guidance Overview]
San Francisco Health Care Law Survives 9th Circuit, But May Face High Court
Excerpt: "San Francisco's universal health care law officially survived the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday, but with eight conservative judges now raising the specter of a circuit split, business interests hope the Supreme Court will step in. The court, led by Judge William Fletcher, denied en banc review to the Golden Gate Restaurant Association, which had challenged San Francisco's ordinance in November 2006 after the county board of supervisors gave it unanimous approval. But Judge Milan Smith Jr. and seven colleagues sharply critiqued the majority's decision, saying it contradicts the 4th Circuit's ruling in a similar case and flouts Congress' 35-year-old Employee Retirement Income Security Act."
[Guidance Overview]
HIPAA Goes HITECH (PDF)
8 pages. Excerpt: "The new economic stimulus package [the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)], signed by President Obama on February 17, 2009, presents significant new data and security obligations for health plans and their vendors under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). These new HIPAA-related requirements are spelled out in the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) that is contained within ARRA. In addition to HIPAA privacy and security, HITECH greatly expands the use of health information technology in the health care field. HITECH generally becomes effective on February 17, 2010; however, some provisions may be effective earlier, and others after regulations and guidance are provided by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS)." (Aon Consulting)
[Guidance Overview]
Privacy Provisions of the HITECH Act (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "The stimulus bill, also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 . . ., makes major changes to the privacy and security provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 . . . . In particular, individuals must receive notification when their health information is unlawfully disclosed, there are expanded prohibitions on selling health information and contacting individuals to promote products or services, and 'business associates' will now be directly subject to HIPAA requirements. In addition, penalties for violations are significantly increased and individuals who are harmed by disclosure of their health information may recover a portion of the penalty amount." (Winston & Strawn LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
New Privacy & Security Rules Included in Stimulus Bill
Excerpt: "The economic stimulus package also includes new privacy and security requirements for the handling of medical records. Many of the provisions will become effective in 12 months. Although the focus of the legislation is on electronic records, most of the provisions apply to paper records as well." (Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
How to Reconcile Differing FMLA Leave Periods
Excerpt: "Your organization uses the calendar year to determine an employee's leave balance for all qualifying reasons other than military caregiver leave (which is required by regulation to begin on the first day the eligible employee takes military caregiver leave and ends 12 months after that date). How do you reconcile the use of leave to care for a covered servicemember with other FMLA leave?" (CCH INCORPORATED)
[Guidance Overview]
New California Law Requires Continuation of Dependent Health Coverage During Medical Leave from School (PDF)
Excerpt: "Last year, Congress enacted Michelle's Law to require group health plans and insurers to continue dependent health coverage for college students who would otherwise lose eligibility because of a medically necessary leave from school. The federal law takes effect later this year. Last September, Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law California's version of Michelle's Law, which is now in effect for HMOs and other insured coverages purchased in California." (Buck Consultants)
[Guidance Overview]
Arbitration Agreement Upheld Despite Binding Arbitration and Cost-Sharing Provisions
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: For group health and disability claims, the DOL claims procedure regulations permit mandatory arbitration to be used for one of the required two levels of claims appeals, provided such arbitration is not binding. Group health and disability plans that wish to use binding arbitration may do so only by offering it to claimants as a voluntary method of appeal. Also, the DOL takes the position that the regulations' general prohibition on hampering or hindering claims (which prohibits any practice that requires payment of a fee or costs as a condition to making a claim or an appeal) precludes any requirement for cost-sharing in the arbitration of an appeal." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
[Guidance Overview]
New Requirements on Third Party Administrators, Wellness Program Vendors, Disease Management Companies and Other Business Associates
Excerpt: "A portion of the new economic stimulus bill, called the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act or 'HITECH Act,' will have a significant impact on service providers to group health plans, health care providers and other covered entities that use or disclose protected health information ('PHI'). Such 'business associates' may include third party administrators and vendors of wellness programs, disease management, utilization review, and a host of other professional services. The HITECH Act makes business associates directly subject to the new and expanded requirements under HIPAA, and creates significant risks of penalties, enforcement actions, and impediments to core business functions." (Dorsey & Whitney LLP) (The Recorder via The National Law Journal)
Stimulating Health Information Technology
The March/April 2009 edition of 'Health Affairs' concentrates on 'The Promises And Pitfalls Of Health Information Technology." (Health Affairs)
Perspectives on the HITECH Provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
Excerpt: "The development, implementation, and management of health care information technologies are prominent components of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. How these technologies will affect our health care system will depend on the collective choices made in the months ahead. [Four articles present perspectives on the choices in implementing Health Information Technology.]" (Health Affairs)
Retirees Scramble as Auto Parts Firm Aims to Cease Health Benefits
Excerpt: "Retirees of auto parts maker Delphi have frantically organized themselves in recent weeks to fight their former employer's attempts to terminate their health care coverage by working to form a health care trust similar to one created for their unionized colleagues. Last month, Delphi received qualified permission from a bankrup.tcy judge to terminate health care benefits for its 15,000 salaried retirees." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
House Subcommittee Hearing: Strengthening Employer-Based Health Care
March 10, 2009. Excerpt: "The Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee of the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing to examine ways to increase health care insurance coverage for Americans through their employer." (U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education & Labor, Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee)
North Carolina's Healthy Families and Healthy Workplaces Act Would Require Paid Sick Leave for All Employees
Excerpt: "On February 17, 2009, members of the North Carolina House of Representatives filed House Bill 177. H.B. 177, also known as the Healthy Families and Healthy Workplaces Act, would require employers to provide up to seven days of paid sick leave each year to each employee. If passed, the new law would take effect January 1, 2010. The Healthy Families and Healthy Workplaces Act would require employers with more than 10 employees to provide each employee up to 56 hours of paid sick leave in each calendar year. Employers with 10 or fewer employees would be required to provide up to 32 hours of paid sick leave to each employee each calendar year. Employees would accrue paid sick leave at the rate of one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours worked." (Poyner Spruill LLP)
Senator Baucus Would Tax Medical Benefits to Pay for Health Reform
Excerpt: "Sen. Max Baucus raised a few eyebrows last week when he said he'd rather tax people's health benefits to help finance health care reforms, instead of phasing out income-tax deductions for the super-wealthy. Yet Baucus staffers and spokesmen say this new tax wouldn't necessarily hit those in the lower- and middle-income rungs." (Helena Independent Record)
UAW and Ford Agree on New Pact Which Includes Change to VEBA Financing
Excerpt: "The United Auto Workers at Ford Motor Co. accepted concessions to their 2007 national labor contract aimed at saving billions for the struggling automaker, and now the clock is ticking for General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC to forge similar deals with their unionized hourly workers. Fifty-nine percent of Ford's production workers and 58 percent of skilled-trades employees agreed to the changes, which protect their wages but suspend bonuses, alter work rules and essentially kill a controversial lay-off program called the jobs bank. The changes also allow Ford to finance part of a retiree health care trust with more stock and less cash than originally intended." (The Detroit News)
Diabetes Cost Calculator for Employers
Excerpt: "The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has created an evidence-based tool that employers can use to estimate how much diabetes costs them and the potential savings that would result from better management of diabetes. . . . Based on an employer's industry, location, and firm size, the calculator estimates: Number of people with diabetes. Annual diabetes-related medical costs. Annual diabetes-related productivity costs. Potential savings associated with better management of diabetes." (U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
How Consumer Choice Affects Health Coverage (PDF)
10 pages. Excerpt: "This paper draws on the experience of large employers to illustrate how consumer choices can affect program costs and discusses program design elements that can moderate the costs of choice. Without understanding the impact of adverse selection and incorporating design components to mitigate its effect, an otherwise well-designed program runs a greater risk of failure." (AARP)
Health Care Reform: What's at Stake for 50- to 64-Year-Olds? (PDF)
13 pages. Excerpt: "This paper looks at where this age group gets coverage, issues confronting those not covered through an employer, characteristics of the uninsured, and shifts in coverage with retirement. As debates about how to improve our health care system proceed, it will be important to look at how well they serve people who are most at risk in our current system, including adults ages 50-64." (AARP)
Bill Introduced in House and Senate to Raise Lifetime Health Insurance Cap to $10 Million
Excerpt: "Lawmakers in both the House and Senate introduced a bill that will raise the required lifetime health insurance cap to $10 million. The Health Insurance Coverage Protection Act (H.R. 1085 and S. 442) was introduced by Reps. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) and Jim Langevin (D-R.I.) in the House and Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) in the Senate." (AISHealth.com)
[Opinion]
Broadcasting Misinformation About Health Care Reform: Planting Seeds of Fear
Excerpt: "[I]n this post, I want to talk about an example of fear-mongering by conservatives. Thanks to reader Brad F. for sending me this link to an AP video available on Yahoo headlined 'GOP Challenges Obama's Healthcare Plan.' Open the site, and you'll hear Congressman, Rep. Roy Blunt (Rep. Missouri) delivering his weekly Republican message on GOP.com last Saturday. . . . He begins by saying that he agrees with President Obama 'that if you like your current health insurance plan, you should be allowed to keep it.' Then, Blunt tells a fib: 'But that's not what is currently being discussed in Washington. Some people are spending a lot of time talking about how to spend more of your money on bigger government run programs.'" (The Century Foundation)
The Savvy Self-Funding Healthcare Conference & Expo (Sponsor)
(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)
| Employer-Designed Healthcare Conference Offers Unique Perspective & Comfortable Atmosphere |
| June 1-3, 2009 - The Savvy Self-Funding Healthcare Conference and Expo. Started as a community effort in 2005, the goal is to help educate employers and plan sponsors about self-insured plans. Solutions to rising healthcare costs are not always reducing benefits or raising premiums. Conference is a relaxed, comfortable environment. Vendor expo includes both carriers AND brokers. Contact Karrie Andes, SPHR, Conference Chairperson and Human Resources Director for Deffenbaugh Industries, Inc. & Affiliates, at 800-226-5205, karrie@savvyemployerconference.com and visit www.savvyemployerconference.com. |
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
[Official Guidance]List of Expiring Federal Tax Provisions 2008-2020 (PDF)
42 pages. Excerpt: "This document, prepared by the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation, provides a listing of Federal tax provisions (other than those providing time-limited transition relief after the repeal of an underlying rule) that are currently scheduled to expire in 2008-2020 (with references to the applicable section of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or other applicable law). Expiring Federal tax provisions providing temporary disaster relief are separately listed in Part II of the document. [The document can be searched by key word.]" (U.S. House of Representatives Joint Committee on Taxation)
Top-Exec Pay Train Runs Full Steam Ahead
Excerpt: "Companies that sank into the red last year are looking past a host of business expenses, ranging from asset write-downs to higher-than-expected operating costs, to rationalize paying brass even more than they got in flush times." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
Buck Consultants' Survey on Equity Compensation (PDF)
1 page. Excerpt: "A concern among compensation professionals and compensation committees in today's economic climate is how to address changes in stock price for purposes of 2009 stock grants. Buck surveyed companies on how they are addressing these issues. A total of 73 companies, 90% of which are publicly-traded, responded." (Buck Consultants)
Equity Compensation Actions for 2009
Excerpt: "[G]overnments are imposing restrictions on executive remuneration at financial institutions that benefit from rescue efforts, and these constraints may be a harbinger of future regulation of executive remuneration programs, particularly in the US and Europe. Shareholders are seizing the moment as well. They are calling for constraints on a range of executive pay and severance arrangements, continuing their demands for pay for results and decrying pay for failure. This environment has significant implications for executive rewards and talent strategies for the next several years, as well as pay actions for the short term." (Mercer LLC)
[Opinion]
American Benefits Council Comment Letter on Proposed 409A Regulations (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "The Proposed Regulations interpret the statutory provisions of Code section 409A(a), which imposes early inclusion upon vesting, a 20-percent addition to tax and, in some cases, a premium interest tax with respect to deferred compensation arrangements that fail to conform to statutory requirements. The Council is most concerned about inadvertent errors that result in the imposition of tax under Code section 409A. The Council believes that there are several areas in which the Proposed Regulations may be simplified without departing from the overall statutory requirements." (American Benefits Council)
Newly Posted Events
(Post Yours!)403(b) Plan Documents Webinar
Nationwide on March 20, 2009
presented by ftwilliam.com
Group Health Plan Mandates for Rookies: The Basics on the Federal Mandates (Other Than COBRA and HIPAA)
Nationwide on March 26, 2009
presented by EBIA / Thomson Reuters
What’s Hot and What’s Not in Motivating Employee Behavior
in Georgia on March 19, 2009
presented by WEB (Worldwide Employee Benefit Network) Atlanta Chapter
Newly Posted Press Releases
(Post Yours!)Letter Urges Congressional Budget Committees to Consider Cost Savings in Developing Health Care Reform Legislation
American Benefits Council
Council ‘Disappointed’ by Ninth Circuit Court Denial of Rehearing in San Francisco Health Care Case
American Benefits Council
CEFEX Certifies Alliance Benefit Group of Michigan
Centre for Fiduciary Excellence (CEFEX)
Ann Schleck & Co. Introduces New Tools Including Fee Benchmarker
Ann Schleck & Co.
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
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Pension Consultants/Administrators
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Senior Retirement Plan Analyst and Supervisor
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Account Manager
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Defined Contribution Administrator
for McGregor & Associates, Inc.
in KY
Defined Pension Plan Payment Specialist
for NRECA/Lincoln Operations
in NE
Pension Administrator
for Prestigious mid-Long Island New York Firm
in NY
EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com (Sponsor)
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