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April 1, 2009 |
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www.ftwilliam.com (Advert.)
What you need to know about EFAST II On April 22nd, ftwilliam.com will provide a preview of the new EFAST II filing system. We will review registration requirements for plan sponsors and electronic confirmation of filings by DOL. Attendees will also learn how the ftwilliam.com 5500 software will leverage the EFAST II system to provide new features such as workflow management and client portal capabilities. Stop by our website and sign up for our webinar today www.ftwilliam.com! |
[Official Guidance]
Text of IRS Notice 2009-27: COBRA Premium Reductions for Involuntarily Terminated Individuals (PDF)
27 pages, in Q&A format. (Internal Revenue Service)
[Guidance Overview]
IRS Notice Discusses Entities Eligible to Take Credit Against Payroll Tax Under COBRA
Excerpt: "The IRS has issued Notice 2009-27 addressing a lot of issues pertaining to the COBRA subsidy program under ARRA. Please note that the Notice makes it clear about which entities are eligible to take the credit against payroll tax liabilities . . . ." (Attorney B. Janell Grenier via Benefitsblog.com)
[Guidance Overview]
Preparing for and Understanding the New Medicare Reporting Requirements
Excerpt: "Because most companies have already developed reporting policies in workers' compensation cases, they simply need to formalize and expand those policies to include group health plans, liability insurance (including self-insurance), and no-fault insurance as well. The sooner a Medicare eligible claimant or covered individual can be identified by an Insurer, the easier it will be to coordinate with CMS and guarantee that Medicare's interests are protected in the settlement -- thereby relieving the Insurer of any liability to Medicare." (Troutman Sanders LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
San Francisco Employer Health Mandate Upheld: 2008 Employer Filing Required by April 30 (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "On March 9, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied a request for a rehearing on the validity of the employer health spending requirement under San Francisco's Health Care Security Ordinance. The Supreme Court has just denied a request to halt enforcement of the law. Thus, affected employers should prepare the first annual employer reporting form, which must be filed by April 30, 2009." (Buck Consultants)
[Guidance Overview]
New Medicare Reporting Requirements (PDF)
5 pages. Excerpt: "In general, effective January 1, 2009, insurers, third party administrators, and administrators of self-insured and self-administered group health plans must collect specified information from plan participants and report this information to CMS. If your group health plan's third party administrator does not already have a voluntary data sharing arrangement with CMS, implementation begins April 1, 2009." (Bryan Cave LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
Important Changes to Health Plan Continuation Coverage Requirements Commonly Known As COBRA
Excerpt: "Given that notices must be provided no later than April 18, 2009, employers and plan administrators should take immediate action to comply with the new COBRA rules. These actions should include (1) identifying those individuals (including spouses and dependents) who were eligible to elect COBRA due to involuntary termination of employment on or after September 1, 2008, (2) developing the notices required to be provided and implementing procedures to deliver them, (3) consulting with payroll administrators/providers on procedures to claim credit for the subsidy on payroll tax filings, and (4) consulting with insurers, third party administrators and other involved parties to insure that the ARRA's COBRA provisions are being followed." (Bond, Schoeneck & King, PLLC)
[Guidance Overview]
Couple Says Health Coverage Dropped They Are Not G.ay
Excerpt: "A heterose.xual couple in Washington State is challenging an employer's decision to drop health care coverage for the female, saying it is reverse discrimination. The Yakima Herald reports that Sharleen Honeycutt and Charles Weems have filed a complaint with the state Human Rights Commission and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against Battelle, Weems' employer, for terminating medical coverage to Honeycutt because the couple is not g.ay. Battelle spokesperson Staci West says the company denies violating any federal or state law, and it only extends medical benefits to same-sex domestic partners because they 'have no other legal way to obtain health care benefits,' according to the Herald." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview]
Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Health and Welfare -- Updated March 30, 2009 (PDF)
11 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)
Decouple Family Leave & Antidiscrimination
Excerpt: "Julie Suk (Cardozo) has just posted on SSRN her article (forthcoming Columbia L. Rev.) Are Gender Stereotypes Bad for Women? Rethinking Antidiscrimination Law and Work-Family Conflict. Here's the abstract . . . ." (Workplace Prof Blog)
The Insurance Companies' Definition of 'Competition'
Excerpt: "[I]nsurers and their well-oiled friends in government see public-private competition in health care as Armageddon. We get what the real problem is: public health care is cheaper because it doesn't suffer bloated overhead, profits and CEO salaries. But Donald Cohen of the Center for Policy Initiatives has a nice takedown of the insurers' public arguments." (Consumer Watchdog)
HSAs Can Help Pay Retirement Health Costs
Excerpt: "Health-care expenses are becoming an even bigger part of the retirement equation, and more experts are recommending a health savings account to help solve it. Money from HSAs can be used not just for current health-care expenses, such as co-pays and deductibles, but to save for future expenses, such as Medicare premiums, on a tax-free basis. In 2009, the maximum annual contributions are $3,000 for individuals and $5,950 for families." (The Wall Street Journal)
Democrats Agree on a Health Plan; Now Comes the Hard Part
Excerpt: "Efforts to overhaul the health care system have moved ahead rapidly, with the insurance industry making several major concessions and the chairmen of five Congressional committees reaching a consensus on the main ingredients of legislation. The chairmen, all Democrats, agree that everyone must carry insurance and that employers should be required to help pay for it. They also agree that the government should offer a public health insurance plan as an alternative to private insurance." (The New York Times; free registration required)
The Nanny Corporation and the Market for Paternalism
Excerpt: "There is . . . no theory under which the state or firm will always be superior at imposing nanny limitations on behavior. Because of this, we might expect firms to supply nanny rules when it is efficient for them to do so, say because of better monitoring, lower agency costs, or the like, and not to do so when government rules could be supplied at lower cost for a given efficacy level. The problem, however, is that there are government rules, regulations, statutes, constitutional provisions, and case law that may distort the market from efficiency. This essay makes the case for corporate nannyism and shows how government regulation may be biased without justification in favor of the nanny state." (Social Science Research Network)
[Opinion]
How a Health Insurance Exchange Can Pool Risk and Protect Enrollees
Excerpt: "Several leading proposals for major health reform include a new entity -- sometimes called an 'exchange' -- that would offer a choice of health insurance plans to individuals and, if designed well, provide insurance options that are affordable, comprehensive, and easy for consumers to compare." (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)
Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA) (Advert.)
EBIA's In Person Seminar Series Look to EBIA for education and training on Cafeteria Plans, ERISA, COBRA, HIPAA, and Consumer-Driven Health Care. EBIA's spring seminars will include all the latest employee benefits developments, including the new COBRA premium assistance and changes to the HIPAA special enrollment, privacy, and security requirements. For information about CE credit, course materials, speakers, locations, and agenda details, and to register, please visit EBIA's In Person Seminars. |
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
[Guidance Overview]Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Charts -- Human Resources -- Updated March 30, 2009 (PDF)
4 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)
[Guidance Overview]
Informal Discussions with IRS Reveal Favorable Interpretation of Severance Pay Withholding Rules
Excerpt: "Rather than paying lump sums, some employers structure severance payments as salary continuation, often basing the duration of the salary continuation on the individual's length of service. Although this approach has certain advantages, such as spreading the employer's cost over time, many payroll professionals have interpreted the IRS regulations as requiring far greater federal income tax withholding on salary continuation payments than was required when the individual received the same amounts as regular wages. Our informal conversations with the IRS, however, reveal that withholding can continue at the same rate as applied before the employee's termination." (Deloitte via BenefitsLink.com)
[Guidance Overview]
Keeping Compensation Committees on an Even Keel in Difficult Times
Excerpt: "There is no denying that these are difficult times for compensation committees, and the continued public focus on executive compensation is not going to dissipate anytime soon. Committee members have, however, been through tough times before. Those who apply what they learned 'the last time around' and practice the eight strategies as discussed in this article will have the basic tools they need to cope with the sea change that is affecting executive pay in every industry." (The Segal Group, Inc.)
Employee Benefits Getting the Recession Axe?
Excerpt: "National Employee Benefits Day is tomorrow. But it's not a cause of celebration for many. Coverage of health insurance and retirement security are becoming more worrisome issues for both employers and employees in small businesses than ever before." (The Wall Street Journal)
Webcasts and Conferences
(Click to post your webcast or conference)Complying With the New COBRA Subsidy: Advanced Administration Issues
Nationwide on April 16, 2009
presented by EBIA / Thomson Reuters
Disability Claims in a Down Economy
Nationwide on May 20, 2009
presented by ALI-ABA (American Law Institute-American Bar Association)
Distinguished Lecture Series in Employee Benefits Law: "ERISA Among the Ruins - The Future of Retirement Savings After the Financial Crisis"
in Illinois on April 7, 2009
presented by The Center for Tax Law and Employee Benefits at The John Marshall Law School in Chicago
Employee Benefits Law and Practice Update: Spring 2009
Nationwide on April 29, 2009
presented by ALI-ABA (American Law Institute-American Bar Association)
ERISA Fiduciary Responsibility Update for Plan Fiduciaries, Employers & Administrators
Nationwide on June 5, 2009
presented by ALI-ABA (American Law Institute-American Bar Association)
Executive Compensation: Strategy, Design, and Implementation
in New York on June 18, 2009
presented by ALI-ABA (American Law Institute-American Bar Association)
Press Releases
(Click to post your press release)Council Lauds IRS Defined Benefit Pension Guidance
American Benefits Council
FutureOffice Network Presents April Smartcast: New COBRA Updates
Davidson Marketing Group -- FutureOffice Network
Employee Benefits Jobs
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Defined Benefit Plans Unit Leader
for Southern California Pipe Trades Administrative Corporation
in CA
Senior Sales Position
for Delta Health Systems
in AZ
Defined Benefit Business Analyst
for Enterprise Iron
in ANY STATE
Plan Analyst for DC Plan Administration
for Acuff & Associates, Inc.
in TN
401(k) Plan Administrator
for TPA Firm located in South Florida
in FL
Retirement Plan Administrator
for Noble-Davis Consulting, Inc.
in OH
Daily Record Keeping Specialist
for AKT Retirement Plans Services
in OR
Defined Contribution Assistant
for The Standard
in OH
401(k) Administrator
for GAP-Pension Inc.
in NJ
EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com (Sponsor)
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