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April 9, 2009 |
| Here are the Web's best new links about compliance and cost aspects of plan operation, design and policy. |
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. |
[Guidance Overview]
EEOC Proposed Rules to Enforce Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act
Excerpt: "On February 25, 2009, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued proposed rules to implement Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA). A copy of the proposed rules can be found at http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-4221.htm. The proposed rules clarify the meaning of terms and provisions of GINA, which will become effective on November 21, 2009." (Nixon Peabody LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
New Laws And Drafting Tips for Welfare Plans In 2009
52 slides from the firm's March 26 presentation. Excerpt: "Federal COBRA Premium Subsidy for Involuntary Terminations; Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization Act; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Reporting Changes; Drafting Tips: Strengthen Litigation Protections; Plan Statute of Limitations and Venue; Plan Definition of 'Spouse'." (Sidley Austin LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
New IRS Guidance on COBRA Subsidy
Excerpt: "The Notice confirms that premium assistance is available for dental-only, vision-only, and 'mini med' plans, as well as health reimbursement accounts." (Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo P.C.)
[Guidance Overview]
Key Provisions of the New COBRA Subsidy
Excerpt: "Employers should be guided by the IRS's definition of involuntary termination in identifying individuals eligible for the COBRA subsidy. Employers should offer the subsidy under any dental-only and vision-only plans and HRAs that are not FSAs. Employers who pay for continued, post-termination health coverage should review how that coverage is treated for COBRA purposes to determine when subsidy eligibility begins. Employers should have processes in place to ensure that the subsidy is correctly calculated and that it is based only on COBRA coverage that qualifies for the subsidy." (Littler Mendelson P.C.)
[Guidance Overview]
Court Orders CIGNA to Pay Six-Figure Attorney's Fees in ERISA Case
Excerpt: "Steven Alfano won his ERISA claim for long-term disability benefits against CIGNA. The district court had previously ruled that there was 'no sound basis in the record to support CIGNA's finding that plaintiff's back condition...had in fact improved.' Alfano sought attorney's fees from CIGNA under 29 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(1). In its analysis, the court considered the following factors under Second Circuit jurisprudence: (1) defendant's culpability or bad faith, (2) defendant's ability to withstand payment, (3) the extent to which an award would deter others from similar conduct, (4) the relative merits of the parties' positions, and (5) whether the action confers a common benefit on a class." (The Wood Law Firm, PLLC)
[Guidance Overview]
AWP Settlement and the Implications for the Healthcare Industry
Excerpt: "On March 30, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts entered a Final Order and Judgment approving a long-awaited class action settlement that involved two major publishers of drug pricing information. Alleged to have inflated the Average Wholesale Prices (AWP) for hundreds of brand-name drugs, the publishers agreed to roll-back the AWP on all drugs to a uniform 120 percent of the Wholesale Acquisition Cost. The settlement will affect all organizations (e.g., insurers, employers and health plans) that contract with a third party for pharmacy benefit services." (Deloitte via BenefitsLink.com)
Obama Makes White House Health Reform Office Official
Excerpt: "One month after its director began work, President Obama made it official today: There's a new White House Office of Health Reform. Just back from his overseas trip, Obama signed an executive order formally creating the new office assigned the task of pressing his goal of expanding and improving health coverage in America. As outlined in the order, there's plenty of work for the new -- and rather small -- team to do. Among the responsibilities listed in the document: coordinating with all relevant executive branch agencies, reaching out to state and local officials, working with Congress to enact health reform legislation and overseeing implementation of any eventual policy changes." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Americans Looking Overseas for Less-Expensive Medical Care
Excerpt: "[The Joint Commission International], which calls itself the 'Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval,' has accredited more than 170 hospitals outside of the United States. An estimated 6 million Americans are traveling each year to such countries as India, Costa Rica, Mexico and Thailand in search of less-expensive treatments for simple and complex procedures. Even France and Belgium tend to be cheaper than the United States." (ScoutNews, LLC via BusinessWeek)
Employers' Perspectives on San Francisco's Paid Sick Leave Policy
Excerpt: "This report summarizes strategies San Francisco employers used to implement the nation's first law requiring paid sick days for all employees, based on interviews with a sample of businesses. Although employers faced three new policies that affected staff wages and benefits, they were able to implement the paid sick leave requirement with minimal impacts to their business. The report details employer responses to the law in their operations, staffing, employee benefit packages, and reporting requirements. By assessing employers' perspectives on the operational challenges of the law, the study provides lessons to inform future research and policymaking." (The Urban Institute)
Employers Who Had Fifty or More Employees Using MassHealth, Commonwealth Care, or the Uncompensated Care Pool/Health Safety Net in State FY08 (PDF)
Excerpt: "It is not surprising that the number of employed people covered through publicly subsidized health programs increased during this time period. A key purpose of health care reform was to expand coverage to the uninsured working poor who often do not have access to health insurance through their employer and cannot afford to purchase it on their own. Since the July 2006 implementation of health care reform, over 432,000 more residents have coverage. Approximately 169,000 individuals have enrolled in Commonwealth Care and 76,000 in MassHealth while 187,000 have enrolled in private coverage either through their employer or through individual purchase of insurance." (Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Division of Health Care Finance and Policy)
Milwaukee Issues Draft Administrative Rules on Paid Sick Leave Ordinance, Schedules Public Hearing
Excerpt: "Draft administrative rules detail Milwaukee's new paid leave ordinance, which requires employers to provide employees in the city one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours worked (or 40 hours if fewer than 10 employees), up to a maximum of 72 hours per calendar year." (Mercer)
CMS Issues Retiree Drug Subsidy User Guide and New FAQs
Excerpt: "Employers applying for the Medicare Part D retiree drug subsidy (RDS) now have additional resources on the RDS application and reconciliation process. CMS has issued a new RDS User Guide, which includes information from many how-to documents on its website. The agency also has released eight frequently asked questions addressing how to correct submitted drug costs, payment requests or retiree lists after an application has completed reconciliation." (Mercer LLC)
[Opinion]
The Misguided Quest for Universal Coverage
Excerpt: "America's dysfunctional health care financing system needs to be reformed. But the goal should not be universal coverage. Reform should simply aim to make health insurance more affordable and portable." (The New York Times; free registration required)
EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com (Advert.)
EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com is where the best employers find the best candidates!
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Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Ex-Deloitte Executive Loses Bid to Dismiss Trading CaseExcerpt: "U.S. accounting firm Deloitte & Touche LLP won a court ruling on Wednesday allowing it to proceed with efforts to recover compensation from a long-time former audit partner it accuses of improperly trading in client stocks. . . . [Flanagan's] lawyers had asked the Delaware court to dismiss Deloitte's claims against him, arguing that some compensation was protected by the U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and that Deloitte failed to state an actual claim of damages." (Reuters via Forbes.com)
Boston Globe Staff Surprised by Size of Demand for Pay and Benefit Cuts
Excerpt: "Boston Globe employees reacted with a mix of resignation and anger Wednesday on learning of the pay and benefit cuts and the lost job security that The New York Times Company wants them to accept as the price of keeping the money-losing Globe in business." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Principal Freezing Rates on Several Employee Benefits for More Than 30,000 of Its Customers with 50 or Fewer Employees
Excerpt: "Principal's move stands out because such rates have been trending up for about a decade -- and the rate freeze could help the company retain customers. Cost is probably the biggest reason employers consider switching benefit providers, said Paul Fronstin, a senior research associate with the Employee Benefit Research Institute of Washington, D.C." (The Des Moines Register)
Anheuser-Busch to Freeze Pension and Ask Retirees to Contribute More for Health Benefits
Excerpt: "Anheuser-Busch plans to freeze its pension plan for salaried employees, eliminate retiree health coverage for new employees and ask retirees to contribute more to their health benefits. The brewer said defined contribution plans, or 401(k)s, are preferred over defined benefit plans, or pension plans, 'because they provide more predictable cash flows and expense for the company,' James Brickey, vice president of people, told salaried employees in an internal memo Wednesday." (St. Louis Business Journal via bizjournals.com; free registration required)
Webcasts and Conferences
(Click to post your webcast or conference)27th Annual Creative Pensions & Benefits Seminar
in Ohio on May 1, 2009
presented by Ohio State University Office of Continuing Education (CEd), The
Act Now On New Cobra Rules In Stimulus Plan - Part II Recorded Webcast
Nationwide on April 10, 2009
presented by DLA Piper LLP
Cincinnati Employee Benefits Conference
in Ohio on June 11, 2009
presented by Cincinnati Bar Association
The New Healthcare Reform Package
in Colorado on April 14, 2009
presented by Western Pension and Benefits Conference-Denver Chapter
Press Releases
(Click to post your press release)Milliman Study Indicates First Gain in Pension Funded Status Since July
Milliman USA
Prescription Solutions Provides Innovative Real-Time, Multi-Provider and Multi-Pharmacy Intervention Program to Prevent Dangerous Drug Interactions
Prescription Solutions
First Mercantile Adds to National Sales Team
First Mercantile
Employee Benefits Jobs
(Click to post your job opening | View all jobs |
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International Employee Benefits - Account Assistant
for Woodruff-Sawyer & Co.
in CA
EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com (Sponsor)
(Click on banner to learn more.)
| Where the best employers find the best candidates! |
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
- Employee Benefits Library
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