Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter |
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| July 23, 2009 \ Compliance \ Costs \ Administration \ Design \ Policy | ||
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Many Wellness Programs Not Cost Effective
Excerpt: "Health-prevention programs cost more than the costs of treating some chronic diseases, according to a recent article in a health-policy journal. Does that mean HR leaders should reconsider corporate wellness initiatives? Experts say they may want to narrow the targets of such programs." (Human Resource Executive Online)
Businesses and Employers Sometimes Split on Health Reform
Excerpt: "Employers around the country are split on supporting or opposing health reform 'reducing the force of an opposition push,' just as business lobbying heats up in the fight, The Washington Post reports. 'Less noted has been the diversity of opinion among small and medium-size businesses. Many agree with the (U.S.) Chamber (of Commerce) that a public insurance option would undermine the private insurance market and that requiring companies to provide coverage would impair job growth. Others say the current system is so broken that they are assessing whether to support the reform plans.'" (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Kennedy's CLASS Act Would Establish National Long Term Care Insurance
Excerpt: "Congress is starting to tackle long-term care through a measure for a national long-term insurance program, according to the New York Times The New Old Age blog. The Times reports: 'Generally overlooked in the debate over health care reform... is the C.L.A.S.S. Act, a bill introduced by Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, that would establish a national long-term care insurance program. The idea has circulated for years, but now advocates think there's a real possibility such a plan will be incorporated into whatever health care bill emerges from Congress. The C.L.A.S.S. Act (short for Community Living Assistance Services and Support, if you're wondering) could transform the way people pay for long-term care.'" (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Employers Prefer Incremental Approach To Health Care Reform
Excerpt: "Employers Prefer Incremental Approach To Health Care Reform from Spencer's Benefits Reports: A survey of 329 U.S. employers conducted by Mercer has found that a significant majority (67%) favor a phased-in approach to national health care reform. Only 11% said that they favor the enactment of comprehensive reform this year, and the remaining 12% said that they are not sure." (Wolters Kluwer)
Philadelphia, PA Wants Union Members to Share Health Costs
Excerpt: "To help curb growing health-care costs, the Nutter administration wants members of Philadelphia's largest municipal employee union, District Council 33, to start paying for the health benefits they receive. The city is also seeking to take over the billing responsibility to insurance carriers from all four city unions, which together represent 20,000 workers. Both moves represent a remarkable shift from current practices, and are among the more aggressive and controversial proposals made by the city as it pursues new labor contracts with the police and firefighters unions, and District Council 33 and District Council 47 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. Contracts with all four expired June 30." (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Survey Reports on Plan Efforts to Cope with Heart Disease
Excerpt: "Employer health care programs have widespread efforts in place to deal with members who suffer from cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a new National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH) report. An NBCH news release said 100% of health plans surveyed offer a Web based personal health assessment and most offer other options such as telephone or personalized versions. More than half of the plans are capable of offering incentives for patients to complete health risk assessments, including cash payments (36%), discounts on health and wellness services (44%), and co-pay or deductible reductions (38%), according to the announcement." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Tax Subsidies for Private Health Insurance
Excerpt: "As Congress convenes to figure out how to reform our nation's broken health care system, the biggest question is how to pay for it. One option is to consider making modifications to the tax treatment of employer-sponsored health insurance (ESI) as a way to raise revenue and provide incentives to reduce health care costs. Tax Subsidies for Private Health Insurance: Who Benefits and at What Cost?, an update from the May 2003 tax subsidies synthesis by Leonard Burman, Ph.D., looks at the structure and the distribution of existing tax subsidies for ESI and the implications for policy-makers." (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)
'Comparative Effectiveness' in Health Care Debated
Excerpt: "['Comparative effectiveness'] research involves side-by-side studies to determine which medical treatments work best. The findings help policymakers decide which treatments are most effective for each health care dollar spent. Yet as Congress struggles to craft a health care overhaul plan that will cut costs, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are balking at using comparative effectiveness to limit coverage or reimbursements." (Morning Edition via National Public Radio)
[Opinion]
Wall Street Journal Health Care Editorial Wrong on the Facts
Excerpt: "The Wall Street Journal ran an editorial yesterday that advanced false and misleading information regarding the House's health reform bill, America's Affordable Health Choices Act, (H.R. 3200). While most Americans are satisfied with their health insurance coverage now, most Americans are concerned that they will either lose their insurance or face staggering increases in premiums, co-pays or other costs. The America's Affordable Health Choices Act is about giving all American families more choices of quality, affordable health care and the peace of mind that they will be covered with quality, affordable care no matter of their job or economic situation." (U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education & Labor)
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Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
[Guidance Overview]Proposed Executive Compensation Reform from Department of the Treasury
Excerpt: "If approved, the Securities and Exchange Commission will be required to adopt (1) regulations that will determine the appropriate independence standard to apply under the new rules and (2) rules directing the national securities exchanges and national securities associations to prohibit the listing of securities of companies that do not comply with the new independence standards." (Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati)
[Guidance Overview]
New Executive Compensation Rules for TARP Recipients; Guidelines for Future Legislation
Excerpt: "The IRS has issued Interim Final Regulations on the executive compensation provisions of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 ('EESA'), and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ('ARRA'), generally effective June 15, 2009. The rules implement an increasingly restrictive executive compensation regime for financial institutions that received government funds under the federal TARP program but have not yet repaid them to the government. Original speculation that the Treasury would set a hard cap on annual compensation for top executives of such entities, such as $500,000, however, proved to be unfounded. The regulations establish what has been called a 'pay czar' to help enforce the provisions of the law and Treasury further has announced its intention to seek legislation that would apply similar restrictions to all publicly traded companies." (Tax Management Inc.)
ERISA and Same-S.ex Benefits: An Article
Excerpt: "Janice K. McClendon (Stetson), co-chair of the AALS Section on Employee Benefits, has posted on SSRN her article from a few years ago in the New Mexico Law Review: A Small Step Forward in the Last Civil Rights Battle: Extending Benefits under Federally Regulated Employee Benefit Plans to Same-S.ex Couples." (Workplace Prof Blog)
Webcasts and Conferences
Ethics in Representing Employee Benefit PlansNationwide on September 1, 2009
presented by American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)
Health Plan Design and Trends
in Illinois on August 27, 2009
presented by WEB - Chicago West
PPA: The Second Year
Nationwide on August 5, 2009
presented by American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)
Preparing for the Roth 2.0 Market: Advanced Roth Conversion Strategies & Considerations
Nationwide on August 5, 2009
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC
Preparing for the Roth 2.0 Market: Roth Reporting and Administration
Nationwide on August 6, 2009
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC
Preparing for the Roth 2.0 Market: The Art & Science of Roth Conversion Optimization
Nationwide on August 4, 2009
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC
Preparing for the Roth 2.0 Market: Roth Conversions Overview
Nationwide on August 5, 2009
presented by Convergent Retirement Plan Solutions, LLC
Rehired Employees: Understanding the Rules
Nationwide on August 18, 2009
presented by American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)
What! I Can't Get My Lump Sum? A Discussion of the Restricted Distribution Rules
Nationwide on August 11, 2009
presented by American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)
(Click to post your webcast or conference)
Press Releases
Pension Plan Freezes Continue at Steady Pace Among Fortune 1000 Companies, Watson Wyatt Analysis FindsWatson Wyatt
Flexible Schedules for Hourly Workers Becoming More Prevalent
WorldatWork
PBGC To Assume Delphi Pension Plans
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
Segal Releases Study of Multiemployer Defined Contribution Plans
The Segal Company
ftwilliam.com Announces Promotions and New Additions to Its Staff
ftwilliam.com
Inspira Looking to Acquire IRA Recordkeeping Business
Inspira
Families and Work Institute Releases Findings on Impact of Recession on Employers
Families and Work Institute
(Click to post your press release)
Employee Benefits Jobs
Director of Programmingfor Industry Leader in the Benefits /Life Insurance Community
in PA
Inside Sales Consultant
for Decimal, Inc. (www.theonline401k.com)
in CA
Assistant Director
for 1199SEIU Family of Funds
in NY
(Click to post your job opening | View all jobs |
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