Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter |
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| November 17, 2009 \ Compliance \ Costs \ Administration \ Design \ Policy | ||
Employee Benefits Institute of America (EBIA) (Advert.)
EBIA's Recorded Web Seminars - Quality and Convenience! We know that employee benefits professionals have many demands on their time. To help ease the time-crunch, EBIA's recorded web seminars are available 24/7--any time and any place you have an internet connection. What's more, when you purchase a recorded web seminar from EBIA, you and your co-workers can view it as many times as you wish for 60 days after purchase! Visit our website and you can search for seminars by topic, experience level, or key word. |
Employers Prefer HSAs in CDHP Offerings, According to Survey
Excerpt: "Among employers who offer a consumer-driven health plan (CDHP), health savings accounts (HSAs) continue to be the preferred funding choice, according to a survey by Aon Consulting and the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists. Of the 370 survey respondents, 44% of employers currently offer a CDHP to employees - similar to last year, according to a press release. Of those offering CDHPs this year, 56% are now using the HSA model, 35% are using the Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRA) model, and 9% use both. Over the last three years, the gap has widened between HSAs and HRAs, as the number of employers offering HSAs has gone from 48% to 56%, and the number offering HRAs has dropped from 43% to 35%." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Hearing on Employers and the Public: H1N1 and Sick Leave Policies
Excerpt: "The House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing Tuesday, November 17 on how employer paid sick leave policies can help slow the spread of contagious diseases, like the H1N1 flu virus." (U.S. House Committee on Education & Labor)
Cost to Provide Health Care Coverage Much Higher for State and Local Governments Than for Private Industry
Excerpt: "The cost of providing health care coverage is much higher for state and local governments than it is for employers in private industry, according to research from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The survey, New Health Participation and Access Data from the National Compensation Survey, found that in state and local governments, the average per-employee health care cost was $6,430 in 2008, compared with $3,527 for the private industry. The BLS provided two reasons for this." (Wolters Kluwer)
A Compilation of What You Need to Know About the Current Health Care Reform Process and Status
Excerpt: "How will the proposed reform affect employers, employees, providers, and health plans? Hewitt provides you with the latest information on how this historical health reform legislation is unfolding in the U.S." (Hewitt Associates)
A Step-by-Step Guide to the Medicare 2010 Drug Plan Finder
Excerpt: "Looking for a Medicare Part D drug plan that will cost you the least in 2010 and cover all or most of your prescription drugs? This guide provides a direct route to that information by taking you step by step through Medicare's Prescription Drug Plan Finder, a useful online tool that allows you to compare many drug plans head to head to find your best deal. The plan finder does the math for you, so that you can see your likely out-of-pocket costs -- premium, deductible and copays for the specific drugs you use -- throughout the year." (AARP)
The COBRA Subsidy and Health Insurance for the Unemployed (PDF)
9 pages. Excerpt: "The COBRA subsidy was designed to help support health coverage during the recession and is allowing some of the unemployed to temporarily continue their coverage. However, the subsidy's temporary structure means that soon it will no longer provide help to those trying to maintain their health coverage after a layoff. Specifically, people who are laid-off after December 31, 2009 will not qualify for the subsidy, since it only applies to those who become unemployed from September 1, 2008 to December 31, 2009. In addition, the subsidy will soon come to an end for those who will have been paying the reduced premiums for nine months, which is the maximum length of the subsidy. While Congress may consider extending the COBRA subsidy, the program's reach may remain limited due to gaps in who is eligible for COBRA and the difficulty of affording even the subsidized premiums for those with limited resources." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
New U.S. Guidelines Would Have Routine Mammograms Start at Age 50
Excerpt: "Sweeping new U.S. breast cancer guidelines released on Monday recommend against routine mammograms for women in their 40s, and suggest women 50 to 74 only get a mammogram every other year. The new guidelines by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, an influential panel of independent experts, would sharply curtail the number of breast mammograms done in the United States, sparing women the worry of false alarms and the cost and trouble of extra tests. But U.S. cancer experts say the altered schedule may mean more women will die from breast cancer. The guidelines, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, are based largely on computer projections from six independent research groups in the United States and Europe." (Reuters via The New York Times; free registration required)
Little Benefit Seen, So Far, in Electronic Patient Records, According to Study
Excerpt: "[A] new study comparing 3,000 hospitals at various stages in the adoption of computerized health records has found little difference in the cost and quality of care. 'The way electronic medical records are used now has not yet had a real impact on the quality or cost of health care,' said Dr. Ashish K. Jha, an assistant professor at the Harvard School of Public Health, who led the research project." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Wellness Programs Survive Economic Crisis
Excerpt: "Keeping workers healthy, happy and at work through so-called wellness programs remains a priority for many companies despite financial pressures from the global economic downturn, a survey found on Monday. Globally, most employers offer at least one program -- ranging from a flu shot to gym discounts -- to ward off health risks such as poor nutrition, obesity, inactivity and stress, said the poll by human resources firm Buck Consultants." (Reuters via moneynews.com)
The Health Insurance Options When COBRA Runs Out
Excerpt: "The [COBRA subsidy] expires after nine months. That means time is running out for laid-off workers who signed up in March, when the benefit first became available. To keep COBRA coverage, they'll have to pay 102% of the premiums. . . . Mindful of the 10% unemployment rate, some lawmakers have proposed extending the benefit, but that hasn't happened yet. Tips for people who are losing their COBRA subsidy . . . . Don't drop COBRA until you've found another source of insurance coverage, 'even if you're paying through the nose for a month or two,' . . . ." (USA TODAY)
Disability, Earnings, and Divorce
Excerpt: "This study examines the effect of work-limiting disabilities on the likelihood of divorce. Theoretically, the effect depends on the disability hazard at the time of onset and the impact of disability on marital value. The theory therefore implies, based on a set of empirically supported premises, that the effect of disability on divorce should decrease with age, increase with education, and increase with disability severity. Data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation support these predictions. The effect of a work-preventing disability is greatest among young, educated males, increasing the divorce hazard by 13.3 percentage points." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)
ALM (Advert.)
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Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
[Official Guidance]Text of Final IRS Section 6039 Regs Affecting Information Reporting Requirements for Statutory Stock Options
6 pages. Excerpt: "These final regulations will apply as of January 1, 2007. However, taxpayers are not required to comply with the return requirements of Sec. 1.6039-1(a) and (b) of these final regulations for stock transfers that occur during the 2007, 2008 and 2009 calendar years. Notwithstanding the waiver of the return requirements for 2007, 2008 and 2009 stock transfers, taxpayers must furnish information statements to employees for such stock transfers." (Internal Revenue Service)
[Official Guidance]
Text of IRS Final Regs on Options Under Section 423 Employee Stock Purchase Plans (PDF)
14 pages. Excerpt: "Commenters requested clarification of whether options with terms that are inconsistent with the terms of the plan will be eligible for the special tax treatment of section 421. As provided in . . . the proposed regulations, . . . these final regulations [provide] that, if the terms of an option are inconsistent with the terms of the employee stock purchase plan or an offering under the plan, then the option will not be treated as granted under an employee stock purchase plan. However, an option may still qualify for the special tax treatment of section 421, even if the terms of the plan are inconsistent with any of the requirements . . . of these final regulations, if the option is granted under an offering with terms that comply with the requirements of Sec. 1.423-2(a)(3)." (Internal Revenue Service)
[Guidance Overview]
Employers Should Review Employee-Related Plans and Practices Now
Excerpt: "With increased pressure on the IRS to collect amounts that have previously fallen between the cracks and the focus on executive compensation by Congress, the Treasury Department, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the press, the IRS is more likely to focus on employee-related issues within company tax audits. A current review of all employee-related plans and practices will increase the likelihood of employers finding most, if not all, discrepancies, thereby reducing the company's potential exposure in an IRS audit. Employers should review all employee plans and arrangements now to ensure that the company is in compliance with all laws and regulations. By doing so, a company will be able to better defend its taxation positions in the event of an IRS audit." (Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP)
[Guidance Overview]
Tax and ERISA Implications of Non-Qualified Non-Equity-Based Incentive Arrangements for Closely Held C-Corporations
Excerpt: "The most favorable tax treatment of deferred compensation is generally found by way of qualified plans. However, the uniform treatment of eligibility, vesting, accrual and funding, demanded by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (IRC) severely limits an employer's ability to reward its employees in proportion to their particular value to the company. Non-qualified deferred compensation arrangements (NQDCs) are one way around this limitation." (ERISA SHMerisa!)
Pay Czar Reduces Executive Pay for Firms Receiving Exceptional TARP Assistance
Excerpt: "In an effort to tie compensation more closely to long-term performance and appropriate competitive levels, Special Master for TARP Executive Compensation Kenneth R. Feinberg has directed companies that received exceptional Troubled Asset Relief Program assistance to cut compensation for top executives by an average of 50 percent. While the pay cuts apply to only seven firms, the levels and structures could become a template for compensation at other financial institutions that participate in TARP. Feinberg also clarified that these firms are subject to the same corporate governance provisions that apply to other TARP recipients, including say-on-pay votes, clawbacks, compensation consultant disclosures, risk reviews, perquisite disclosures, prohibition on tax gross-ups and chief executive officer/chief financial officer certifications." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
Employee Ownership Update for November 16, 2009
NCEO Executive Director Corey Rosen reports: The United Steelworkers and the Mondragon Corporation agreed to develop U.S. manufacturing companies organized as worker cooperatives with steelworker representation. The ill-fated ESOP at the Tribune Company will be replaced with a 401(k) plan. A survey of employee stock purchase plan (ESPP) participants found they are more interested in the company, work harder, and are less likely to look for a job in the coming year than those not in the plan. (National Center for Employee Ownership)
Webcasts and Conferences
2009 Form 5500 and EFAST2in New York on December 3, 2009
presented by ASPPA Benefits Council of New York
Self-Auditing Your Retirement Plans
Nationwide on December 1, 2009
presented by Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
(Click to post your webcast or conference)
Press Releases
Final Rule On USERRA Benefits Under ERISA Title IVPension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)
Metlife And Fidelity Partner on New Retirement Income Annuity
MetLife
CPI Opens Consulting Office Covering Michigan and Wisconsin
CPI Qualified Plan Consultants, Inc.
Wellness Survey: Businesses Look to Wellness Programs to Improve Productivity and Lower Absenteeism
Buck Consultants, an ACS Company
ING Retirement Services Takes Commitment to Education Professionals to a ‘Higher’ Level
ING Retirement Services
New Boston Firm Steps Into 401k Advice Market
Participant Level Advice Network
(Click to post your press release)
Employee Benefits Jobs
401(k) Administratorfor Long Island Employee Benefits Group
in NY
Retirement Plan Administrator
for McHenry Advisers, Inc.
in OH
401k/Qualified Plan Sales Consultant for Third Party Administration Firm
for G & T Benefits Group, LLC
in FL
Retirement Plan Specialist - Internal Sales
for DailyAccess Corporation
in AL, KS
Director, Relationship Management-Stable Value
for Prudential
in NJ
(Click to post your job opening | View all jobs |
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