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Health Policy Brief: The CLASS Act
"As currently structured . . . the program does not appear to be financially viable. Many policy makers have called for its repeal. The Obama administration has acknowledged the program's shortcomings and is developing modifications . . . ."
(Health Affairs Blog)
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Single-Payer Health Care for All Finds Traction in Vermont
"Vermont [is poised] to become the first state to adopt a single-payer health care system, run and paid for by the government, with every resident eligible for a uniform benefit package." (Washington Post
(free registration required))
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2011 Milliman Medical Index
"The 2011 MMI cost is . . . 7.3% over 2010. Even though the rate of increase is slowing from prior years, it has taken fewer than nine years for such costs to more than double. In 2002, the cost of healthcare for the typical family of four was $9,235."
(Milliman)
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Benefits in General; Executive Compensation
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[Guidance Overview]
Supreme Court Speaks on the Remedies for Benefits Description Mistakes
"In a move that will gratify plan sponsors, administrators and fiduciaries, the Supreme Court . . . concluded that plan summaries, including summary plan descriptions and summaries of plan modifications, do not constitute plan terms. . . . The authors recently hosted a 25-minute teleconference addressing this Supreme Court decision [the link to which is on the target web page]."
(McDermott)
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Door to Monetary Awards Against Fiduciaries Is Opening (PDF)
"[T]he Supreme Court has signaled that 'compensatory,' 'make-whole' monetary relief is available under ERISA's catch-all provision, Section 502(a)(3). . . . . [Also, the] impact of the Supreme Court's holding that the terms of an SPD cannot be enforced as if they were plan terms will have to be sorted out in future litigation. The decision appears to overturn the rule adopted by many circuits . . . ."
(Trucker Huss)
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At Supreme Court, Employees Win New Benefit Protections
"In a 6-2 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that a lower court could award employees the benefit the company led them to believe they had. The ruling could have broad repercussions not only in pension cases, but also for health-care, disability and other workplace benefits."
(Wall Street Journal)
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Press Releases
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