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BenefitsLink Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter
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Employee Benefits Jobs
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Webcasts and Conferences
"401(k) Plans: Beyond the Basics" - Chicago
in Illinois
on October 4, 2011
presented by SunGard Relius
"401(k) Plans: Beyond the Basics" Seminar" - Des Moines
in Iowa
on October 4, 2011
presented by SunGard Relius
"Advanced Plan Design Workshop" - Chicago
in Illinois
on October 6, 2011
presented by SunGard Relius
"Advanced Plan Design Workshop" - Des Moines
in Iowa
on October 6, 2011
presented by SunGard Relius
401(k) Rekon Advisor Symposium- Detroit
in Michigan
on October 6, 2011
presented by 401(k) Rekon
401(k) Rekon Advisor Symposium- Houston
in Texas
on October 4, 2011
presented by 401(k) Rekon
Advanced IRAs Live Seminar
Nationwide
on September 15, 2011
presented by Wolters Kluwer Financial Services
HIPAA and Other Health Benefits Laws: Compliance Assistance Seminar
in Tennessee
on October 25, 2011
presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
IRA Principles Live Seminar
Nationwide
on September 15, 2011
presented by Wolters Kluwer Financial Services
Legislative and Regulatory Update, featuring Steve Forbes of SunGard
in California
on September 15, 2011
presented by Western Pension & Benefits Conference - Orange County Chapter
Managed Care Disputes and Litigation
in Arizona
on November 8, 2011
presented by American Conference Institute
Transparency of Fees and Expenses for Workers in 401(k)-Type Retirement Plans Webcast
Nationwide
on September 13, 2011
presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)
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[Guidance Overview]
Proposed Rule Outlines PPACA Requirements for Summary of Benefits and Coverage
"[I]f enrollment is on a calendar year basis, employers may first need to make this disclosure to new enrollees who join the plan on or after [March] 23, 2012, and to those who request the SBC on or after this date. With respect to all other participants, it is likely the first disclosure with enrollment materials will be made for the 2013 plan year."
(Littler Mendelson P.C.)
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Wolters Kluwer Law & Business brings you ftwPortal Express! [Advert.]
ftwPortal Express, a new member of the ftwilliam.com suite of products, will streamline the document/form collection/dissemination process and provide a secure means to communicate confidential information with clients. Ask us about a demo.
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[Guidance Overview]
Lawsuit Against Insurer Regarding Determination of 'Usual, Customary and Reasonable' Rates Moves Forward
"There is a long line of court cases holding that only plans and plan administrators can be sued for plan benefits under ERISA, although ERISA itself does not expressly state such a limitation and many courts have allowed suits against insurers without specifically analyzing whether the insurer was a proper defendant. This is one of the first decisions we have seen that explicitly applies the recent Ninth Circuit ruling to permit a suit against an insurer."
(Thomson Reuters/EBIA)
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[Guidance Overview]
Denying Employer Health Insurance Contributions to Employees Who Retire After Age 55 Violates ADEA
"Given the similarity of the facts in this case to the Eighth Circuit's prior decision involving an age-55 cliff, the outcome here was predictable. But the decision makes an interesting point regarding lesser evils, i.e., just because an employer could legally terminate employees because of their age does not mean that lesser actions, like age-based distinctions in post-retirement benefits, are permissible."
(Thomson Reuters/EBIA)
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[Guidance Overview]
Health Care Compliance and Enforcement Update, September 2011
"Key legal developments affecting the health care industry in the past few months include several Supreme Court and appellate court decisions, newly proposed legislation, and international developments of interest to multinational health care companies."
(Jones Day)
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Private Exchanges Offer Yet Another Alternative to Group Health Plans
"A private exchange is an existing concept taking on a new name. The idea also has been pitched as a 'defined benefit' plan and has been part of a package with a health reimbursement account. Simply put, a private exchange is an alternative to a group health benefit plan. Rather than paying a portion or all of a premium, an employer pays each of its workers a flat amount and sends each to choose his or her plan."
(American Medical News via Physicians for a National Health Program)
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2011 Health Care Trend Survey (PDF)
"In almost all cases, forecasted increases based on vendor-provided data are lower than forecasted increases reported in our Summer 2010 survey. Trends for major categories are generally lower by 0.5% to 1.5%."
(Aon Hewitt)
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Iowa Employers Skeptical of Health Law, Survey Shows
"Fifty-four percent of employers either strongly or somewhat agree the law should be repealed, according to the 2011 Iowa Employer Benefits Survey published by David P. Lind & Associates in Clive."
(www.desmoinesregister.com)
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Retroactive Adverse Benefit Denials Under ERISA
"From the insurer's perspective, a retroactive denial made after the provider has received payment results in an overpayment to the provider, which must be repaid. To make matters worse, insurance carriers sometimes recoup their payments in ways that create billing system nightmares. Instead of asking the provider to write a check to the insurer for 'improperly' paid benefits, some insurers use 'negative remittances.'"
(Physician News Digest)
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Benefits in General; Executive Compensation
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Constructing Self-Funding Equity Awards (PDF)
"Such awards are designed to be 'self-funding' because the payout to management is indirectly linked to shareholder gains. Unlike awards directly linked to stock price performance, these awards qualify as performance shares for financial reporting purposes."
(Grant Thornton LLP)
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Five Reasons Employers Should Keep Domestic Partner Benefits (PDF)
"'With same-sex marriage now legal in New York
and a handful of other states in the U.S., some employers may be tempted to eliminate
their domestic partner benefit programs, but employment law experts say there are still a
number of reasons to keep them in place."
(Portfolio Media. Inc. via Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.)
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White House to Propose Plan to Help Postal Service
"The Obama administration said . . . that it would seek to save the deficit-plagued Postal Service from an embarrassing default by proposing to give it an extra three months to make a $5.5 bil.lion payment due on Sept. 30 to finance retirees' future health coverage."
(The New York Times; free registration required)
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New Publication: ESOP Regulatory Rulings 1990-2010
This publication provides practitioners and other interested people with a summary of rulings and regulations on ESOPs and related plans. It includes guidance from the IRS and the DOL through IRS private letter rulings (PLRs), DOL advisory opinions, DOL field assistance bulletins, IRS Technical Assistance Memoranda, and similar pronouncements such as the 'ESOP Cadre' guidance. Regulations can be very lengthy, and we do not summarize them in detail but rather highlight the key issues and rules.
(National Center for Employee Ownership)
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Press Releases
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David Rhett Baker, J.D., Editor and Publisher
Lois Baker, J.D., President
Holly Horton, Business Manager
Copyright © 2011 BenefitsLink.com, Inc. All rights reserved.
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