Compliance Analyst
for Trinity Pension Consultants, Inc. in OH

Retirement Benefits Analyst
for DIRECTV in CA

Business Development Consultant
for National Automobile Dealers Association in ANY STATE, CO, OR

Plan Design and Taxation Associate
for Boutique Benefits Law Firm in DC

Associate Actuary
for GuideStone Financial Resources in TX

401(k) Plan Administrator/Consultant
for Applied Plan Administrators LLC in MI

Manager, Retirement Plan Services Analyst Team
for Prudential in CT, IL

Retirement Plan Administrator
for Bates & Company, P.A. in FL

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401k Quarterly Legal & Compliance Update FREE Webinar
Nationwide on October 25, 2011 presented by Cambridge Investment Research, Inc.

A Look at the Current State of Grandfathered Plans Under Health Reform
"Once again, the reasons given as to why plans were not grandfathered varied by firm size." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)

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Supreme Court To Decide Several Cases Affecting Labor and Employment in 2011-2012 Term (PDF)
For example: 'The Supreme Court will decide whether the 'self-care' provision of [FMLA] validly abrogates a states' Eleventh Amendment immunity in Coleman v. Maryland Court of Appeals . . . ." (Winston & Strawn LLP)

86% of Workers Obese or Have Other Health Issue
"Just 1 in 7 U.S. workers is of normal weight without a chronic health problem, according to Gallup polling data, and it could be costing the economy more than $153 bil.lion a year in lost productivity from increased sick days." (The Wall Street Journal)

Unhealthy Workers Cost Employers $153B a Year
"Full-time workers in the U.S. who are overweight or obese and have other chronic health conditions miss an estimated 450 mil.lion additional days of work each year compared with healthy workers, according to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

Workers with Employer-Based Health Care Coverage Vague on Health Care Costs
"The survey, conducted by Kelton Research and sponsored by eHealthInsurance, found that fewer than four in 10 (35%) of those with employer-based coverage can confidently say how much their plan's annual deductible is, and only one-third (33%) can say how much they are required to pay toward the monthly premiums of their dependents." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

National Study Tracks Ongoing Efforts to Trim Employee and Retirees Costs
"According to the Health and OPEB Funding Strategies: 2011 National Survey of Local Governments, the number of local governments setting aside dollars to pay the long-term costs of retiree health care has fallen from 30 percent in 2010 to 21 percent in 2011." (National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems)

Conditions, Symptoms of and Treatments for Ineffective Self-Funded Medical Plans
"[H]ow do you go about determining whether or not your plan is in trouble? How do you identify the conditions, symptoms and warning signs, interpret those signs and take action to correct problems to get your plan on the right track?" (Human Resource Executive Online)

The Pros and Cons of Self-Insurance
"Self-insuring a medical plan differs from the traditional insured plans in a few key ways. In a self-insured plan, the employer pays an administration fee (usually a fixed fee per employee) to a third-party administrator to adjudicate and pay claims to providers. The employer also pays the amount of the actual claims processed up to their reinsurance amount(s) as well as any reinsurance premiums." (Human Resource Executive Online)

Republicans Lay Groundwork for Health Care Repeal
"Other conservative healthcare experts are developing an alternative to the law, an effort that could protect Republicans from past critiques that their healthcare plans left tens of millions of Americans without medical coverage." (Los Angeles Times)

Massachusetts Tries to Rein in Its Health Cost
"After three years of study, the state's legislative leaders appear close to producing bills that would make Massachusetts the first state - again - to radically revamp the way doctors, hospitals and other health providers are paid." (The New York Times; free registration required)

Many Companies Find Self-Insured Health Care, Combined with Effective Wellness Programs, Saves Money and Aggravation
"To boil it down, more and more companies are turning to self-insured programs for a variety of reasons: They can't continue to absorb continued insurance-premium increases, nor do they want to pass them along to employees. They also want greater flexibility in design and services than traditional insured programs can offer; they want to create a single plan across multiple states, which is not possible with traditional insurance programs; and they take the bet that they can use effective wellness programs to reduce and prevent claims." (Human Resource Executive Online)

Hearing on 'Regulations, Costs, and Uncertainty in Employer Provided Health Care'
Hearing held October 13, 2011; the target page includes links to archived webcast and written testimonies. (U.S. House Committee on Education & the Workforce, Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions)

A Leave of Absence to Care for Your Pet? Not Exactly
"Based on our quick research, Florida is the only state considering a move to protect employees and their beloved pets, and even there, passage of this legislation is unlikely." (Franczek Radelet P.C.)

Bill Would Provide FMLA Leave for Victims of Domestic Violence
"To help commemorate National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) reintroduced the Domestic Violence Leave Act (H.R. 3151), legislation that would allow employees to take leave under [FMLA] to address acts of domestic violence, se.xual assault and stalking aimed at themselves, a spouse (including domestic partner and same-s.ex spouse), parent or child." (Littler Mendelson P.C.)

For Health Care Model, Look to Netherlands
"The Netherlands, meanwhile, requires its citizens to buy approved private insurance plans. Insurers must cover anyone who asks for insurance. Citizens pay flat-rate premiums for all ages and incomes that cover about half their coverage. The rest comes from an income-adjusted levy. If people use less than a preset amount of care in a given year, they get a partial refund." (USA TODAY)

The U.S. Health Care System and Make-Work and the G.D.P.
"In many ways, our health care system mirrors our tax code — especially in its financing and health insurance facets. These can be made so complex and have been made so complex in the health care system in the United States that many decision makers in health care — patients, physicians, hospitals, employers and so on — need in-house or external consultants to find their way through the maze." (The New York Times; free registration required)

ERISA's Duty of Loyalty Requires Certain Disclosures, but Discovery Requests Do Not Trigger Statutory Penalties
"While these facts sound particularly egregious, the case reminds us all to take disclosure seriously — whether distributing SPDs or responding to individual document requests. And, although the court declined to penalize inaction on a discovery request, its recognition of an affirmative disclosure obligation within ERISA's duty of loyalty may prove more onerous for fiduciary compliance." (Thomson Reuters/EBIA)

Lawmakers Push Extended Pay Freeze and Increased Pension Contributions for Federal Plan Participants
"[A] Senate letter also recommends that the super committee consider moving to high-five pension calculations without forcing early retirements, streamlining pharmacy benefits under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, capping contractor pay and reforming the federal workers' compensation program." (Government Executive)

Flexibility in Workplace Still Matters to Workers
"More than three in five working adults (62 percent) said that flexibility is one of the most important factors they consider when looking for a new job or deciding on an employer . . . . Of the 1,071 working adults polled, 42 percent said that they were willing to give up some salary to achieve more flexibility at work." (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Employee Ownership Update for October 17, 2011
NCEO Executive Director Loren Rodgers discusses a proposed accounting body for private companies; stock purchase plans under scrutiny by the European Commission; an IRS conference call to discuss ESOP determination letters; the no-layoff policy at ESOP-owned AGM; and a TV spot for employee-owned Miller's Health Systems. (National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO))

Key Issues in ERISA Fiduciary Insurance
Legal challenges by plan participants and the U.S. Department of Labor have made it more difficult for companies that sponsor ESOPs to create effective indemnification agreements to protect plan fiduciaries. This shift in the legal environment has made insurance more important for ESOP companies and fiduciaries, but seemingly minor wording differences in an insurance policy can have a substantial impact on the outcome should you ever face a participant suit or action by the DOL or IRS. (National Center for Employee Ownership)

Dickerson, Md., Company to Restore $100,000 to Employee Savings Plan, Resolving US Labor Department Lawsuit
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))

US Labor Department Sues Wisconsin-based B & K Builders, Co-owners to Recover More than $114,000 for Company’s Employee Benefit Plans
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))

US Labor Department Sues to Restore Employee Contributions to 401(k) Plan of 2 Pittsburgh Companies
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))

Flexible Plan Investments, Ltd. Announces Launch of Turnkey, Managed 401(k) Solution
(Flexible Plan Investments, Ltd.)