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November 18, 2011 Get Retirement News  |  Advertise  |  Unsubscribe  |  Past Issues  |  Search

Employee Benefits Jobs

Executive Compensation/Employee Benefits and Global Equity Services Mid-level Paralegal
for Baker & McKenzie, LLP in CA

Health & Welfare Consulting Actuary
for Milliman in NY

Participant Counselor - Retirement Services
for Diversified in MI

Retirement Sales Support Associate
for ExpertPlan, Inc. in NJ

Retirement Plan Sales Specialist
for ExpertPlan, Inc. in NJ

Retirement Plan Processor
for Lincoln Trust Company in CO

Associate Director, Retirement Services "West"
for MassMutual Financial Group in CA

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[Guidance Overview]
Have the 'HIPAA Police' Finally Arrived? HHS Launches Formal Audit Program
"The action is not unexpected; the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ('ARRA') required OCR to conduct the audits. However, the announcement, along with ARRA's increased penalties for not complying with HIPAA, may cause covered entities and business associates to refocus on HIPAA's requirements." (Quarles & Brady LLP)


American Health Care Congress and Exhibition   [Advert.]

Sponsored by World Congress

Bringing together the health care community to discuss strategies aimed at more efficient and effective operation of our health system post-reform. December 5-6, 2011, Anaheim, CA.


[Guidance Overview]
ADEA Exemption for Coordination of Health Benefits with Medicare Does Not Permit Employer To Terminate Current Employees' Benefits
"The ADEA provisions notwithstanding, Medicare law requires that employers who are subject to the Medicare as secondary payer (MSP) rules provide the same group health plan coverage to workers and their dependents who have Medicare coverage as they provide for other workers and their dependents who are not Medicare-covered." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business / CCH)

[Guidance Overview]
Court Refuses to Order Reinstatement of Spousal Health Coverage after Employee Fails to Provide Requested Proof of Marriage
"The plan's position might have been that much stronger had the plan document, SPD, or other employee communication expressly reserved the plan's right to require eligibility documentation. We understand that an increasing number of plans are adding such a reservation of rights to applicable plan documentation." (Thomson Reuters/EBIA)

Organizations Manage Health Care Costs Through Employee Education and Accountability
"According to the Employee Benefits Accountability and Consumerism 2011 survey by WorldatWork, 45% of surveyed organizations report that turning employees into educated consumers of benefits is a very high priority for their organization's top management with more senior leaders now acting as advocates." (Employee Benefit News)

New Study Finds Paid Sick Days Would Decrease Unnecessary Emergency Department Use
"Access to paid sick days could save $1 bil.lion in medical costs annually according to a report by the Institute for Women's Policy Research." (Employee Benefit News)

Can Retailers Revamp Primary Care?
"In-store medical clinics like those at Walmart—having established a beachhead with relatively healthy patients looking for convenient, low-cost care for simple problems—are eyeing a bigger prize, the millions of Americans with costly illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease." (The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation)

Republican Senators Press To Repeal Health Law's Insurance Fee
"John Barrasso of Wyoming and Orin G. Hatch of Utah have introduced a bill to repeal the fee, expected to raise $8 bil.lion in 2014 and $14.3 bil.lion by 2018. In remarks on the Senate floor on Wednesday, Hatch said the fee, which insurers and GOP lawmakers call a tax, 'is going to hurt employers and employees. It is going to be a drag on our economy, and it is going to depress wages.'" (The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation)

Insurers Charging Companies More If Workers Have Unhealthy Lifestyles
"A Towers Watson survey found that the percentage of employer-sponsored policies that impose lifestyle-related financial penalties [has] doubled in the last two years." (The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation)

Why Few Employers Use Health Care Tax Credits
"The U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration's early numbers show that in the first year of the small business health insurance tax credit, approximately 228,000 small businesses claimed $278 mil.lion -- only about 14 percent of eligible businesses." (Bloomberg L.P.)

State Legislation and Actions Challenging Certain Health Reforms, Updated November 15, 2011
"In general many of the opposing measures, in 2010 and 2011: [i] Focus on not permitting, implementing or enforcing mandates (federal or state) that would require purchase of insurance by individuals or by employers and impose fines or penalties for those who fail to do so; [ii] Seek to keep in-state health insurance optional, and instead allow people to purchase any type of health services or coverage they may choose; [iii] Contradict or challenge policy provisions contained in the 2010 federal law." (National Conference of State Legislatures)

[Opinion]
Supreme Court Likely to Uphold Obamacare as Constitutional
"Opponents of the Affordable Care Act who believe the Supreme Court will declare the law unconstitutional are going to be disappointed next year when a majority of the nine justices vote to uphold it. It will likely be a 5-4 decision, but moderate conservative Anthony Kennedy will, I'm confident, recognize that without the law, the free-market system of health insurance, so highly valued by conservatives, will implode, sooner rather than later." (iWatch News)

Benefits in General; Executive Compensation

[Guidance Overview]
2012 ISS U.S. Corporate Governance Policy Updates (PDF)
"[Shown in this alert] is a chart with highlights of changes to ISS Board and Compensation policies for the 2012 U.S. company proxy season (meetings beginning February 1, 2012)." (Holme Roberts & Owen LLP)

[Guidance Overview]
Court Finds Medical Equipment Provider's Claims not ERISA Dependent
"The court ruled that [ERISA] does not preempt certain state statutory and common law claims for negligent misrepresentation and other unfair deceptive practices." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

ISS Publishes 2012 Proxy Voting Policies
"The final version does not appear to be dramatically different from the proposed version released in October. Today, I will blog on three key issues relating to executive compensation . . . ." (Michael S. Melbinger via Winston & Strawn LLP)

Social Security Applications in Spanish Now Available on Website
"To make the process easier for Spanish speakers with limited English skills, the Social Security Administration has translated the applications for the following benefits: Retirement benefits . . . . Medicare benefits . . . . Prescription drugs benefits . . . ." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)

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