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December 20, 2011 Get Retirement News  |  Advertise  |  Unsubscribe  |  Past Issues  |  Search

Employee Benefits Jobs

Part Time On Call Participant Counselor
for Diversified in CA, DC, FL, IN, KY, MI, OH, TX

Research Technical Analyst Senior
for AUL/OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc. in IN

Transition Consultant
for AUL/OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc. in IN

Pension Administrator
for Limestone Pension Associates, LLC in DE

Vice President, Testing & Reporting Services
for Fidelity Investments in KY, OH

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Webcasts and Conferences

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - Appleton
in Wisconsin on January 27, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - Bloomington
in Illinois on January 25, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - Chicago
in Illinois on January 26, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - Philadelphia
in Pennsylvania on January 26, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - San Francisco
in California on January 27, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - Seattle
in Washington on January 26, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Practical Guide to Plan Fee Disclosures Workshop 2012" - Syracuse
in New York on January 27, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

Participant Loans
Nationwide on January 27, 2012 presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc.

The 2012 IHC FORUM East
in Georgia on April 12, 2012 presented by The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism

The 2012 IHC FORUM West
in Nevada on September 6, 2012 presented by The Institute for HealthCare Consumerism

Webcast: Are You Being Targeted by the DOL?
Nationwide on January 17, 2012 presented by National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA)


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[Official Guidance]
Information Copies of 2011 Form 5500, Form 5500-SF, and Schedules
The actuarial schedules (Schedule MB and Schedules SB) are updated to reflect provisions of the Preservation of Access to Care for Medicare Beneficiaries and Pension Relief Act of 2010. The Schedule C instructions are updated to advise that for a multiemployer or multiple-employer plan, where the plan sponsor is the joint board of trustees for the plan, payments by contributing employers, directly or through an employer association, or by participating employee organizations, should be treated the same as payments by a plan sponsor. The Schedule I and Form 5500-SF instructions are updated to advise that for plans with fewer than 100 participants at the beginning of the plan year, any amount deposited with or repaid to such plan not later than the 7th business day following the day on which such amount is received by the employer or on which such amount would otherwise have been payable to the participant in cash, shall be deemed to be contributed or repaid to such plan on the earliest date on which such contributions or participant loan repayments can reasonably be segregated from the employer's general assets. (U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration)


Save 31% on Best-Selling E-Learning Courses and Webcast Downloads   [Advert.]

Sponsored by IFEBP (International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

December 1 through December 31, save 31% on 31 of the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans’ e-learning courses and Webcast downloads. These are the courses your peers relied on in 2011 to keep them informed and compliant. Shop the sale!


Supreme Court to Hear Health Care Reform Case in Late March
"The Supreme Court announced on Monday that it would devote three days in late March to hearing arguments in challenges to the 2010 health care overhaul law. A decision in the case is expected by the end of June." (The New York Times; free registration required)

[Guidance Overview]
HHS Proposed Benchmark Approach for Essential Health Benefits under Health Care Reform
"On December 16, 2011, [HHS] issued an information bulletin outlining its proposed approach for defining essential health benefits, which small group and individual health plans will be required to provide under health care reform." (Practical Law Company)

Companies Struggling with Less Funding to Cover Expenses for Employees' Reward Trips
"With more companies struggling with smaller budgets to reward productive employees, some are restricting travel to certain locales or limiting items eligible for expense reimbursements. Such an approach may be penny-wise and pound-foolish, however." (Human Resource Executive Online)

New Mexico Retiree Health Care Authority Considers Minimum Retirement Age
"According to the Santa Fe New Mexican, New Mexico subsidizes the cost of monthly healthcare premiums paid by retirees of state government, public school systems and local governments. If the minimum retirement age is adopted, that means individuals who retire before the minimum retirement age, whether 55 or 60, would pay the full freight of healthcare costs until they reach the prescribed age." (PLANSPONSOR.COM)


Self-Funding and Alternative Models for Health Benefit Financing   [Advert.]

Sponsored by World Congress

As employers struggle with increasing health care costs, rising premiums and instability in the market, explore creative approaches to financing benefits that deliver new opportunities to drive real savings. February 7-9, Washington, DC


HHS Announces End Date for Claims Under Early Retiree Reinsurance Program
"HHS stopped accepting new applications to the ERRP earlier this year . . . . That shut the doors, and now the party's almost over. With less than 10% of the originally allocated funds remaining, participating plan sponsors will want to move quickly to assure that their claims get in under the wire or are high on the list of held claims." (Thomson Reuters/EBIA)

Press Releases

Labor Department Releases Advance Copies of 2011 Form 5500 Annual Report
(U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA))



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