Associate Attorney
for Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP in PA

Account Services Representative
for Verisight, Inc. in CA

Account Manager
for Verisight, Inc. in CA

Pricing Specialist
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services in MA

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Terminating 401(k) and Other Defined Contribution Plans
Nationwide on October 17, 2012 presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc.

Davis-Bacon Plans
Nationwide on September 27, 2012 presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc.

Rehires, including HEART and USERRA
Nationwide on October 24, 2012 presented by McKay Hochman Co., Inc.

"The Ins and Outs of Benefits, Rights, and Features" Web Seminar
Nationwide on September 25, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Testing for Related Employers" Web Seminar
Nationwide on October 5, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"Electronic Notices: Fee Disclosures and Beyond" Web Seminar
Nationwide on October 10, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

Mandatory Fee Disclosure is in Effect: Next Steps for Plan Fiduciaries (NY CLE Program)
in New York on September 27, 2012 presented by Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

HIPAA Privacy and Security Update: Lessons Learned From Latest Enforcement Actions
Nationwide on October 17, 2012 presented by Thomson Reuters / EBIA

"ERISA Workshop 2012" - Bloomington
in Illinois on October 17, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"ERISA Workshop 2012" - Minneapolis
in Minnesota on October 17, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"ERISA Workshop 2012" - Chicago
in Illinois on October 18, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

"ERISA Workshop 2012" - Appleton
in Wisconsin on October 19, 2012 presented by SunGard Relius

CFDD

 

Sixth Circuit Says Modifications to Vested Retiree Health Plans Are Possible If 'Reasonable'
"Retirees' right to vested health benefits for life did not preclude a manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment from reducing or restricting those benefits, [according to] the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ... [which] rejected the retirees' argument that the company could not change the 'scope' of its commitment to provide retiree health benefits. However, changes to retiree health benefits had to be reasonable, two of the three judges ruled ... But if changes were reasonable, the employer could unilaterally alter retiree health benefits[.]" [Reese v. CNH America, 2012 WL 4009695 (6th Cir., Sept. 13, 2012)] (Thompson SmartHR Manager)

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Wellness Programs Under ADA After Seff v. Broward County, Florida
"This ruling gives employers additional guidance and considerations—in the right direction—in structuring their wellness programs under the ADA. As a start, employers will want to take steps to show that their wellness programs are part of a bona fide [health] plan (which would include incorporating the program into the plan documents). By clearly making the wellness program part of a bona fide plan, employers can point to the safe harbor for ADA compliance and thus alleviate concerns regarding whether the wellness program violates the ADA's otherwise applicable 'voluntary' rules." (Precept Group)

The Bottom-Line Benefit of a Healthier Public Workforce
"In an effort to control costs, more and more public and private employers are turning to outcomes-based incentives—essentially paying people to lose weight or lower their blood pressure or cholesterol. This outcomes-based approach is fraught with risk and challenges, including compliance with [multiple] federal mandates ... The challenge for these programs is to reward people for achieving health outcomes without punishing or discriminating against those with medical conditions that prevent them from achieving the outcomes." (Governing)

Wellness Programs Save Employers $1 to $3 in Health Costs for Every Dollar Spent
"Most employers that have analyzed the financial impacts of their wellness programs have found $1 to $3 decreases in their overall health care costs for every dollar spent, according to a report from the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP).... The report also found that wellness program incentives, such as insurance premium reductions, and communications tools like web links and social networks are used more by organizations that are achieving positive returns on their wellness investment." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)

Health Net Faces Suit Over Refusals to Cover Medical Treatments
"California health insurers, under state law, can reject treatments that are deemed unreasonable or contrary to medical standards. But [two individuals] contend that Health Net violated that legal standard, and ... the two consumers [have] sued the insurer for damages and sought a court injunction against the company's alleged conduct.... 'Patients shouldn't be penalized for following their doctor's orders,' said [the patients' attorney]." (Los Angeles Times)

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Executive Forum on Creating A Culture of Health - October 8-9, Chicago

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Retiree Health Benefits Can Be Modified for Former California Public Employees
"California courts have made pretty clear that they consider pensions a promise that cannot be broken ... But the promises governments made to workers for lifetime health care? Are those different? Can governments alter this perk ...? Seems like the answer is yes. And Orange County was one of the test cases." (Orange County Register)

An Ugly Way to Get Health Insurance: Job Loss, Medicaid Explain Much of Recent Expanded Coverage
"Nearly 1.4 million more people had health insurance in 2011 than in 2010—but that includes nearly 800,000 who gained coverage despite not working at all. In short, the rise comes mainly from more Americans being forced into safety-net programs by declining incomes and reduced job opportunities.... The total increase in health coverage for ages 18-24 in 2011 was 825,000. Nearly 331,000 of that was from employer-based coverage. More than 220,000 was from Medicaid enrollment." (New York Post)

Looking at Policy Options Essential to All Proposed Health Reform Proposals
This item is a summary report of a multi-year project that explored reform proposals aimed at fixing "fundamental flaws in the health care system." Includes links to materials from 10 workshops and a bibliography of published articles resulting from the project. (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)

New Estimate for Health Care Penalty: Nearly 2M More Will Pay Tax for Failing to Get Coverage
"The numbers from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office are 50 percent higher than a previous projection by the same office in 2010, shortly after the law passed. The earlier estimate found 4 million people would be affected in 2016, when the penalty is fully in effect. That's still only a sliver of the population, given that more than 150 million people currently are covered by employer plans." (The Washington Post; free registration required)

State's Decision to Opt Out of Medicaid Expansion Puts In-State Employers at Higher Risk of ACA Penalties
"There is a greater risk of penalties for employers doing business in states that choose not to expand their Medicaid eligibility ... [L]ow-income workers who might otherwise be eligible for Medicaid in a state that opts for Medicaid expansion, but who are in a state that, instead, opts out, could obtain premium subsidies, and put their employer at risk of penalties under the ACA." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)

Health Plan Administrative Costs—The 67% Rule
"Of the many trends and changes that [Milliman has] observed during [the past 15 years], one general statistical observation has stood out: health plan administrative costs generally increase at a rate of about 67% of the rate of increase in medical cost inflation. This equates to annual rate of increase of 6% for the period 2006 through 2011." (Healthcare Town Hall)

Payments of Penalties for Being Uninsured Under the Affordable Care Act
"After accounting for those who will not be subject to the penalty tax, CBO and JCT now estimate that about 6 million people will pay a penalty because they are uninsured in 2016 (a figure that includes uninsured dependents who have the penalty paid on their behalf) and that total collections will be about $7 billion in 2016 and average about $8 billion per year over the 2017-2022 period. Those estimates differ from projections that CBO and JCT made in April 2010: About two million more uninsured people are now projected to pay the penalty each year, and collections are now expected to be about $3 billion more per year." (Congressional Budget Office)

Medicare Advantage Premiums Will Remain Steady in 2013, While Enrollment Will Increase
"The average [Medicare Advantage] premium in 2013 is projected to increase by only $1.47 from last year, coming to $32.59. However, if beneficiaries choose lower cost plans at the same rate in 2013, as they did in 2012, the average premium is expected to increase by only 57 cents. Access to the Medicare Advantage program will remain strong, with 99.6 percent of beneficiaries having access to a plan. Additionally, the number of plan choices will increase by 7 percent in 2013." (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)

[Opinion]

CBO Confirms Millions of Low—and Middle—Income Americans Will Be Forced to Pay New ObamaCare Mandate Tax
"Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) commented on today's analysis [by the CBO] estimating that, in 2016, 70 percent of the 5.9 million American taxpayers who will be forced to pay the Democrats' new tax for not buying government-approved health insurance will have incomes that are low enough to qualify for ObamaCare premium subsidies.... 'The bulk of the law hasn't even gone into effect yet and already the nonpartisan CBO is increasing its predictions as to how many middle-class and low-income Americans will see their taxes increase because of ObamaCare. This is yet another example of why we need to repeal this law and replace it with a bill that not only lowers health insurance premiums but does so without raising taxes,' [Camp said.]" (House Ways and Means Committee)

Year-End Deadline Nears to Amend Certain Section 409A Agreements
"The last day of 2012 ends the two-year transition period for employers to revise employment agreements that require executives separated from service to sign a release of claims document before receiving post-termination pay and avoid further compliance problems under Section 409A.... [C]ompensation agreements most likely to be affected include severance plans, change-in-control and employment arrangements, and certain restricted stock unit and other cash-settled equity compensation awards that contain a severance feature." (Bloomberg BNA)

Benefits of an Employee-Centric Enrollment Experience (PDF)
"Fewer than half (49%) of employees are very satisfied with the overall benefits program their employers offer. Email (40%) and mail (36%), received either at home or at work, are the most preferred ways to receive benefits information. 57% of employees currently enroll in their benefits online, but eight in 10 prefer this method." (Guardian Life)

Employer Costs for Employee Compensation: $28.80 per Hour as of June 2012
"Wages and salaries averaged $20.27 per hour worked and accounted for 70.4 percent of these costs, while benefits averaged $8.52 and accounted for the remaining 29.6 percent." (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)

NAPA & ASPPA Open Nominations for 401k Advisor Award
National Association of Plan Advisors (NAPA) and American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA)