DC Plan Administrator
The Benefit Advantage
in ANY STATE

Senior Pension Administrator
Jack A. Cross & Associates, Inc.
in CA

Operations Associate
Alta Trust Company
in CO, SD

TPA Development Manager (Southern Region)
Transamerica
in AL, FL, GA, LA, MS, SC

Defined Contribution Consultant
Aon
in ANY STATE, CA, CO, CT, DC, GA, IL, MD, MN, MO, NC, NJ, NY, OH, TX

Implementation Account Manager
Fifth Third Bank Institutional Retirement Plans
in IN, KY, OH

Documentation Coordinator
Fifth Third Bank Institutional Retirement Plans
in IN, KY, OH

Senior Plan Consultant
Advanced Benefits Consulting
in MO

Benefit Group: Sales Manager
Northwestern Benefit Corporation of Georgia
in GA

Consultant
Continental Benefits Group, Inc.
in NJ

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Top-heavy Plans and Coverage Testing
RECORDED
(ASPPA [American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries])

Transforming Healthcare From a Top Three Cost to a Strategic Advantage
October 29, 2014 WEBCAST
(Castlight Health)

Advanced Top Heavy Plan Testing and Plan Design
November 18, 2014 WEBCAST
(McKay Hochman Co., Inc.)

Professional ESOP Forum
February 26, 2015 in LA
(ESOP Association)

View All Webcasts and Conferences

[Official Guidance]

2015 Instructions for IRS Form 5498-ESA, Coverdell ESA Contribution Information (PDF)
"File Form 5498-ESA, Coverdell ESA Contribution Information, with the IRS by May 31, 2016, for each person for whom you maintained any Coverdell education savings account (ESA) during 2015. A Coverdell education savings account is a trust or custodial account created or organized in the United States exclusively for the purpose of paying the qualified education expenses of an individual who is the designated beneficiary of the trust or custodial account. The account must be designated as a Coverdell ESA at the time it is created or organized in order to be treated as a Coverdell ESA for tax purposes. The governing instrument creating the trust must meet the requirements of section 530(b)(1)." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

[Advert.]

ftwPortal Pro is here to help you during the testing season!

Streamline your census and annual questionnaire process with ftwPortal Pro. Choose from batch delivery or online electronic completion on the portal, and seamlessly import the information directly into our Admin software!

[Guidance Overview]

Transitional Reinsurance Fee Enrollment Count Due by November 15, 2014
"Less than a month before the November 15, 2014, reporting deadline, CMS finally released the form that health insurers and plan sponsors of self-funded major medical plans may use to report the number of persons enrolled in their health plan.... Plans have the option to pay: [1] the entire 2014 benefit year contribution in one payment no later than January 15, 2015 reflecting $63.00 per covered life; or [2] in two separate payments for the 2014 benefit year, with the first remittance due by January 15, 2015 reflecting $52.50 per covered life, and the second remittance due by November 15, 2015 reflecting $10.50 per covered life. NOTE: The fee is not payable now. Regardless of which option is selected, the first payment is not due until January 15, 2015." (Seyfarth Shaw LLP)  

Misunderstandings Arise Over 'Offer[s] of Coverage on Behalf of Another Entity' in Applying ACA Shared Responsibility Rules
"Applicable large employers faced with the prospect of complying with the [ACA's] employer shared responsibility rules must grapple with and understand what is means to make an offer of minimum essential coverage under an eligible employer-sponsored [group health] plan to their full-time employees... Identifying an employer's common law employees in a two-party arrangement is a simple matter. But this is not always the case in three-party arrangements (i.e., those in which workers are hired from or through commercial staffing firms or professional employer organizations)....The final regulations provide a special rule governing outsourced employees or 'offers of coverage on behalf of other entities.' This rule is welcome to be sure, but it also appears to be widely misunderstood, systematically over-utilized, and in a few cases subject to interpretations that (seem to us, anyway) stray pretty far from the text." (Mintz Levin)  

SHOP Early Access Available to Small Businesses in Five States
"The Federally-Facilitated Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplace Early Access [was launched on Monday, Oct. 27] in Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey and Ohio. The SHOP Marketplace helps small businesses provide health coverage to their employees and is open to employers with 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees. 'SHOP Early Access' will allow small businesses, agents, and brokers to try out new online pre-enrollment SHOP features, and help set the stage for the full online debut on November 15." (U.S. Small Business Administration [SBA])  

Planning for Health Care Costs in Retirement: A 2014 Survey of Age 50+ Workers
"Almost four in ten 50+ workers (38%) are not saving for health care costs, and many (44%) do not have any plans to do so in the future.... While a majority of 50+ workers (62%) say they are saving for health care costs, more than half (55%) are worried they may not be able to afford health care costs.... A majority of 50+ workers (57%) plan to work past the age of 65, including roughly two in ten (18%) who say they will never retire." (AARP)  

[Advert.]

Getting the Most for Your Money: Auditing Your Employee Benefits Program

November 6 webinar. This live webinar will walk you through how to thoroughly review each of the medical and nonmedical benefits to be sure they are truly meaningful, cost effective, and in legal compliance. BenefitsLink discount.

CMS Presentation: FF-SHOP Updates and Live Q&A, October 23, 2014 (PDF)
37 presentation slides. Topics include; Vendor Registration; Increment 2 Testing. "[T]he intended audience for this call is medical and dental issuers operating within the Federally-facilitated Small Business Health Options Program (FF-SHOP)." (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS], U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS])  

[Opinion]

New York Times Gets It Wrong, Again, on ObamaCare
"Yesterday, The New York Times, a consistent cheerleader for ObamaCare, questions: Is the Affordable Care Act Working? It should come as no surprise that the article states, as if it were fact, that 'For now, dire warnings that the law would cause premiums for most people to rise sharply have proved unfounded.' The truth? As [a recent] Forbes article cites, new health research shows that non-group premiums (those policies families and individuals have to buy on their own instead of getting one from their employer) in 44 states have increased by an average of 24.4 percent versus what was expected prior to enactment of ObamaCare." (Rep. Dave Camp, Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives)  

2015 PTIN Renewal Period Underway for Tax Professionals
"All current PTINs will expire Dec. 31, 2014. Anyone who prepares or helps prepare any federal tax return or claim for refund, for compensation, must have a valid PTIN from the IRS. The PTIN must be used as the identifying number on returns prepared.... For those who already have a 2014 PTIN, the renewal process can be completed online and only takes a few moments. The renewal fee is $63." (Internal Revenue Service [IRS])  

NBCH Adds New Member Coalitions
National Business Coalition on Health

Employers and Key Stakeholders Focused on Improving Health and Health Care, Reducing Waste and Costs, and Payment Reform at NBCH Annual Conference
National Business Coalition on Health

Schwab Announces Planned Launch of Schwab Intelligent Portfolios
Charles Schwab Corporation

Cleared to Land: American Airlines Selects Fidelity for Its 401(k) Retirement Plan
Fidelity Investments

Acclaris and SelectQuote Senior Partner to Improve Retiree Healthcare
SelectQuote Benefit Solutions

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