Conversion Analyst
Pension Corporation of America
in OH

WMG Specialist - Recordkeeping
Chemung Canal Trust Company
in NY

401(k) Plan Administrator
PASI, LLC
in CT

Retirement Plan Consultant
Associated Pension Consultants, Inc.
in NY

Retirement Benefits Specialist
Cummins
in TN

Senior 401k Administrator
Findley Davies, Inc.
in OH

Retirement Services - Managing Director
General Board of Pension and Health Benefits
in IL

ERISA Compliance Associate
MBM Advisors, Inc.
in TX

Director of Sales
Pension Consultants
in MO

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Practicing Before the IRS - Circular 230 A to Z
RECORDED
(IRS [Internal Revenue Service])

Creating Results: Three Steps to Success with Your Benefits Communication
February 19, 2015 WEBCAST
(Benz Communications)

Social Security Bootcamp: The Retirement Income Puzzle
March 3, 2015 WEBCAST
(InvestmentNews)

401(k) Advisor Symposium in Houston,TX on March 5th
March 5, 2015 in TX
(401k Rekon)

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Employers: What the Anthem Breach Means to You
"If your organization has a self-insured group health plan and uses Anthem as a TPA, there are a few steps that you can take while Anthem continues its forensic investigation: ... If breach notification obligations have not already been contractually delegated to Anthem, consider whether to formally delegate those obligations to Anthem now ... Create an internal security incident report to demonstrate that you are aware that a security incident affecting the group health plan has occurred, and document the actions that are being taken and the basis for any delay (e.g., that you are waiting on more information from Anthem) ... Once any required breach notifications have been made, ensure that you have some evidence (such as information from Anthem) demonstrating that the necessary breach notifications to affected individuals, HHS, the media, and potentially state regulators and credit reporting agencies have been made." (Davis Wright Tremaine LLP)  

[Advert.]

Free web briefing: The new Congress and employer health plans

With a user-friendly website, daily emails, and regular web briefings, Mercer Select members stay informed about health, retirement, and other key benefit and HR issues. Register for a free Washington Update web briefing on Feb. 12 at 1 pm ET.

Healthcare Data Is Equivalent to Fine Dining on the Black Market
"There are three primary factors: [1] Quantity of information -- Think of the 15 pages of forms that gets filled out when visiting a doctor. No other vertical has that quantity of data. [2] Value of information -- Not only is there a lot of data, but it is the best stuff. Social security numbers, payment information, bank accounts, addresses and troves of personally identifiable information (PII). [3] Timely -- Our medical and financial information is guaranteed to be updated at least annually with the traditional open enrollment period with employers. Additionally, healthcare information is constantly being updated with every physician's visit. No other vertical updates client data with such frequency." (Forbes)  

Impending Supreme Court Hearing of the Next ACA Case Merits Attention of Large Employers
"On the surface, the case appears to impact only consumers, particularly those who may lose eligibility for current or future subsidies. However, should the plaintiffs prevail, the decision would have a major impact on both consumers and employers in the 34 states that opted not to establish their own exchanges. Employers in those states would then have a good case to challenge the ability of the federal government to impose penalties under the ACA's employer play-or-pay mandate. That, in turn, could nullify play-or-pay for the majority of the country allowing employers in those states much more leeway in determining eligibility provisions and contribution strategies as was the case pre-ACA." (Ascende)  

Dilemma Over Deductibles: Costs Crippling Middle Class
"[Employer-provided coverage,] long considered the gold standard of health insurance, now often requires workers to pay so much out-of-pocket that many feel they must skip doctor visits, put off medical procedures, avoid filling prescriptions and ration pills -- much as the uninsured have done.... [The] size of the average deductible more than doubled in eight years, from $584 to $1,217 for individual coverage. Add to this co-pays, co-insurance and the price of drugs or procedures not covered by plans -- and it's all too much for many Americans." (Shreveport Times)  

Proposed Legislation Would Expand Minnesota Family Leave Rights and Create Paid Family Leave Insurance Program
"If enacted into law ... Minnesota would join the small minority of states (California, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Washington) that have established paid parenting or caregiver leave programs ... This proposed legislation would require all employers and all employees in Minnesota to pay premiums (based on the employee's pay) to finance a state insurance program that would provide some level of financial compensation to employees who take pregnancy, parenting or caregiver leave." (Faegre Baker Daniels LLP)  

[Advert.]

Summit on Voluntary & Ancillary Benefits, March 11-12, 2014, Atlanta, GA

Focuses on considering, choosing and offering voluntary and ancillary benefits programs. Faculty includes benefits leaders from Amazon, The Home Depot, Popeyes, and Walmart. HR/Benefits Staff: Attend for $195 – Use Promo Code BLINK1

Senator Cruz: Obamacare Passed With Reconciliation, 'Can Be Repealed With Reconciliation'
"CNSNews.com asked [Senator Ted Cruz], 'Given that the Senate enacted Obamacare in a reconciliation measure that required only 51 votes, would you support repealing Obamacare with only 51 votes?' 'Absolutely,' Cruz responded. 'If it can be passed with reconciliation, it can be repealed with reconciliation.... I believe in 2017 a Republican president will sign legislation repealing every word of Obamacare,' Cruz said." (CNS News)  

[Opinion]

Anthem Was Right Not to Encrypt
"[By] creating buzz around [the data encryption] issue, reporters are missing the real story: that multinational hacking forces are targeting large healthcare institutions. Most lay people ... presume that encrypted records are always more secure than encrypted records, which is simplistic and untrue.... Anthem has a responsibility, under HIPAA, to ensure that records remain accessible. That is much easier to do with unencrypted data.... There is little that would have stopped a hacker with the level of access that these hackers achieved. Encryption probably would not have helped." (The Health Care Blog)  

[Opinion]

Two Cheers for the GOP's Burr, Hatch and Upton Alternative to Obamacare
"Put aside for now the lawmakers' statement that the first thing to do is to repeal the ACA. Whether or not that is politically feasible, the important thing is to focus on the core elements of the proposal as potential vehicles for broad-based reform.... If the White House and congressional Democrats are willing to look seriously at several of its central provisions, they will see opportunities for addressing the impasse over the ACA and achieving health coverage goals that are widely shared." (The Brookings Institution)  

[Opinion]

Top Three Takeaways from the Burr-Hatch-Upton Proposal to Replace the ACA (PDF)
"The [Burr-Hatch-Upton plan (BHU)] ... ultimately supports the framework of the ACA by endorsing two of its basic pillars: a large coverage expansion based on tax subsidies, and stronger regulation of insurance markets to curb insurance abuses.... But, there are some critical differences.... The BHU repeals the employer mandate, though tax credits are only available to smaller employer employees (creating an incentive for large employers to maintain coverage).... The BHU proposes an extremely harmful Medicaid spending cap." (National Health Law Program [NHeLP])  

[Guidance Overview]

SEC Proposes Hedging Disclosures
"Section 14(j) of the Exchange Act covers hedging transactions conducted by any employee or member of the board of directors or any of their designees. The SEC believes the term 'employee' should be interpreted to include everyone employed by an issuer, including its officers. According to the SEC it is just as relevant for shareholders to know if officers are allowed to effectively avoid restrictions on long-term compensation as it is for directors and other employees of the company.... The SEC does not propose to exempt smaller reporting companies or emerging growth companies from Item 407(i) disclosure." (Dodd-Frank.com, a blog by Stinson Leonard Street)  

2013 Retirement Survey Key Findings and Issues: Experiencing Change in Retirement (PDF)
"This report presents findings from the 2013 Risks and Process of Retirement Survey, specifically those relating to the phases of retirement. 'Phases of retirement' refers to changes that take place during retirement. The report uses quotations from the series of focus groups to illustrate the findings and addresses factors relating to how people decide to retire and to changes in lifestyle and needs over the course of retirement, including paid employment and housing." (Society of Actuaries)  

Boston Wealth Management & Marathon RPC – Two Leading Independent Wealth Management Advisory Firms – Announce Merger
Boston Wealth Management [BWM]

Groom Law Group Expands its Plan Funding and Restructuring Practice: Joshua Shapiro Joins Firm
Groom Law Group

Retirement Strategies, Inc. is Certified to Industry Best Practices
Centre for Fiduciary Excellence [CEFEX]

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