Compliance Specialist/Analyst
Alliance Benefit Group of Houston, Inc. [ABG]
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Client Services Training & Development Coordinator
Aspire Financial Services LLC
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Advisory Services Administrator
Alerus Financial
in MI

Advisory Services Operations Manager & Mutual Fund Analyst
Alerus Financial
in MI

Defined Contribution Plan Analyst
Stanley Benefit Services
in NC

Relationship Manager
The Standard
in CO

Defined Contribution Analyst
Aon Corporation
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Regulatory Update and Current Hot Topics
September 9, 2015 in TX
(ASPPA Benefits Council [ABC] of Central Texas)

Past Presidents ABC Panel: Ethics in the Digital Age
September 15, 2015 in OH
(ASPPA Benefits Council [ABC] of Greater Cincinnati)

What the Healthcare Law Means for your Small Business
September 17, 2015 WEBCAST
(U.S. Small Business Administration [SBA])

Plan Sponsor Basics: Retirement Plan Correction Issues
September 22, 2015 WEBCAST
(Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP)

Changes in the Money Market Fund Rules: The Retirement Plan Fiduciary Response
September 29, 2015 WEBCAST
(Reliance Trust)

View All Webcasts and Conferences

[Guidance Overview]

HHS Proposes Rule Implementing Anti-Discrimination ACA Provisions
"Section 1557 applies to over 133,000 (virtually all) hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, and similar provider facilities, about 445,000 clinical laboratories, 1,200 community health centers, 171 health-related schools, state Medicaid and CHIP programs, state public health agencies, federally facilitated and state-based marketplaces, at least 180 health insurers that market policies through the FFM and state-based marketplaces, and up to 900,000 physicians.... Each covered entity with fifteen or more employees must designate an employee responsible for ensuring compliance with section 1557 and adopt procedures to resolve grievances alleging discrimination. Covered entities are not required to train their employees in compliance, but HHS estimates that almost 280,000 entities will train 7.6 million employees at a cost of nearly $400 million." (Health Affairs)  

[Advert.]

Executive Forum on On-Site & Near-Site Employee Health Clinics – Chicago

Executive Forum on On-Site & Near-Site Employee Health Clinics – Chicago – Sep 17-18 – HR/Benefits Staff: Attend for $195* – use code BLINK1 – (*valid only for HR/Benefits Staff as defined on event website. Please visit for qualifications)

[Guidance Overview]

What You Need to Know About ACA Tax Reporting
"Keep monthly counts of the total number of employees.... Keep monthly counts of full-time employees.... Track whether health coverage was offered to an individual for each month of the calendar year. Identify the lowest-cost employee-only coverage that was offered to each individual by month. Identify the reason why the employer is not responsible for coverage in a given month.... Talk with your payroll software provider about options available for this reporting.... Discuss with your insurance broker to determine your filing status: insured vs. uninsured. Note: Changes to this status mid-year will create complexities with reporting." (Schneider Downs)  

[Guidance Overview]

Agencies Revise Regs for Summary of Benefits and Coverage
"The June 2015 regulations generally relax the requirement to provide another SBC where the plan or insurer previously provided an accurate SBC per request.... Plan sponsors that are comfortable that their SBC distribution procedures and monitoring were consistent with the prior regulations and FAQs should not need to do anything. If uncertain, then: [1] Group health plans should review their current SBC distribution procedures to see whether they need to make any changes under the new regulations. [2] Plan sponsors that engage third parties to distribute the SBC should make sure that procedures for monitoring the arrangement and correcting compliance breaches are in place." (Cheiron)  

[Guidance Overview]

The ACA's Shared Responsibility Requirement: Understanding the Potential Employer Penalty (PDF)
26 pages. "The Affordable Care Act (ACA) creates shared responsibilities for both employers and individuals with regard to health insurance coverage.... This report examines the new employer responsibilities. To ensure that employers continue to provide some degree of health coverage, the ACA ... does not require that an employer offer employees health insurance; however, the ACA imposes penalties on a 'large' employer if at least one of its full-time employees obtains a premium credit through the newly established exchange.... The complex calculations and multiple definitions of full-time work have led to confusion among policymakers and employers. This report discusses these definitions and the application to the employer penalty in greater detail." [Report No. R43981, dated Sept. 1, 2015.] (Congressional Research Service [CRS])  

[Guidance Overview]

ACA Resources for Frequently Asked Questions, Updated September 1, 2015 (PDF)
25 pages. "The report begins with links to contacts for specific ACA questions, such as consumer assistance programs, state agencies, and local organizations that can answer constituents' questions directly.... The next sections focus on health coverage: the individual mandate, private health insurance, and exchanges, as well as public health care programs ... It then lists sources on employer-sponsored coverage, including sources on employer penalties, small businesses, federal workers' health plans, and union health plans. It also provides sources on the ACA's provisions on mental health, women's health, public health, workforce, quality, and taxes. Finally, the report lists sources on ACA costs and appropriations, insurance coverage statistics, legal issues, the treatment of noncitizens under the ACA, and sources for obtaining the law's full text." [CRS Report No. R43215] (Congressional Research Service [CRS])  

[Advert.]

FORUM West Can Help You Navigate the Changes in Health & Benefits

IHC FORUM West in Las Vegas is part of the ONLY conference series 100% dedicated to health care consumerism. Where all health & benefits stakeholders gather under one roof to share best practices, innovation and expert insights.

Top Five ACA Information Reporting Mistakes
"[1] Only large employers that sponsor group health plans are required to report ... [2] Employers that qualify for 2015 transition relief from 'pay or play' penalties do not have to report ... [3] Penalty relief is available for all types of reporting errors.... [4] All employers are required to file electronically ... [5] Large employers that sponsor self-insured group health plans must use both sets of Forms to satisfy their reporting obligations." (hr360; free registration required)  

CMS Webinar: 2014 Risk Corridors Data Validation: Completing the Checklist, IBNR, Claims, and Premium Submissions (PDF)
69 presentation slides; Sept. 2, 2015. Topics include: [1] Process overview; [2] Prepare to complete the validation process; [3] Completing the checklist; [4] Uploading [Incurred But Not Reported (IBNR)] submission; [5] Completing claims data submission; and [6] Completing premium data submission. (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services [CMS], U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS])  

Health Care Rules Proposed to Shield Transgender Patients from Discrimination in Coverage, Benefits
"The proposed rule would apply throughout the health care system -- affecting most health insurers, hospitals, nursing homes and physicians. It says that the provision applies to any providers or insurers who receive 'federal financial assistance,' and lists an array of funding streams that would make them subject to the rule. Health insurers or medical providers who are found to violate the provision could risk losing their federal funding. They could also be subject to individual lawsuits from patients ... The scope of the proposed regulation -- which must go through a public comment period before it takes effect -- was larger than some experts expected.... Though the proposal is quite clear in its application to transgender rights, it is more vague on whether the law's anti-discrimination provisions apply to gay, lesbian and bisexual patients." (The New York Times; subscription may be required)  

HHS Unveils Civil Rights Protections for Transgender Patients' Health Services
"The long-awaited rules from the Office of Civil Rights in [HHS] further define protections included in the [ACA], particularly broadening those for transgender Americans. The proposal also includes provisions requiring medical providers to bolster their communication efforts for people with disabilities or limited English proficiency.... The proposal will have far-reaching effects because it covers any insurers who participate in the federal and state insurance marketplaces, as well as hospitals, doctors and other providers who receive federal funding, such as Medicare or Medicaid." (Kaiser Health News)  

Self-Funded Pharmacy Plans Becoming More Popular Among Large Employers
"[S]elf-funded pharmacy plans have increased 29.8 percent (from 8.4 percent) in the last five years ... Although fully funded pharmacy plans still dominate with 89.1 percent of the market, self-funded pharmacy plans now make up 10.9 percent of all plans, as of 2014." (United Benefit Advisors)  

Most Employers Implemented FSA Rollover Rule
"Sixty-eight percent of employers that implemented the FSA rollover rule said they did so to encourage participation by those employees that were reluctant due to the fear of losing money they put into the account. More than one-quarter of employers (27.6%) indicated they adopted the rollover rule because employees' year-end balances tend to be lower than $500 ... Slightly more than 4% of employers said employees requested the rollover option." (PLANSPONSOR)  

Office for Civil Rights Selects Vendor for Next Round of HIPAA Audits: Five Things You Should Do to Prepare
"[1] Conduct and document a risk analysis.... [2] Create an OCR 'welcome binder'.... [3] Document the designation of a security official.... [4] Inventory your business associates and subcontractor business associates.... [5] Have an incident response plan and know who to call." (Faegre Baker Daniels LLP)  

Life Begins at 40: Infertility Treatment Age Limit Repealed in Connecticut to Comply with ACA
"The existing age limit for mandated coverage of infertility treatment for women, those aged 40 or older, was repealed by Bulletin HC-104 in order to comply with the anti-discrimination mandate in the [ACA] ... [T]he new standards take effect on policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2016." (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)  

This Company Shows Paid Parental Leave Doesn't Have to Just Be for White-Collar Workers
"Thursday's announcement that ... Hilton Hotels would be giving new mothers 10 paid weeks off and fathers two weeks off got little press. Just another company seeking to jump on the PR bandwagon, one might conclude ... Most of the companies expanding their paid leave benefits are in finance or tech, seeking to attract and retain a highly-skilled female workforce. Netflix ... didn't extend its new unlimited leave policy to the bulk of its hourly workforce. Hilton, on the other hand, has a lot of non-white-collar workers. Of the 40,000 people the new policy will cover, 75 percent are hourly[.]" (The Washington Post; subscription may be required)  

[Opinion]

Netflix's Paid Parental Leave Policy Reflects a Sad Reality Facing Working Families
"[O]nly 12 percent of private sector workers in the United States receive paid family leave, a number that puts us behind our international peers. (Among the 34 OECD nations, for example, the United States is the only nation that does not mandate paid maternity leave.) Which workers receive paid family leave is heavily determined by how much they earn -- just like Netflix's policy. While 23 percent of workers at the top of the wage distribution have access to paid family leave, only 4 percent of workers at the bottom receive the benefit." (Economic Policy Institute)  

Ohio Executive Retirement Plan Not Subject to Municipal Tax
"The SERP was a nonqualified deferred compensation plan that was intended to supplement the taxpayer's qualified retirement plan.... The Supreme Court declined jurisdiction over the substantive issue, but accepted jurisdiction over the procedural issue.... The High Court was not swayed by this argument and held that the BTA's standard of review is de novo as to both facts and law." [MacDonald v. City of Shaker Heights Income Tax Board of Review, No. 2015-Ohio-3290, (Ohio August 19, 2015)] (Wolters Kluwer Law & Business)