January 3, 2003 - 8,030 subscribers

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Today's sponsor: EBIA's Group Health Plans: Federal Mandates Other Than COBRA & HIPAA

(Click on company name or banner to learn more.)

  Looking for easy-to-use compliance guides written by experienced employee benefits attorneys? 
 
Group Health Plans: Federal Mandates Other Than COBRA & HIPAA,
   covers QMCSOs, health coverage for adopted children, the Mental
   Health Parity Act, minimum hospital stays for newborns and mothers,
   the Women's Health and Cancer Rights Act, federal employment laws
   affecting group health plans (ADA, ADEA, USERRA, etc.), Medicare
   Secondary Payer, HMO nondiscrimination requirements, etc.
   Click on the address above to order this and other EBIA publications!

(Help BenefitsLink to provide this newsletter at no charge to you -- our sponsors pay your way. Remember to visit them periodically; we try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)

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Employee Loyalty Might Become Cool Again
Excerpt: "The idea of employees spending their entire careers at a single company was mostly derided in the 1990s as an out-of-date concept from a paternalistic corporate past. But with baby boomers nearing retirement and company knowledge more important than ever, long-term employees will become valuable once again." (Workforce.com)

Tuition Assistance Programs Can Attract, Keep Employees
Excerpt: "Nearly four out of five companies offer some kind of tuition assistance for employees, according to the latest annual benefits survey by the Society for Human Resource Management. That's for companies of all sizes. Among companies with 500 or more employees, 87 percent offer tuition assistance." (Orlando Sentinel via International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans)

Some Employers Offering On-Site Fitness Centers for Employees
Excerpt: "Throughout the Fox Cities, several employers have onsite fitness centers to help their employees work off some of their tensions, get fit and become more productive at their job in the process." (The [Appleton, Wisc.] Post-Crescent via Society for Human Resource Management)

Finding the Cure for Pharmacy Costs
Excerpt: "Prescription drugs account for 15 percent of an employer's health-care expenditures and are growing faster than any other area. Plan design, pharmacy-benefit managers and tiered plans all play a role in cost control." (Workforce.com)

Audio Excerpt: California's HMOs In Need of Care
Excerpt: "California was once thought to be the model for managed health care networks. Now the state's HMOs are having trouble paying physicians and staying in business. And some patients are having trouble finding doctors. Deirdre Kennedy reports.' (Jan. 2, 2003) (National Public Radio)

Businesses in Las Vegas Handcuffed by Healthcare Costs
Excerpt: "Sprint executive [Ned Holland] complained about a 'medical arms race' where hospitals compete for the best doctors by purchasing the latest equipment or 'toys' ... Holland believes the result is overbuilding by hospitals that then charge higher fees to recover higher costs." (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Bush Administration Considers Regulations on Drug Company Gifts to Doctors
Excerpt: "The New York Times on Dec. 26 examined opposition to guidelines proposed by the Bush administration to restrict gifts that pharmaceutical companies offer to physicians and health insurers to encourage them to prescribe or recommend certain treatments." (KaiserNetwork.org)

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Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings


Plan Administrator
for Alliance Benefit Group of New England
in NH

Document Compliance Analyst
for Automatic Data Processing
in NJ

Vice President/Team Leader Retirement Services
for City National Bank
in CA

Customer Service Representative (CSR) - Pension Administration
for Pan-American Life Insurance Company
in LA

Manager - Benefits Accounting
for Delta Air Lines, Inc.
in GA

Plan Restatement Specialists (Temporary)
for CNA Trust
in CA

Independent Investment Representatives - 403(b) Educational Sales
for NEBSonline, Inc.
in CA

Enrolled Actuary
for American Express Tax & Business Services
in IL

Defined Contribution/401(k) Administrator
for Boyce & Associates, Inc.
in AZ

Senior Benefits Consultant
for Apple Computer, Inc.
in CA

Actuarial Systems Engineer
for Northern Trust Retirement Consulting, L.L.C.
in WA

Senior/Associate Health Benefits Analyst
for The Segal Company
in MA

Pension Conversion Specialist
for Long Island Employee Benefits Group Ltd
in NY

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Newly Posted Conferences
( Post Yours! )

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in TX
February 5, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in IN
February 6, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in IA
February 20, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in DC
February 20, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in MO
February 21, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in NY
February 21, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in WA
February 26, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in MI
February 27, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in CA
February 27, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Safe Harbor 401(k) Plan Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in OH
February 28, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in TX
February 5, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in IN
February 6, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in IA
February 20, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in DC
February 20, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in NY
February 21, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in MO
February 21, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in WA
February 26, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in MI
February 27, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in CA
February 27, 2003
SunGard Corbel

Cross-Tested Plans Specialty Workshop (1/2 day only)
in OH
February 28, 2003
SunGard Corbel

DOL's New Technology Regulations (29 C.F.R. Sections 2520.104b-1)
in NY
January 28, 2003
New York Metropolitan Area Chapter - ISCEBS

Charting the Course Forward: The Brave New World of Executive Compensation
in OH
January 16, 2003
WEB, Worldwide Employee Benefits Network

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Newly Posted Press Releases
( Post Yours! )

2003 Supplement to Governmental Plans Answer Book Now Available
(Calhoun Law Group, P.C.)

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Handy Links:

• View Today's Active Message Threads
• Search BenefitsLink
• Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research
• Employee Benefits Library

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Editor and Publisher: David Rhett Baker, J.D.

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