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[Guidance Overview]
Sixth Circuit Holds Plaintiff's Attorney Liable to ERISA Plan for Disbursed Settlement Funds
Excerpt: "The Sixth Circuit handed down a momentous ERISA health plan subrogation (reimbursement) case in Longaberger v. Kolt. Building on a foundation crafted from an excerpt from Sereboff and a form shaped by a recent Seventh Circuit recoupment decision, the Sixth Circuit all but eliminated any defense based upon commingling of funds." (Roy Harmon III via Health Plan Law)



[Guidance Overview]
DOL's Expedited Review of Health Plan's Denial of ARRA COBRA Premium
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Individuals who are denied the COBRA premium subsidy have a right to request expedited review of the denial from either the DOL or CMS (see our Checkpoint Newsstand article), but this is the first court appeal we have seen of an expedited review. As one might expect, the facts that led to this review and appeal are complicated -- involving two periods of employment, two terminations, and two plan rules for calculating eligibility for coverage -- but the plan, the DOL, and the court all agreed that he was not eligible for the subsidy." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)



[Guidance Overview]
IRS's 2009 Form 2441 and Instructions
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: DCAP participants must file Form 2441 with their federal income tax returns to support the income exclusion for DCAP reimbursements. The expenses that can be used to calculate the DCTC for the tax year are limited to $3,000 for one qualifying individual and $6,000 for two or more; however, these limits are reduced by the amount of any DCAP reimbursements for the same tax year. Employees who exclude $5,000 of DCAP reimbursements for 2009 (the maximum exclusion for married taxpayers filing jointly) can still take a partial DCTC based on up to $1,000 of their 2009 dependent care expenses over $5,000 if they have two or more qualifying individuals and meet other DCTC requirements." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)



Many Small Employers Dropping Health Plans
Of businesses having 3 to 9 employees, 58 percent provided a health plan in 2002, but only 46 percent provided a health plan in 2008, says a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation. (Associated Press)



Hearing Indicates Emergency Paid Leave Bill May Be Modified
Excerpt: "Advocacy groups and employers expressed concerns about an emergency paid sick leave bill designed to help workers who are stricken with the H1N1 flu at a Capitol Hill hearing on Tuesday, November 17. The Emergency Influenza Containment Act would guarantee up to five paid sick days for employees who are told by their supervisors to go home or stay home because of a contagious illness." (Workforce Management; free registration required)



Employer Groups Taking Stand on Current Health Reform Efforts
Excerpt: "Some large groups of employers are sounding the alarm about the health reform provisions of the House's Affordable Health Care for America Act, H.R. 3692. For example the American Benefits Council, a group that represents large employers including 25 insurers and major health benefits consultants, in a November 12 conference call told its member participants that the Council opposed the House bill because it . . . ." (Wolters Kluwer)



Health Care Reform Bill Would Restrict Health Insurers' Compensation
Excerpt: "A provision in America's Healthy Future Act, passed by the Senate Finance Committee on Oct. 13, would limit deductible compensation for health insurers. If the provision makes it into the final legislation, it will establish a special rule under section 162(m) to cut the deductible compensation limit in half -- from $1 million to $500,000 -- for 'covered health insurance providers.' The provision is targeted at the health insurance industry -- employers with self-insured plans are excluded." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)



A State Policymaker's Guide to Federal Health Reform
Excerpt: "Three documents released by the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP) and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation identify the most challenging and pressing health policy issues that states are currently addressing; describe the array of tools states have to improve their health care systems and look at how federal health reform may affect those tools; and examine the support states will need to implement the changes contemplated in federal health reform legislation." (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)



Health Care Reform Information Update As of November 16, 2009
New developments. (National Conference of State Legislatures)



Estimates of Commercially-Insured Population at High Risk for Cardiovascular Events: Impact of Aggressive Cholesterol Reduction (PDF)
9 pages. (American Health & Drug Benefits via Milliman)



State of Small Business: Healthcare (PDF)
15 pages. Excerpt: "[Key findings from healthcare] Questions: 40.9% of businesses with 11-100 employees wouldn't cancel their employer-provided coverage if there was a public offering. 16% of businesses with 1-10 employees would cancel their employer-provided coverage if there was a public offering, as would 15.5% of businesses with 11-100 employees. 71.8% of businesses with 1-10 employees do not offer healthcare to employees -- versus the 69.4% of businesses with 11-100 employees who do offer healthcare to employees." (VerticalResponse, Inc.)



Senate Bill May Not Require Employers to Offer Health Insurance
Excerpt: "The health insurance overhaul bills that the House of Representatives and the Senate Health Committee passed included employer mandates, but the Senate Finance Committee's version did not. Senate Democratic leaders are trying to merge the Finance and Health committees' bills into one measure for floor debate this week. Odds are that in the effort to get a bill that can pass, they will offer a compromise along the Finance Committee's lines. The struggle over the employer mandate is likely to be a textbook battle over how much government should involve itself in private-sector employee policies. Business groups are adamant that the cost will be high." (TheNewsTribune.com)



Employers Must Post New EEOC Poster to Comply with GINA
Excerpt: "The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has revised its 'Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law' poster to include information about Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008. Employers are waiting for the EEOC to issue final regulations implementing Title II of GINA, which prohibits the use of genetic information in employment decisions and restricts its collection and disclosure by employers. Employers are required to post the new notice by Title II's effective date of Nov. 21, 2009." (Mercer LLC)



Employers Urged to Warn Regulators About GINA Rules' Negative Impact on Wellness Programs
Excerpt: "Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) rules should not force employers to drop family medical history questions from health risk assessments (HRAs) or alter related incentives, according to leading employer groups. The ERISA Industry Committee and American Benefits Council are urging employers to write regulators in November about what role family medical history plays in HRAs; why incentives are key to wellness, disease management and other programs; and how the GINA rules could impede use of such programs and negatively affect efforts to improve health and control costs." (Mercer LLC)



[Opinion]
ERIC Urges Agencies Not to Eviscerate Workplace Wellness Programs (PDF)
15 pages. Excerpt: "The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC), the Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing America's major employers, today submitted comments in response to a request for comments on the interim final rules implementing provisions of Title I of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) that prohibit group health plans from discriminating on the basis of genetic information. The request was published by the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury in the Federal Register on October 7, 2009." (The ERISA Industry Committee)

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Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General

[Guidance Overview]
FTC Delay of Its Enforcement of Identity Theft Red Flags Rule Until June 2010
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: The Rule's broad definitions have raised questions about whether and how the Rule applies to various employee benefit programs. This additional delay will be helpful for employee benefit plans that have been attempting to determine what portion, if any, of a benefit plan's activities might be subject to the Rule. While recent FTC guidance clarified that a 401(k) plan's loan program would not need to be included in a written identity theft prevention program . . ., further clarification would be helpful about the Rule's application to other benefits, such as DCAPs, HRAs, HSAs, and qualified transportation plan debit card programs." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)



[Guidance Overview]
IRS's Final Regulations on Employee Stock Purchase Plans
Excerpt: "On November 16, 2009, the IRS released updated regulations governing Employee Stock Purchase Plans. The final regulations give employers more flexibility in meeting the statutory requirements than the proposed regulations (though not as much flexibility as some employers desired). They deserve careful review by all corporations sponsoring Employee Stock Purchase Plans -- before the final regulations become applicable on January 1, 2010." (Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP)



Executive Compensation and Corporate Governance Provisions in Restoring Financial Stability Act of 2009 (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "On November 10, 2009 Senator Christopher Dodd and eight other members of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs (Senate Banking Committee), including Senator Charles Schumer, introduced the Restoring Financial Stability Act of 2009, which was referred to the Senate Banking Committee. Although the vast majority of the bill relates to financial services reform, it includes executive compensation and corporate governance provisions, many of which are similar to provisions in the Corporate and Financial Institution Compensation Fairness Act of 2009 (H.R. 3269)1 that was approved by the House on July 31, and the Shareholder Bill of Rights Act of 2009 (S. 1074) that was introduced on May 19 by Senator Schumer. Both H.R. 3269 and S.1074 have been referred to the Senate Banking Committee." (Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc.)



Governance and Compliance Advisory Update: November 2009
Excerpt: "October saw significant activity with respect to retirement, executive compensation, welfare and other benefit legislation, regulations and rulings." (Towers Perrin)



Aging and Health: The Challenges of Entitlement Growth (PDF)
November 2009. CBO Director Doug Elmendorf's presentation to the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management. 16 pages. (U.S. Congressional Budget Office)



Employee Benefits Costs Continue to Pressure Transportation CFOs, According to Survey
Excerpt: "Nearly 69 percent of transportation CFOs and senior comptrollers responding to a survey by consulting firm Grant Thornton indicted that employee benefits -- including health care and pensions -- are putting the most pressure on their operating costs, emerging as a higher-visibility challenge even than energy costs and insurance costs, which were of concern to some 40 percent of respondents. As transportation CFOs looked at the nation's economic outlook in October, when the survey was conducted, nearly 41 percent said they don't anticipate the recession ending until the second half of 2010, while nearly 35 percent were somewhat more optimistic, seeing the recession ending during the first half of 2010." (Cygnus Interactive)

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Webcasts and Conferences

COBRA ARRA Workshop
in Massachusetts on December 8, 2009
presented by U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA)

( Click to post your webcast or conference )

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Press Releases

IRS Provides Timing Relief to Hybrid Pension Plan Sponsors
Watson Wyatt

ERIC Urges Agencies Not to Eviscerate Workplace Wellness Programs
ERIC (ERISA Industry Committee)


Towers Perrin's 2010 Retiree Health Care Cost Survey Shows Continuing Affordability and Access Concerns
Towers Perrin


DATAIR Releases PPA Windows Valuation System for Defined Benefit Plans
DATAIR Employee Benefit Systems, Inc.


Majority of Employers with Consumer-Driven Health Plans Prefer Health Savings Accounts, Says Aon Consulting
Aon Consulting


Charles Schwab Expands Its Educational Website
Charles Schwab Corporation


Callan Develops Advanced Tools to Assess Target-Date Funds
Callan Associates


Washington Asset Management Hires 401k Marketing VP
Paulson Capital Corporation


MG Advisory Expands RetireTool(k)it Services
MG Advisory Services


( Click to post your press release )

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Employee Benefits Jobs

Plan Administrator
for Growing TPA firm
in NC


Second Vice President, Strategic Communications Management
for New York Life Retirement Plan Services
in MA

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Handy Links:

• View Today's Active Message Threads
• Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research (hypertext article)
• Employee Benefits Library

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