BenefitsLink Health & Welfare Plans Newsletter
"The employer may simply amend the plan document and employee communications to provide that all expenses for medicine and drugs (with the exception of insulin) will not be reimbursed without a prescription. . . . In the alternative, the employer may amend those documents to provide that no expenses for OTC medicine and drugs will be reimbursed, even if the participant obtains a prescription." (McGuireWoods)
Reduce your retiree health care costs...without reducing benefits! [Advert.]
As the nation?s largest private Medicare exchange, Extend Health has saved clients over $1 billion in retiree health care costs, while increasing retiree choice.
"Earlier this spring, a federal district court in Florida handed down a ruling that, if followed by other courts, provides employers with some breathing room under the ADA. In this advisory, we summarize the court's ruling and briefly discuss its potential impact on the design of employer-sponsored wellness programs." (Alston+Bird LLP)
HHS Encourages Plan Participants to Learn About Prevention—Free Preventive Care and Services
"[U]nder the Affordable Care Act, you and your family may be eligible for important preventive services—for free. If you or your family enrolled in a new health plan on or after September 23, 2010, then your plan is required to cover certain recommended preventive services without charging you a copay, co-insurance or deductible." (healthcare.gov, operated by U.S. Department of Health & Human Services)
More American Workers Taking Time Off to Care for Aging Parents
"The percentage of Americans who provide care for their aging parents has tripled since 1994, according to a new study. . . . [C]aregivers lose an estimated $3 tril.lion in wages, pension and Social Security benefits when they take time off from work to help their aging parents . . . . (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
California Employer Finds Walking Program Yields Healthier Employees at Surprisingly Low Price
"[C]hronic illnesses such as high blood pressure are coming under control, and execs ultimately believe the program will lead to less office visits and medication needs." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
Orange County, Florida, Delivers Benefits Messages About Its Consumer-Driven Health Plan to Employees on TV Channel
"[T]he county developed an hour-long video to walk employees through [implementation of the new health plan design] . . . [and] worked with Orange TV, the county's 24-hour access channel that offers programming produced by city, county, state and federal agencies and their employees." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
January 2011 Census Shows 11.4 Mil.lion People Covered by Health Savings Account/High-Deductible Health Plans (HSA/HDHPs) (PDF)
"[E]nrollment in HSA/HDHP coverage in the group market rose to 9.1 mil.lion in January 2011, up from 8.0 mil.lion in January 2010." (America's Health Insurance Plans)
Congressional Wellness Caucus Aims to Spread The Word on Wellness
"Studies have shown that for every $1 a company puts into corporate wellness programs, $3 is saved through decreased sick days, increased worker productivity and employee retention." (Minneapolis - St. Paul Star Tribune)
GAO Report: Private Health Insurance—Waivers of Restrictions on Annual Limits on Health Benefits
"[A]pplications with a projected premium increase of 10 percent or more tended to be approved while applications with a projected premium increase of 6 percent or less tended to be denied. Applications with a premium increase between 7 and 9 percent warranted additional staff reviews . . . ." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
"Americans spent $1,059 per capita on administrative costs compared with only $307 spent in (Can.ada)—about $225 bil.lion per year. The corporate geese are going to spare no effort to hold on to this golden egg." (Baltimore Sun via Physicians for a National Health Program)
"The government's lawyers, recognizing [a] fundamental constitutional reality, have tried to rewrite the law so that it can withstand judicial scrutiny. They have claimed that the individual mandate is a tax, despite common sense, judicial precedent, and numerous statements to the contrary by the law's sponsors and President Obama." (The Wall Street Journal)
Benefits in General; Executive Compensation
The Employee Benefits Tax in Rhode Island Municipalities: How Much Do You Owe?
"One out of every four dollars cities and towns collected in taxes in 2010 was owed to retiree pensions and health care benefits . . . ." (GoLocalProv.com)
"We believe that the safe harbor should be strengthened by requiring that participants affirmatively consent to the electronic delivery of a Summary Plan Description or the Periodic Pension Benefit Statement, even for employees who work with computers daily." (Pension Rights Center)
Press Releases
Council Testifies: Plan Sponsors Need Predictability and Clarity from Agencies, Support from Congress in the Deficit Debate (American Benefits Council)
The Principal Extends TPA Expense Allowance Program (The Principal Financial Group)
Robin Lazarow Joins Diversified as Senior Counsel (Diversified Investment Advisors)
Health Savings Account Enrollment Reaches 11.4 Million (America?s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP))
Research Shows Electronic Delivery of Retirement Documents Benefits Participants (American Society of Pension Professionals & Actuaries (ASPPA))
Employee Benefits Jobs
Director—Plan Conversions
for Charles Schwab in OH
Director—Document and Technical Services
for Charles Schwab in OH
Benefits Analyst/Auditor
for MTA NYC Transit in NY
Senior Business Systems Analyst
for Enterprise Iron Financial Industry Solutions Inc. in ANY STATE
Director of Retirement Services
for Office of the State Comptroller in CT
401(k) Administrator
for Duncan Financial Group, LLC in PA
Defined Contribution Plan Administrator
for Tyler, Simms & St. Sauveur, CPAs, P.C. in NH
Post Your Job on EmployeeBenefitsJobs.com
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