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John Hancock Retirement Plan Services
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Benefit Consultants Group
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Ascensus
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Employee Plans Compliance Unit (EPCU) Updates
RECORDED
(IRS [Internal Revenue Service])

Will Savers Benefits? Stand up for Better Advice, More Choices, and Increased Savings
November 17, 2015 in DC
(U.S. Chamber of Commerce)

ACA Issues when Using a Staffing Firm
November 19, 2015 WEBCAST
(Frenkel Benefits, LLC)

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Text of OPM Final Regs: Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program Eligibility Changes
"[OPM] is issuing a final rule to amend the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP) regulation to expand ... the definition of 'qualified relative' to include opposite-sex domestic partners of Federal and U.S. Postal Service employees, annuitants, members of the uniformed services, and retired members of the uniformed services. In addition, this rule provides that adult children of domestic partners will be considered one of the types of individuals comprising the statutory term 'qualified relative' who may apply for FLTCIP coverage." (U.S. Office of Personnel Management [OPM])

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ACA Reporting Deadlines -- and Penalties -- Are Approaching Quickly (PDF)
9 pages. "The IRS has granted some specific relief relating to the ACA's new reporting requirements. In addition, the Code contains long-standing rules providing relief ... in connection with other information return reporting failures applicable, for example, to Forms W-2 and 1099. The IRS has also created some 'safe harbor' compliance rules for the new ACA information returns that require less specific information than the general rules. This Alert discusses these forms of relief[.]" (Steptoe & Johnson LLP)

New FAQs on Wellness, Preventive Care and Mental Health Parity
"[In]-kind awards (such as gift certificates) and non-financial incentives (for example, fitness gear) provided by a health plan must be included when determining whether the total award (or penalty) is within the permissible threshold.... Plans may not impose a blanket exclusion on weight management services for obese adults ... Women found to be at increased risk for a harmful gene mutation (BRCA) must receive coverage without cost sharing for genetic counseling and, if indicated, testing for BRCA mutations." (Lockton)

Automatic Enrollment: Another Bone in the ACA Graveyard?
"In the five years since the [ACA] was enacted, a number of its provisions have died the legislative death known as repeal. If enacted, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 currently pending in Congress would add another bone to the ACA graveyard, in that it would repeal Section 1511 of the Affordable Care Act, which ... would have required employers with more than 200 full-time employees to automatically enroll new full-time employees in their group health plans, subject to later opt-out. The original effective date of this provision was unclear, but the [DOL] put its enforcement on hold until regulations issued. No regulations were issued[.]" (E is for ERISA)

What Does the Trust Requirement of ERISA Mean for Welfare Benefit Plans?
"A Ninth Circuit court of appeals case recently dealt with ... a multiple employer plan ... [that was] a long term disability plan funded by participant contributions deposited into a ... checking account to which the officers of the third party administrator were the signatories. The checking account was not a formal trust account and there was no formal trust agreement.... The court held that under federal common law, the third party administrator ... held the assets in trust for the plan beneficiaries. No formal trust document was necessary and there was no violation of the trust requirement.... The court also found that the third party administrator engaged in a prohibited transaction by paying itself fees from the plan assets even though the agreement with the sponsoring association authorized the third party administrator to pay its fees and expenses from the plan account." [ Barboza v. Cal. Ass'n. of Prof. Firefighters , No. 11-15472 (9th Cir. Apr. 7, 2015)] (Stinson Leonard Street)

Employee Communication Reminders (PDF)
7 pages. "This [article] discusses the importance of the following employee communications and key factors employers should consider: [1] Legal notice requirements (including required health care notices) and plan descriptions; [2] New hire communication; [3] Annual enrollment; [4] Health and wellness communications; [5] Communication media." (Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC)

Can an Employer Require That an Employee Sign a Form Confirming He Took FMLA Leave for the Reason Provided?
"[Y]ou have the right to ask your employees questions about their leave of absence so as to determine whether FMLA applies. So, asking them why they were out and whether they've been out for this reason before is acceptable.... Asking them to confirm that they actually took leave for the reason provided? This is where it gets a bit tricky.... [T]his kind of question [carries a] risk that it tends to treat differently those who are returning from FMLA leave versus those who are returning from other forms of leave, thus causing the employer to be susceptible to an FMLA interference claim." (FMLA Insights)

Combatting FMLA Abuse
"The court's decision ... shows that FMLA leave is not a ticket for employees to lie. Second, the investigation was not rushed ... Third, the decision-maker took a reasonable, common-sense approach in deciding that [the employee's] story just didn't add up. Fourth, the decision-maker had documents to back up his honest belief [that the employee] was untruthful. Fifth, there were multiple people involved in the investigation and decision... And, finally, [the employer] ... always accommodated [this employee], at least until it had evidence and a strong reason not to." [ Rowe v. United Airlines, Inc. , No. 14-1317 (10th Cir. Apr. 16, 2015)] (McAfee & Taft)

UnitedHealthcare Expands Effort to Rein in Rising Costs of Cancer Treatment
"UnitedHealthcare said Thursday it will expand its high-profile test of whether bundled payments for chemotherapy can help slow rising cancer treatment costs, part of a growing effort by insurers to find new ways to pay for care. Results from United's initial pilot test -- reported last year -- were puzzling: The overall cost of cancer care for patients in the study dropped by 34 percent, even as spending on chemotherapy drugs spiked significantly.... [R]esults from three other efforts showed decidedly smaller savings compared with United's stunning 34 percent drop[.]" (Kaiser Health News)

2014 Health Care Cost and Utilization Report
"Health care spending averaged $4,967 per individual in 2014, up $163 from the year before. Spending on brand prescriptions jumped by $45 per capita in 2014, despite a nearly 16 percent decrease in use. Hepatitis C antiviral drugs (Harvoni, Olysio, and Sovaldi) accounted for $29.40 of the $45 increase. Use of health care services continued to fall in 2014, while prices for all categories of services rose. Consumers spent an average of $810 per person out of pocket -- a 2.2 percent increase over 2013. Every year between 2010 and 2014, out-of-pocket spending by women was higher than that by men." (Health Care Cost Institute)

Federal Tax Treatment of Identity Theft Protection (PDF)
"[T]he IRS has said it will not require people to include in their gross income the value of identity protection services provided by an organization or an employer that experienced a data breach. The tax-free status does not apply: [1] If the organization offers the option to receive cash in lieu of identify protection services. [2] If an organization provides identity theft services for reasons other than a data breach. [3] If an employee receives proceeds under an identity theft insurance policy. Existing law will govern the tax treatment of insurance recoveries." (Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC)

Conservative Objections Complicate Cadillac Tax Repeal
"The likelihood of Congress passing legislation to repeal the health care reform law's 'Cadillac' tax is deteriorating amid an unlikely loss of support: conservative Republicans. Three GOP senators said last week that they would oppose a provision in a budget reconciliation bill that would repeal a 40% excise tax on premiums that exceed $10,200 for single coverage and $27,500 for family coverage that is to begin in 2018.... The GOP lawmakers' opposition plus the near certainty that President Barack Obama would veto the budget bill further decreases chances that lawmakers will repeal the tax[.]" (Business Insurance; free registration required)

States Challenging ACA Insurance Fee in Court
"[A]ccording to a complaint filed in federal court Oct. 22 by Texas, Kansas and Louisiana, the health insurance provider fee that Medicaid managed care organizations (MCOs) have to pay under the law reflects an effort by the federal government to do indirectly what it wasn't permitted to do directly by the Supreme Court. The states claim that the fee is devastating their Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance program budgets and placing those programs in jeopardy." (Bloomberg BNA)

Trends in Executive Compensation at the S&P/TSX 60
"The general trend for the last three years has been for modest growth in actual and target pay, although actual senior executive pay fell slightly from 2013 to 2014. Performance share units (PSUs) continue to increase as a proportion of long term incentive compensation, with a solid majority of companies using relative total shareholder return (TSR) as the performance measure in their long-term plans. However, compensation committees continue to grapple with finding appropriate peer groups and setting three year PSU targets." (Meridian Compensation Partners, LLC)

GM Offers UAW Bigger Bonuses, Health Care Gains for Second Tier Workers
"The second-tier workers will get the same health care under this agreement as the senior workers, giving them full dental and vision coverage with no deductible or co-insurance.... The GM deal also offers $60,000 to certain members who retire between Feb. 1 and May 1, the union said." (Bloomberg)

Holifield & Associates, PLLC Announces New Partner and Firm Name Change Holifield ? Janich & Associates, PLLC

GuideSpark Adds New Personalized Financial Wellness Product to Growing Platform GuideSpark

BrightScope Welcomes Former BlackRock Managing Director Martin Beaulieu as Advisor BrightScope

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