Senior Qualified Plan Administrator
TCA by E*TRADE
in CO

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National TPA
in AZ, CA, CO, GA, IL, NC, OH, TX

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The Finway Group
in IA, Telecommute

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What You Need to Know About New U.S. Paid Leave Laws
RECORDED
Ceridian

ERISA Basics National Institute
October 10, 2018 in IL
American Bar Association Joint Committee on Employee Benefits [JCEB]

Health Policy: How You Should Be Preparing for the Cadillac Tax
March 21, 2019 in WI
The Alliance

Executive Compensation: MeToo, Employment Agreements, and the Clawback of Executive Compensation
August 7, 2018 WEBCAST
American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education Group [ALI CLE]

IRS and DOL Audit Issues for Retirement Plans
August 7, 2018 WEBCAST
Winston & Strawn

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The House Takes Action on Health Reform

"Following a flurry of bills addressing the opioid crisis this spring, from both House and Senate, the House now moves to other strategies to accomplish this task. The House is targeting two specific areas to begin addressing the choice and cost concerns -- certain [ACA] taxes and health savings accounts (HSAs)." OneDigital Health and Benefits

House ACA Employer Health Penalty Bill Nears Floor

"Members of the House may be getting closer to voting on a H.R. 4616, bill that could both suspend collection of [ACA] employer mandate penalties and further delay the start date of the ACA Cadillac plan tax.... [CBO and JCT] estimate the bill could cut enough revenue, and lead to enough extra spending, to increase the size of the federal budget deficit by $39.5 billion over the period from 2019 through 2028." ThinkAdvisor

Community-Oriented Workplace Wellness Programs

"Best practices for successful workplace wellness programs: [1] Use multiple intervention sites ... [2] Have specific, obtainable target goals; [3] Give employees training and tools to create sustainable lifestyle changes; [4] Make the program a regular part of the work week; [5] Partner with community organizations and create convenience for workers; [6] Develop a program that has social and fun aspects." America's Health Insurance Plans [AHIP]

Wellness 101

"Here are some ideas to think about: Flu vaccinations ... Chair massages ... Lunch and learns ... Biometric screenings ... Tobacco cessation programs." Frenkel Benefits

The Long Road to Value-Based Payment

"The U.S. health care system continues to undergo a slow transition from a volume-based to value-based payment system.... The goal is to reward good longer-term patient outcomes, thereby providing value to the health care system. However, the incentives may not be fully aligned -- especially in situations in which hospitals are asked to pay more for better outcomes. Such problems are particularly acute in fields where technology is evolving rapidly." Health Affairs

Insurers Petition Court to Rehear Risk-Corridor Case Involving $12B in ACA Payments

"Last month, a panel of judges at the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that [HHS] isn't required to pay insurers $12 billion through the program, arguing that Congress included appropriations riders to ensure the risk-corridor program remained budget neutral. In separate court filings, Moda and Land of Lincoln petitioned the court to rehear the case before the entire bench of 18 judges. The insurers argued that the court's decision ... 'sows confusion' over how an appropriations law can override an existing statute." FierceHealthcare

Changes in Enrollment in the Individual Health Insurance Market

"[A]fter increasing substantially (by 64% to 17.4 million people in 2015) following implementation of the ACA, enrollment in the individual market remained relatively unchanged in 2016 (at 17.0 million) then declined by 12% to 15.2 million in 2017. Enrollment has continued to fall in early 2018: first quarter enrollment has declined by 12% in 2018 compared to the first quarter of 2017. Much of this decline in overall individual market enrollment was concentrated in the off-exchange market, where enrollees are not eligible for federal premium subsidies and therefore were not cushioned from the significant premium increases in 2017 and 2018." Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation

Understanding and Applying FICA's Special Timing Rule for Account Balance Plans (PDF)

"While the rules and applicable guidance have remained largely unchanged over recent years, some of the rules are unclear on how FICA taxes should be applied with respect to deferred compensation payable under account balance plans, including restricted stock units (RSUs) and deferred dividend equivalent units (DEUs). Further, the special FICA tax rules applicable to deferred compensation are frequently overlooked or misunderstood by employers, resulting in erroneous payment of the applicable taxes." Mayer Brown LLP, via Bloomberg Tax Management Compensation Planning Journal

Ninth Circuit Overturns Altera and Revives Regulations on Cost Sharing of Stock-Based Compensation

"The Regulations required related entities to share the costs of employee stock-based compensation in order for their cost-sharing arrangements to be classified as qualified cost-sharing arrangements under Section 4824 and the relevant Treasury Regulations.... [T]he Ninth Circuit first determined that Treasury had complied with the APA in promulgating the Regulations ... [and] then applied the two-part Chevron analysis to hold that the Regulations were a permissible interpretation of Section 482." [ Altera Corp. v. Comm'r , Nos. 16-70496, 16-70497 (9th Cir. July 24, 2018)]
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Adding Retiree Life to Existing Medical VEBA: How Hard to Do?

How difficult is it to add another benefit to an existing VEBA? We have an existing VEBA and management asked us to evaluate adding the existing retiree life plan. The company pays most of the retiree life premiums, but retirees contribute a portion. What are the key considerations? Upfront and ongoing legal and accounting costs? Our current annual retiree life premium is relatively small (about $600,000 per year including retiree contributions) so one of my concerns is that the initial cost to move the plan into the VEBA and the ongoing legal, accounting and investment expense could be significant in comparison. BenefitsLink Message Boards

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Press Releases

Ascensus Adds to Retirement Expertise with Agreement to Acquire Continental Benefits Group, Inc. Ascensus

Dietrich Announces a Significant Enhancement to DIETRICH Direct Quote (DDQ) Annuity Platform Dietrich

Rea & Associates, Inc. is Certified to Industry Best Practices Centre for Fiduciary Excellence [CEFEX]

Corporate Synergies Captures 2018 APEX Award for Excellence Corporate Synergies

Wilshire Launches Two New Broad Market Target Income Indices Wilshire Group

John Hancock Retirement Plan Services Expands Financial Wellness Resources to Help Participants Live Well Today and Prepare for a Secure Retirement Tomorrow John Hancock Financial Network

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