Plan Administrator-DC Specialist
AimPoint Pension
in FL, Telecommute

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Addressing Social Determinants of Health in Benefit Strategies
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Catalyst for Payment Reform [CPR]

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Wellness Promotion/Prevention: Overcoming Legal and Compliance Hurdles (PDF)

28 presentation slides. Topics include: [1] HIPAA nondiscrimination requirements; [2] Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); [3] Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA); [4] Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA); [5] ERISA/ACA compliance issues; [6] HIPAA administrative simplification (privacy, EDI, and security); [7] COBRA; [8] ERISA; [9] Income tax; [10] Plan design/integration issues (e.g., HRAs and HSAs); [11] State law. Alston & Bird

Health Savings Accounts (HSAs): Compliance Obligations Under the Internal Revenue Code and ERISA

Nov. 28 webinar. Although HSAs have numerous tax advantages, it is easy to inadvertently fail to satisfy the requirements. This webinar will help health plan administrators navigate this sometimes treacherous terrain. BenefitsLink discount .

Can Foster Parents Take an Additional 12 Weeks of FMLA Leave After They Adopt a Child?

"Simply because an aunt or family member takes in another family member does not mean we have a foster care situation.... Under FMLA ... foster care = 24?hour care plus involvement of the State.... Clearly, an eligible employee can take FMLA leave to bond with their foster child upon placement.... The FMLA regulations clearly state that an employee's FMLA leave entitlement is limited to a total of 12 workweeks of leave during any 12?month period for the 'placement with the employee of a son or daughter for adoption or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child'[.]" FMLA Insights

Benefit Trends by Industry: Enrollment Data Insights

11 pages. "The share of employers in education offering at least one HDHP has more than doubled since 2016 ... [H]ealth care employers have transferred a significant amount of premium for their PPO plans onto workers.... Nine in 10 manufacturers now offer an HDHP.... Voluntary benefits are a priority in manufacturing.... HDHPs are getting more prevalent -- and more expensive -- in retail." Benefitfocus; free registration required

HHS Announces Annual Adjustments to Civil Monetary Penalties, with Implications for Employer-Sponsored Health Plans

"HHS's latest adjustments are based on a cost-of-living increase of 2.04%.... The penalty for a health insurer's or non-federal governmental health plan's willful failure to provide [a Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC)] is $1,128 (up from $1,105) for each failure." Thomson Reuters / EBIA

New Federal Laws Ban Gag Clauses in Pharmacy Contracts

"On October 10, 2018 President Trump signed two bills that ban 'gag clauses' in pharmacy contracts. Congress passed the two bills -- one for Medicare prescription drug plans that will go into effect in January 2020, and another for commercial employer-based and individual policies effective immediately -- by almost unanimous vote ... While many states have already prohibited the use of these clauses, this is the first such action on a federal level." McDermott Will & Emery

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Requiring a Price Tag in Drug Commercials: Furthering Consumer Transparency or Government Overreach?

"The draft regulation does not yet provide guidance on certain important details, and CMS is requesting comment on a number of topics.... Among the most unusual elements of the draft regulation is its reliance on private lawsuits as the primary mechanism for enforcing the disclosure requirement.... Further, the draft regulation proposes to block states from taking enforcement actions based on state law claims for violations of the federal disclosure requirement, thus prohibiting a state that may be inclined to take more aggressive actions from doing so." Faegre Baker Daniels

Drugmakers Funnel Millions to Lawmakers

"Since the beginning of last year, 34 lawmakers have each received more than $100,000 from pharmaceutical companies.... In the past decade, Congress has received $79 million from 68 pharma political action committees, or PACs, run by employees of companies that make drugs treating everything from cancer to erectile dysfunction." Kaiser Health News

Discriminatory Opt-Out Benefit for CEO under Section 125 Plan

CEO (a highly compensated employee) and company are negotiating employment agreement. The parties wish to provide that, if the CEO opts out of the company's medical plan, the CEO would receive additional cash compensation in the amount of the company's cost of coverage for that plan. The company does not offer the opt-out/cash-out benefit to other employees. What is the effect of failing the nondiscrimination tests in this circumstance? BenefitsLink Message Boards

Press Releases

OneDigital Health and Benefits Acquires Nashville Based Paradigm Group OneDigital Health and Benefits

HUB International Names Rob Petree as Senior Vice President, Employee Benefits in Sacramento HUB International

Carroll Consultants Merges With Cafaro Greenleaf Cafaro Greenleaf

USI Consulting Group Hires Bill Tracy as VP, Retirement Services USI

ABG Announces Finalists for 2018 Plan Sponsor of the Year Awards Alliance Benefit Group

Announcing the 2019 Ellen A. (Nell) Hennessy Employee Benefits Moot Court Competition: Registration Deadline is Nov. 9 American College of Employee Benefits Counsel

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Most Popular Items in the Previous Issue

Text of DOL Regulatory Agenda, Fall 2018 U.S. Department of Labor [DOL]

Text of HHS Regulatory Agenda, Fall 2018 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS]

District Court: Health Plan Must Explain Reasonable and Customary Kilpatrick Townsend