Health Care Reform: Supreme Court Hearing   At the end of March, the U.S. Supreme Court heard six hours of oral arguments regarding the health care reform law. At the center of the debate was the law’s individual mandate, which, … Continue reading →

Essential Health Benefits: What You Need to Know Part of health care reform is a provision that certain plans include “essential health benefits” (EHBs) starting in 2014. Here’s what employers should know. Beginning in 2014, health plans in the small … Continue reading →

Prepare for a Potential HIPAA Inspection In November 2011, the Office for Civil Rights began conducting HIPAA compliance audits. With fines for non-compliance often topping $1 million, it’s vital that your company is prepared: Ensure all your HIPAA-related policies and … Continue reading →

Employers Offer Unconventional Perks to Balance Cuts Company budgets have been squeezed in recent years, and employees are feeling the pressure in the form of pay cuts, heavier workloads, higher health care premiums and reduced 401(k) matches. Employers want to … Continue reading →

Health Care Reform: 2011 in Review There were many developments with the health care reform law in 2011, including: • The W-2 reporting requirement was delayed for small employers (filing fewer than 250 Forms W-2). Larger employers must follow the … Continue reading →

Trends in Employee Benefit Offerings Offering a benefits package that balances cost and value, particularly in this uncertain economic and legislative time, is a perennial challenge. The results from a recent Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) survey reflect this … Continue reading →

Surveys: Health Care Costs Increase at a Declining Rate Though a slower growth rate is welcome news, it is cause for concern if employees are opting not to seek necessary medical care in order to save money. Lower utilization will improve … Continue reading →

COBRA Premium Subsidy Expires, But May Continue for Some The COBRA premium subsidy program expired on Aug. 31, 2011, but some employees will continue to receive subsidies, based on guidance issued by the Labor Department. The program was part of … Continue reading →

Survey: 71 Percent of Employers to Conduct Passive Open Enrollment In a recent survey by consulting firm HighRoads, 71 percent of respondents hold “passive” benefits enrollments (as opposed to “active”), allowing employees to automatically renew most of their plans. Though … Continue reading →

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) requires health plans and health insurance issuers to provide participants with a summary of benefits and coverage no later than March 23, 2012. The summary of benefits and coverage does not replace … Continue reading →