My firm has been a member of the Profit Sharing / 401(k) Council of America (PSCA) for many years.  PSCA does a lot of great things, but one of the very best things it does is its annual “401(k) Day”, an annual event geared toward helping employer plan sponsors provide some very valuable plan education tools for their plan participants.

In 2010, 401(k) Day is officially September 10, 2010, the Friday after Labor Day.  The 2010 401(k) Day theme is –"401(k) Day... Taking You There".

As the debate over appropriate compensation for top executives continues, leading U.S. companies have so far made relatively few changes to executive pay levels, with only a very small decline seen in overall pay packages in 2009, according to the results of an annual study on executive compensation practices by The Wall Street Journal and management consulting firm Hay Group.

On March 18, 2010, President Barack Obama signed into law the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act, which was designed to encourage employers to hire and retain workers. The legislation includes an exemption on payroll taxes through the end of 2010, a tax credit for hiring workers who have been unemployed, and a one-year extension of enhanced Section 179 expensing rules for small businesses.

In May of 2010 the IRS published Revenue Procedure 2010-22, which provides the 2011 cost-of-living contribution and coverage adjustments for HSAs (health savings accounts) as required under Code Section 223(g). The amounts for 2011 are unchanged from the amounts for 2010 because, after the application of the cost-of-living adjustment rules of § 223(g), the changes in the Consumer Price Index for the relevant period do not result in changes to the amounts for 2011.

AHIP (America's Health Insurance Plans) just completed a study around how many Americans are now covered by HSA-qualified plans, as of January 2010.

On Thursday, April 15, 2010 the Senate approved the Continuing Extension Act of 2010 (H.R.4851), a package of short-term extensions of several federal programs, including federal unemployment benefits and COBRA subsidies, after warding off several Republican amendments to offset the bill’s cost.

For current and relevant information that focuses on the impact the recent health reform bill will have on you, visit our Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) Information and Resources section.

CIGNA has released the latest of its reports on the experience of its Consumer Driven health plans. It has issued a press release saying, "As overall medical costs continue to increase by double digits annually, medical costs for individuals in account-based consumer-driven health plans (CDHPs) went down 26% over four years." And it adds that this happened, "while levels of care for their preventive medicine, chronic disease management and evidence-based treatments were higher than their counterparts in traditional PPO and HMO health plans."

The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and the Treasury jointly issued new rules providing parity for consumers enrolled in group health plans who need treatment for mental health or substance use disorders.

On Saturday, December 19th, the United States Senate approved legislation extending certain provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 related to the COBRA continuation coverage subsidy, and has since been signed into law by President Obama.

Analysis of the Major Provisions in the Manager’s Amendment to H.R. 3590, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2009

Benico, Ltd. is a Smart Partner member of the Benefit Advisors Network, a premier national network of independent benefit advisory and consulting companies. Through the Benefit Advisor Network’s best practices collaboration, market clout leveraging, and shared capital resources, member firms like ours are able to deliver industry leading tools, technology, and expertise for optimum results for our employee benefits customers.

With debate on the Senate healthcare bill to begin this week, media reports indicate that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) faces a difficult challenge in herding the 60 votes needed to advance the legislation. The AP (11/30) reports, "The 60 votes aren't there any more.

The U.S. House of Representatives moved closer to an overhaul of the nation’s health care delivery system by passing the Affordable Health Care for America Act (“AHCAA” or the “Act”) late in the evening of November 7, 2009. 

HR 3930 has been introduced in the U. S. House of Representatives by Rep. Joe Sestak (D. PA) to extend the subsidy for COBRA enrollees that was first passed with the ARRA Stimulus package this past February.  Rumors about this bill have circulated for several months as the economy continues to struggle and unemployment remains high.

The Small Business Coalition for Affordable Healthcare is a coalition of the major job creators in the American economy – small businesses.  The coalition’s membership roster reads like a “Who’s Who” of small business groups, including the U. S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the National Restaurant Association (NRA), the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the National Retail Federation, the National Association of Realtors, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, and countless others.

Media coverage of the House Democrats' healthcare reform bill noted White House praise for the measure, even as it highlighted the potential difficulties Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) may encounter within her caucus and vis-à-vis the Senate.

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Reminder About Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage Employer Disclosure Notice Requirements

The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 provides for coverage for prescription drugs, and everyone who is covered by Medicare is eligible for this prescription drug program component.  This includes those who may be covered by other programs, such as those covered as active employees or as retirees of employer-sponsored plans.

The Miami Herald reports that Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida has decided to use only an HSA program for all its 5,000 employees. The article says, "The Jacksonville-based insurer's leaders have become firmly convinced that an HSA plan makes sense because it requires workers to make their healthcare decisions -- and rewards those with healthy behaviors."

There have been more twists and turns, drama, momentum shifts, and head fakes with the healthcare reform process.  It has been a very fluid process, and promises to continue to be that way in the days ahead.
 
The original “plan” was to have bills voted on in the House and Senate prior to the August recess, convene a conference committee this month to reconcile differences in the House and Senate bills, and have a bill on the President’s desk by October 1st.  However, a funny thing happened on the way to the forum to borrow a title from an old Broadway play. 

WTTW Health Care Reform discussion (9.1.09) with viewpoints shared by John Garven and studio audience.

A new survey by United Benefits Advisors finds that enrollment in consumer driven health plans (CDHPs, such as HRAs and HSAs) now exceeds that of HMOs. The survey included over 12,000 employers and discovered that 15.4% of all employees are now in CDHPs, compared to 13.6% in HMOs.  PPOs continue to dominate with a 63.9% market share.