EBRI Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey

Posted November 30, 2008 by admin

Findings From the 2008 Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey
EBRI Issue Brief #323, Employee Benefit Research Institute© 2008

Enrollment low but growing: In 2008, 3 percent of the population was enrolled in a consumer-driven health plan (CDHP), up from 2 percent in 2007 and 1 percent in 2006. Enrollment in HDHPs remained at 11 percent. Overall, 9.8 million adults ages 21–64 with private insurance (representing 6.6 percent of that market) were in either a CDHP or an HDHP that was eligible for an HSA, but had not opened the account. (more…)

America's Best Health Insurance Plans

Posted November 29, 2008 by admin

America’s Best Health Insurance Plans
By Michelle Andrews U.S. News & World Report

For years, workers have watched their healthcare outlays rise and benefits shrink, and for some, whether they will have benefits at all suddenly is in doubt. As Wall Street’s turmoil sloshes over Main Street, it seems that every day another trusted company files for bankruptcy, succumbs to a takeover, or shuts its doors. Nearly 34,000 businesses filed for bankruptcy in the 12 months ending in June, 42 percent more than the year before—and the word from on high is that this may be just the beginning. If your company stumbles, your healthcare, along with your job and your 401(k), could suffer as well. Many employees may worry they’re only a couple of bad balance sheets away from joining the ranks of the nearly 46 million Americans without health insurance. Unfortunately, they may be right. (more…)

Onsite Health Facilities: Watch Out for Regulatory Pitfalls

Posted November 3, 2008 by admin

Onsite Health Facilities: Watch Out for Regulatory Pitfalls
Watson Wyatt

Today’s onsite health care facilities usually go beyond dispensing bandages and aspirin. Many provide comprehensive medical services to employees and sometimes to spouses and other family members. Yet the employers implementing and paying for these facilities — commonly through a third-party vendor — are often unaware that some of these benefits are considered employer-provided health care and thus are subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Internal Revenue Code. (more…)

Sununu, Gregg Announce Signing of "Michelle's Law"

Posted November 2, 2008 by admin

Sununu, Gregg Announce Signing of “Michelle’s Law”

The law is named for the late Michelle Morse, a 20-year-old college student at Plymouth State University (New Hampshire) who died in 2005. Michelle had remained a full-time student while being treated for advanced colon cancer because, due to existing law at the time, her parents’ insurance would not otherwise cover her care. Her case prompted the State of New Hampshire to adopt a similar law in 2006. (more…)

Adoption Act Amends Tax Code Definition of Qualifying Child

Posted November 1, 2008 by admin

Adoption Act Amends Tax Code Definition of Qualifying Child
Watson Wyatt

The definition is used to determine eligibility for certain tax benefits, such as the dependency exemption, the child tax credit, the earned income tax credit and the dependent care tax credit. In addition, it is referenced by many employer-sponsored health care and dependent care plans.

Under current law, a qualifying child of a taxpayer generally must: (more…)