Healthcare

A new FAQ from the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Treasury offers quite prescriptive guidance on the types of contraceptives plans must offer and pay for, and to whom they must be offered.

Employer-sponsored defined contribution plans have become the go-to retirement vehicle for the majority of workers in the U.S. but more needs to be done to get employees to not only save but to save more.

Employers may need to redouble their efforts to help employees understand the opportunity presented by a high deductible health plan with an accompanying health savings account.

It is “silly” for Republicans to put together a response to the Supreme Court’s expected June ruling on the legality of subsides in the federal health care exchange, the health policy director at the CATO Institute, which helped launch the lawsuit, said Monday.

The DOL’s proposed fiduciary rule could have dire consequences for the business of benefit advisers, according to NAIFA. The association is taking its concerns straight to The White House and lawmakers in Washington, D.C.

Commentary: As the EEOC’s proposed regulations for wellness programs remain under review for public comment until mid-June, employers should not feel paralyzed in designing new wellness programs nor compelled to throw out existing ones.

Commentary: Do loans and hardships really help solve what the plan was designed to do? Columnist John Ludwig doesn’t think so. In the end, they are a detriment to most participants’ retirement dreams, he says.

Healthcare.gov runs the risk of offering too many health plan choices and the opportunity exists to be able to make it easier for consumers to compare coverage, the website’s CEO, Kevin Counihan, said Monday.

Most employers have still not determined how they will comply with complex ACA reporting requirements that began Jan. 1. Benefit brokers and consultants should be discussing the requirements and the solutions with their employer clients, experts say.

Finding ways to deter painkiller abuse has been a high priority for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in recent years. And with opioid abuse costing U.S. businesses close to $26 billion a year, health plan sponsors should take note as well.