Employer Strategies

Commentary: Game on at the DOL means game on for employers. Are your employers prepared for a DOL audit? Are you prepared to advise them on what an audit involves and the fines for non-compliance?

The private and public exchanges offer employers an opportunity to help manage costs and provide personalized benefits, but there is no one-size-fits-all solution, industry experts say.

Fidelity Investments has concocted a new educational product suite – to be available on your nearby desktop computer – that will ease the burden that faces both defined contribution plan sponsors as well as plan participants in managing future saving needs.

By bundling all costs for the surgery under one negotiated price and offering expertise that lowers the odds of complications, the Cleveland Clinic can give employers a better deal than some hospitals closer to employees' homes.

Traditionally the domain of large employers, self-funding is becoming more attractive for smaller companies.

Whether being subject to an involuntary EBSA Audit, or undertaking a voluntary correction program, there are certain things a plan sponsor should be looking for (and looking out for) if they are going to have the EBSA nosing around their plans. The EBSA recently held an online seminar about things to anticipate in an EBSA investigation and here are some things that are important to remember. …

On Feb. 26, Rep. Dave Camp (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, released a discussion draft of the Tax Reform Act of 2014 that more completely spells out the tradeoffs for tax reform. Camp’s draft legislation reduces and simplifies the current income tax rate structure, but may modify or eliminate provisions relating to employee benefit plans.

Looking toward the end of 2014 open enrollment in the Affordable Care Act’s health exchanges, Gary Cohen, director of the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, said Thursday at an AHIP conference that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is expecting a “fairly significant spike in enrollments."

In two employer-focused sessions at AHIP’s annual policy conference in Washington this week, the excise tax in the ACA — known as the Cadillac tax — dominated the list of future concerns for plan sponsors.

Are your clients prepared for a 401(k) plan audit? When the Employee Benefits Security Administration knocks on the door and starts requesting plan documents, financial records, account statements, contracts and more, it can be overwhelming. The best offense is a good defense, so be prepared. Take a glimpse into a recent audit and the laundry list of documents requested.