Healthcare

From the Midwest to Texas to the West Coast, these brokers are opening their doors to walk-ins who need help complying with the individual mandate portion of the Affordable Care Act. Will this store front trend catch on with others in the industry and, perhaps more importantly, is it sustainable?

A federal district court judge has ruled in favor of the federal government in a lawsuit that claimed the Internal Revenue Service did not have the authority under the Affordable Care Act to write rules providing tax credits to individuals purchasing health insurance on the health insurance exchange set up by the federal government.

The Congressional Management Foundation talked to 163 senior managers in the U.S. House and Senate about staff retention for the coming year. The respondents said worries about salary freezes from budget cuts and transitioning employees to the Affordable Care Act’s public exchanges were top of their list for possible staff departures.

Obamacare and an aging U.S. population are spurring purchases of medical office buildings, with investors sending prices to a record on bets that Americans’ demand for health services will increase.

Workers in San Francisco who have caregiving responsibilities now have the right to request changes to their working conditions, thanks to the Family Friendly Work Ordinance. A similar right-to-request law was also passed in Vermont last spring.

Why are employers still offering health care benefits and increasing worksite wellness activities? It’s not rocket science. Employers don’t offer benefits because they are altruistic. They do so primarily to recruit and retain talent and to ensure workers have the mental and physical capacity to perform their best on the job.

About 70% of Obamacare’s customers are 35 years of age or older, indicating that U.S. health care overhaul is initially attracting a less healthy population that may drive up insurance premiums.

Improving employee health while reducing employer health care costs are the dual objectives of supermarket chain Kroger, which has about 130,000 people — employees and dependents — enrolled in one of its three medical plans.

Combining wellness and HSAs is a long-term strategy. However, there can be some immediate benefit for the employer, which typically begins by going from a traditional fully insured plan to a high-deductible plan with a HSA, thereby saving the employer some money right out of the gate.

The U.S. government has awarded Accenture’s Federal Services unit a one-year contract, with an initial payment of $45 million, the Dublin-based company said in a statement Accenture will succeed Montreal-based CGI Group, which drew criticism for the website’s early stumbles.