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On Oct. 14, 2010, the Department of Labor issued final rules related to the disclosure of fees to defined contribution retirement plan participants. This new rule is effective for plan years beginning after Nov. 1, 2011.

You may have been a benefits professional for a long time, but just like spring cleaning, you should review the governance for your benefit plans on a periodic basis.

Many U.S. employers maintain operations in Puerto Rico. Employees frequently are hired in Puerto Rico, and some employees are transferred from the United States to Puerto Rico.

Employers everywhere are launching wellness programs in the hope that this focus will lower their medical costs and keep their employees healthy. The challenge, however, is getting employees to participate and be engaged in the process of wellness so they actually take a stake in their own health.

Last month, I made the case that health risk assessments are a poor tool for measuring the health of a population or a single individual, and the data they produce are not necessary for the design of good wellness programs. ("No more master key: Health risk assessments unnecessary for wellness plan design," EBN March)

My teenager is never separated from his cell phone. Never. Yet, sometimes when I dial his number, he doesn't answer.

HighRoads, a Boston-based compliance and benefits management firm, conducted a survey months after approval of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, finding that, in general, employers believed that outsourcing costs for health benefits administration will increase because of the law.

How one company used a virtual benefits fair to tame employees' inertia and boost engagement during open enrollment.

Among the many provisions of health care reform legislation is a mandate to cover all preventive services at 100%. Although this provision does not go into effect for grandfathered plans until 2014, it already is in effect for nongrandfathered plans.

Everyone likes a pat on the back. If you work in the field of employee benefits, your day of appreciation arrives Monday, April 4.