Banco Popular de Puerto Rico

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act marked its half-birthday a couple weeks ago on Sept. 23, and the occasion was both absurd and awful. To my eye, six months after President Obama signed the landmark health care reform legislation, there is nothing to celebrate -- employers are unhappy, employees are unhappy and no one knows what they're doing.

The 2010 Benefits Forum & Expo, presented by Employee Benefit News, featured no shortage of quotable gems. Here are just a few that were uttered over the three-day event Sept. 26-28 in Boca Raton, Fla.

Famed pollster Frank Luntz offered up some quotable gems to attendees during his keynote presentation at EBN's Benefits Forum & Expo.

Benefits Forum & Expo keynote presenter Frank Luntz offered attendees his 10 commandments of communication and 21 health care words for the 21st century. Here they are for you to refer to as you put the final touches on those open enrollment materials.

On behalf of the staff of Employee Benefit News, it’s my pleasure and privilege to say ... "See ya later, alligator!" The staff and I are leaving this weekend for EBN's 23rd annual Benefits Forum & Expo, and I hope many of you will be joining us.

EBN's 2010 Benny Award honorees talk to Editor-in-Chief Kelley Butler about the impact of the recession, their early thoughts on health care reform and their hopes for economic recovery in 2011.

Although the economy has yet to fully thaw, so to speak, new research from Mercer shows that employers are beginning to assess the impact that two years of salary freezes and limited pay increases have had on their base salary programs.

I recently spoke to Center for Health Value Innovation President Cyndy Nayer for EBN’s podcast series about her goals for the Center's 2010 value-based design survey. In addition to the all-important questions on how you’re all handling health care reform, Nayer says the survey is looking to capture your thoughts on prevention and wellness components in health plans.

The retirement debt clock — wound and set last week at an event by Retirement USA at the launch of “Wake Up, Washington!” Month — estimates the national retirement income deficit, the gap between the pensions and retirement savings that American households have today and what they should have today to maintain their living standards in retirement, at $6.6 trillion and counting.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s that HR/benefits professionals do not mess around when it comes to their certifications.