Benefit plan design

Beginning in 2014 all employers with at least 50 employees must buy comprehensive heath insurance for all full-time employees or pay a penalty of $2,000 dollars per employee.

Days after delivering what he called a “little speech” (also known as the State of the Union address), President Obama vehemently defended the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, rallying the audience of a Families USA conference in Washington, D.C., that “we are moving forward.”

Employers with dental or vision benefits have gritted teeth and winced about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s impact on such coverage, but a recent Segal Co. analysis seeks to clear up any confusion about compliance.

You're on the third floor waiting for the elevator, on the way down to grab your morning cup of coffee. The elevator doors open and standing there is the CEO. It's just the two of you in the elevator.

U.S. employers believe that managing the changes resulting from health care reform is a critical business issue, yet few organizations have conducted a full analysis of the legislation’s financial impact, according to a new report from Ernst & Young.

A Senate panel last week deepened a probe of co-pay based mini-meds that raised pointed questions about the plans' value and transparency for workers, even when employers are unable to sponsor more comprehensive coverage.

The Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act begins to take effect on Jan. 1, 2011. Under the CLASS Act, which is part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a public insurance option offering employees voluntary long-term care insurance will be an option for employees to consider.

The growing number of limited medical plans that are receiving waivers from the Department of Health and Human Services for 2011 — a number that nearly quadrupled in the last couple of months, rising from 30 in September to 117 by Nov. 1 — now face some additional reporting requirements.

Whether an employer continues to offer health insurance once state-run insurance exchanges take effect in 2014 will largely depend on the size of the employer, according to a survey by Mercer.

Long-term care (LTC) insurance is back in the headlines, with several leading insurance carriers seeking rate increases to help offset investment shortfalls in an ultra-low interest rate environment and greater-than-expected plan usage.

Flush with victory from election night, Republican strategists are delving into possible measures to repeal or significantly hamper existing health care reform legislation.

Of course, everyone is fighting tooth and nail to retain grandfathered status for their health plans under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and rightly so.

Like Santa, I imagine you’ll be making a list and checking it twice (20 times?) to make sure you have all your talking points in order so you can communicate effectively to employees how the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will affect their benefits enrollment options.

Of all the things employers have to worry about since the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act—and there are quite a few — it’s understandably the Cadillac tax on high-cost health benefit plans that has them the most concerned, according to new survey results from Mercer.

We have another podcast post today, this time with Heather Gatley, executive vice president of HR Services and general counsel for AlphaStaff.

So, we’ve had some time to start to digest the biggest components of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, when they go into effect and the implications for your health plans.

Forgive me, pros. I’m a little bleary-eyed today, since I stayed up until after midnight to get the official vote tally (219-210, by the way) and real-time analysis of Sunday’s House vote on health care reform.

Americans work longer hours than people in most other developed countries, including renowned workaholics in Japan. As a result, work-family conflict is much higher in the United States than in other nations.

I’ve long maintained that President Obama’s statement on health care reform that “If you like your coverage and your doctor, you can keep it,” was naïve at best and an outright lie at worst.