After the partisan passions and heated rhetoric, the disruptions of a government shutdown and displays of dysfunction, Congress did what it could have done weeks ago: voted to fund the government and lift the debt limit.

Exactly how bad are things on the federal health care exchanges? Sunday’s New York Times brought a deeply reported piece from Robert Pear, Sharon LaFraniere and Ian Austen.

Ranging in size from 100 to 30,000 employees, the exchange’s employers include Petco, Kinder Morgan and the Addison Group.

Periodically re-evaluating your role in the retirement business environment can yield some stark insights.

Eleven days into the federal government shutdown, employee benefits attorneys assess the short-term and long-term potential implications for your business and benefits strategy.

While much attention has been focused on the federal government shutdown and its effect on Affordable Care Act regulations, employers are still awaiting guidance on another key piece of legislation affecting benefits plans, the Defense of Marriage Act.

Having people shop for medical care the way they shop for cars or stereos might be ideal, in some ways. But it is not attainable as long as the shoppers are human beings.

Real estate company Keller Williams is one of the latest big firms to announce it’s offering associates access to a private health care exchange. Keller Williams’ independently owned and operated offices employ about 89,000 real estate agents — many of whom don’t have health insurance — across the country.

Recognizing the challenges (and headaches) involved in taking care of setting up their own benefits plans, a majority of small businesses say they recognize the need for an outside adviser to help.

California said 28,699 people were signed up in the state’s health insurance exchange in the first week, while New York had more than 40,000 sign up. But what did brokers have to say from the front lines?

Reform proposals from the Securities and Exchange Commission could have a significant impact on your clients and their plan participants.

Certain requirements must be met in order to terminate these small business plans.

401(k) plans are largely outscoring 403(b) plans in some key plan features, writes The Principal Financial's Aaron Freidman, who equates this to a pre-season football game.

Insurers are getting faulty and incomplete data from the new federal-run health exchange, which may mean some Americans won’t be covered even after they sign up for an insurance plan.

Staff at Walgreens stores will direct customers who ask about the exchanges to the GoHealth Marketplace, where they can shop and compare health insurance plans, enroll and find other tools and information.

Exchange prep, however, will go a long way to help employers prepare for the delayed employer mandate. Figure out whether you are an applicable large employer and if you are, start measuring. Otherwise, you could be left scrambling.

While the public exchanges offer a good solution for early retirees and COBRA-eligible participants, at least one expert says the exchanges are not the best option for current employees. Employers are also showing little confidence in public exchanges.

Eager to meet client needs — and keep their business — brokers hunt for information on individual exchanges, but are cautioned not to ignore the SHOP market. HR managers should be aware of the trend.

Eager to meet client needs — and keep their business — brokers hunt for information on individual exchanges, but are cautioned not to ignore the SHOP market.

At issue is the need for updated guidance on the employer mandate. While the mandate has been delayed until 2015, employers need to start preparing for it now.