For the first time, brokers and agents will be eligible to receive continuing education credits through the training, which is required to eligible to sell on the federal marketplace.

Advisers are needed now more than ever to help individuals reach their retirement goals as employees assume the responsibility of managing their financial future.

Commentary: Who would argue that spending $10,000 is worth the trade-off of cardiac surgery? Or $90,000 for drugs which might avoid a costly liver failure incident? A lot of employers, that’s who.

Three Republican senators have sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services expressing concern for the “lack of oversight for more than $1 billion in federal grants” given to state-based marketplaces.

Advisers who provide a variety of distribution methods, year-round support and targeted messages help employees better understand their benefits, which leads to increased participation.

State-based marketplaces were overall quite successful in retaining enrollees, however, a large number of consumers shopping within the marketplace during 2015 open enrollment decided to switch plans based on the price of services offered.

Commentary: The health care cost crisis needs to be addressed now. Enter applied predictive analytics.

With its streamlined technology platform and no fee business model, Zenefits has created quite a stir in the benefits industry. Should brokers be scared or should they be thanking Zenefits for pushing the envelope?

Commentary: If you ask people how they would make decisions today while working, most would tell you they can only make an educated guess or seek advice from financial professionals. Imagine how disconcerting this is when they no longer work and earn paychecks.

Commentary: When it comes to disabilities, employers need to do more than simply provide accommodations.

As pressure mounts on state-run public health insurance exchanges to be financially self-sufficient in time for 2016, consumer operated and oriented plans created under the Affordable Care Act face the same challenge. And with two recent troubling developments in the CO-OP space, there are renewed questions about the long-term viability of these nonprofit entities.

There are three types of brokers: the transactional broker, the Zenefits-style broker and the new school premier broker — but soon only one of them will be successful.

Employee financial stress can often be overlooked by the C-suite. Yet, some industry experts say it can have a major impact on the company’s productivity and profitability. Financial education should be considered a pivotal component of any employer’s wellness program.

Health reform has put a spotlight on ben admin and HRIS systems, but there are many factors to consider when choosing a new platform, experts say.

Focusing on the end result of what voluntary benefits can do for an employer makes the proposition of introducing the products a no-brainer, says Willis’ Mike Meredith.

Commentary: Employers face an uphill battle in classifying a worker as an independent contractor due to DOL guidance that defines ‘employee’ so broadly that such a classification should only be reserved for a narrow subset of workers.

Waiting to see how private exchanges play out is no longer a business strategy; and to succeed, brokers must change their business practices, speaker at EBA/EBN Private Healthcare Exchanges conference says.

Benefit advisers have an increasing responsibility to keep client data secure, says Tinker Kelly, president and CEO of VEBA. He explains practical prevention tips and what to do if a breach occurs.

Narrow networks are more prevalent in public exchanges than the commercial market, and while this trend helps keep costs more manageable, it also significantly restricts any movement for consumers and could undermine network adequacy standards.

Commentary: Without a successful enrollment strategy, participation will be low and everyone loses.