Employee benefits

The uninsured rate in the United States is at one of the lowest points since tracking began, and in states with state-based exchanges the uninsured rate is lower than those using the federal marketplace. But is there enough incentive for brokers to continue to play a vital role in exchange enrollment?

Employer groups under 100 lives will soon be subject to community rating, which could lead to increased costs.

Automatic enrollment gets the most press, but 401(k) plan sponsors are exploring many other auto features to help boost employee savings.

Commentary: Reinforcing a simple three-step approach can help your clients connect employees working through a mental health condition with the assistance they need.

Commentary: Specific innovations in benefits administration software are paving the way and supplying the technological framework to a future primarily based in cyberspace rather than buildings filled with people.

Yelp, the online service which provides customer reviews of local businesses, has teamed with the ProPublica news organization to incorporate health care statistics and consumer opinion survey data onto Yelp’s business pages for more than 25,000 medical treatment facilities.

The BIC exemption in the DOL’s fiduciary rule allows retirement plan brokers and advisers to continue setting their own compensation as long as they commit to putting their client’s interests first but some say it will impede brokers who want to work with small businesses.

Advisers can keep their "conflicted" commissions, but it's time to stop harming clients by depleting their retirement savings, says the chairman of the Labor Department's hearings on its proposed fiduciary rule.

Trying to institute a wellness initiative in a poor corporate culture is like making dinner with rotten ingredients.

Commentary: Employee leave is right in the middle of policy and business management discussions. Benefit managers would be wise to get ahead of the curve.

Despite some progress in making employees smarter consumers of health care, pockets of resistance remain, sometimes in surprising places.

Many 401(k) plan participants are convinced that active management no longer works. But is a passive-only strategy appropriate?

As private exchange technology providers are acquired, some brokers question what happens downstream to firms they partnered with. Along with the acquisitions, some brokers are not yet seeing a return on investment from their exchange, so what are their long-term plans?

After four days of public hearings, in which dozens of participants weighed in, the Labor Department is one step closer to implementing a new fiduciary standard, the scope of which heartens supporters and troubles critics.

Anticipated payrolls are expected to remain flat in the coming year, though the use of variable pay schemes based on employee performance may rise as competition for talent increases.

Retirement plan sponsors have tried to make it easy for employees to participate in their plans and save enough for retirement and their efforts appear to be paying off.

Employers have some decisions to make regarding coverage for spouses and domestic partners following the Obergefell ruling. If there are any modifications to a policy, it’s crucial they’re reflected in the plan document and that employees and TPAs are informed about such changes.

Public exchange plan participants spent less money on medications in the first quarter of 2015 than the first quarter of 2014 amid changes in the demographic mix of enrollees, according to newly released data from Express Scripts Holding Company.

Large employers are playing a waiting game in the coming year on health care cost saving strategies as many wait and see how Washington politics play out.

Student loan debt affects employees of all ages, not just new grads.