Employee benefits

Commentary: Disruption is the word of the day in the evolving health insurance industry.

A healthy if not spectacular jobs report from the Department of Labor supports mid-market employer plans to bolster training programs to keep employees from jumping ship.

A group of lawmakers has introduced legislation to roll back guidance from the Treasury Department that prohibits employers from using stand-alone health reimbursement arrangements to reimburse employees for health care-related expenses.

There are more ways for defined contribution plan participants to gain access to professional investment management than by defaulting them into target-date funds or using a separately managed account.

Commentary: The ACA’s Cadillac tax is like a patient, powerful hurricane moving across the Atlantic. If it makes landfall, the impact will be dramatic.

Commentary: It’s natural to fear that fewer insurance companies will mean less choice in health plans and less differentiation and innovation. But there is good news.

Selecting the right partners, learning from colleagues and understanding the needs of each client will help agents who are new to this space.

Retirement assets in the U.S. jumped to nearly $25 trillion in the first quarter of 2015, a 1.3% jump from $24.6 trillion at the end of the year.

Consolidation in the health insurance industry holds both positives and negatives for employer-sponsored health plans, but employers shouldn’t expect to see any major savings resulting from the Aetna-Humana merger until at least 2017, say industry experts.

Aetna’s purchase of Humana confirms analyst predictions of continued consolidation as carriers vie for market share, a trend industry experts fear will limit choice and force brokers to reinvent their business approach.

Doctors think insurance cards in Texas that identify HIX enrollees could serve as a reminder to pay their monthly premiums and reduce the number of unpaid bills. Critics, however, counter that they are akin to a Scarlet letter and could be used to deny treatment.

With Aetna Inc. and Humana Inc. pairing off, pressure is mounting on other major health insurers to make their own deals.

Aetna Inc. agrees to buy Humana Inc., in a deal poised to be the biggest ever in the health-insurance industry.

Not only are 403(b) retirement plans diversified, but the average cost of offering them is slowly decreasing.

Employer clients and their employees expect innovative technology solutions to meet their needs, even when it comes to health care — and especially when it comes to private exchanges.

Commentary: Creating a culture that speaks to today’s job seekers is the key to recruiting and maintaining top talent across all generations.

Commentary: Big financial moves such as the merger between Willis and Towers Watson announced this week can be quite interesting; and if you study them they may actually tell a story about where these firms think the market is going.

What kind of employee takes advantage of the chance to select from potentially thousands of investment options available through a 401(k) brokerage account?

As Towers Watson & Co. and Willis Group Holdings Plc head to the altar for an all-stock merger valued at $18 billion, their respective private exchanges could command the roles of best man and bridesmaid.

The merger of Willis and Towers Watson is likely just one of many to come in the next few years, as the Affordable Care Act and other factors continue to change the landscape of the business of health care, industry experts agree.