Employee benefits

The ability to provide a balance of risk between sponsor and participant through a hybrid design is drawing interest--even among small employers.

Record for 2012 hit despite de-risking by some plan sponsors, according to Milliman analysis.

An analysis of seven previous studies showed the beverages appeared to disturb the heart’s natural rhythm, which over time may lead to an irregular heartbeat or death and raise blood pressure.

The American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries is applauding a bipartisan push to make it easier for workers to repay withdrawals they make from their employer-sponsored defined contribution plans.

Communicating ahead of open enrollment is both a broader and a more specific challenge in a post-health care reform world. One expert at Univers talks about how she is prepping her clients and tips for how employers should plan.

Capital Group Cos., owner of American Funds, is expanding its investment options and reorganized its equity teams in response to feedback from financial advisers

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, pressed by critics including Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, dropped a plan meant to give pension-cost certainty to local officials that may have left the system unable to pay benefits.

New legislation was issued last night in the Senate that would remove broker compensation from the MLR calculation.

Stable value funds require careful scrutiny in the initial selection phase and on an ongoing basis. A new report offers a comprehensive look at the latest trends, and a helpful due-diligence list to use when you are looking at funds for clients.

Prohibitions against dual compensation for fiduciary advisers haven’t been fully grasped, suggests prominent ERISA attorney Fred Reish.

The California State Teachers’ Retirement System’s $73 billion unfunded liability may be the state’s “most difficult fiscal challenge” and lawmakers should increase funding for the second-largest U.S. pension, the Legislative Analyst’s Office has reported.

Illinois teachers would be asked to choose between pension increase and retiree health under a measure that was adopted by the state’s senate this week. The bill’s impact is a matter of dispute. Illinois’ pension system is the most under-funded state system in the country.

The Labor Department provides more rationale to guide clients to best-in-class asset managers. But consider the case for “quasi-customization.”

The report card, developed by Catalyst for Payment Reform and the Health Care Incentives Improvement Initiative (HCI³), examined multiple transparency factors on a 100-point scale.

Funding for Alzheimer’s has lagged behind other medical issues, advocates say, and the disease is now the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States. Without breakthroughs, the number of those affected aged 65 and older will double by 2050.

Consumer-driven health plans are not achieving long-term savings greater than what would be reached by raising the deductible on traditional PPOs, according to the 2012 UBA Health Plan Survey.

International rules designed to make derivative transactions safer by increasing collateral requirements may lead pension plans to take unnecessary risks, according to the National Association of Pension Funds

The Shrinking Emergency Account Losses (SEAL) Act, sponsored by U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), is before the Senate again. The bill, originally proposed in 2011, would give 401(k) participants who borrow against their 401(k) retirement plans more time to replenish their accounts after leaving a job.

A recent academic study examined whether mutual fund companies that act as trustees for 401(k) plans “display favoritism towards their own funds.” Although its conclusions will not shock many advisers, the research can be useful as a source of independent evidence on this important issue, and reinforce the vital role that an independent adviser can play in overseeing plan investments.

Most Investment Committees spend the majority of their meeting time talking about things they can't do anything about.