Employee benefits

Doctors are increasingly taking on more patients to compensate for cuts in payments from health insurers, researchers say, and PPACA is expected to increase the volume.

A small survey from the Midwest Group on Health indicates that, while further conversation is needed, awareness of the challenges surrounding specialty pharmacy is increasing.

Ninety-eight percent of American businesses have fewer than 100 employees and, according to new numbers from LIMRA, the number of small employers offering benefits is at its lowest level in 20 years.

Oklahoma opposed a request by the U.S. that a judge dismiss the state’s lawsuit challenging President Obama’s 2010 health-care reform legislation.

Tax the rich! Raise their rates! Limit their deductions! That seems to be the populist mantra. It’s perpetuated in the press, and there’s some indication that the general public seems to support the idea. Now middle class workers with higher than average incomes seem to be caught up in discussions defining those that are “rich,” says EBA Blogger and The Principal Financial Group’s tax-exempt national practice leader.

“Being able to afford health care and the support I need in my old age,” had 26% of respondents “highly worried,” the most common response in a new survey from UBS Wealth Management Americas.

State exchanges top Americans’ wish list for what they would like the government to set as 2013 health care priorities.

Howard County, Md., will become the first municipality to establish a nonprofit, member-run health co-op to sell individual and small group plans through the insurance exchanges — a move some say could undercut competitors by 30%.

UnitedHealth Group Inc. and other U.S. health insurers will soon have company in Maryland: a nonprofit started by a county government that plans to sell coverage at rates as much as 30% lower than competitors.

With the 113th Congress up and running and the president’s policy schedule filling up by the day, the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard School of Public Health polled Americans last week on what they would like the government to set as top health care priorities for the year.

As Congress pushes the debt ceiling debate farther down the road, Americans’ personal finances are worse than ever. According to a new survey by the Personal Finance Employee Education Foundation, only 24% of respondents say they have “little financial stress.” That leaves 76% who would likely benefit from a financial education plan at work. According to PFEEF, a workplace financial fitness program can not only improve productivity, but also boost morale and company loyalty.

After a year of significant change in the LTC industry in 2012 Blogger Tom Riske Jr. seems 2013 as a year of growth in LTC sales through the worksite. He shares some key features an employer and adviser should look for when considering one of the newer multi-life LTC offerings.

Primary care physicians should screen all females between the ages of 14 and 46 for evidence of domestic abuse, according to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.

The second-biggest U.S. health insurer’s 2013 forecast reflects “uncertainties” that include a flu outbreak, U.S. budget negotiations and implementation of President Obama’s health care overhaul.

A new survey suggests workers under the age of 25 are significantly more confident than others that they are on track for a comfortable retirement. Is it youthful arrogance, or has the younger generation absorbed some of the financial lessons we need them to learn?

The earnings of the largest American medical insurer met analysts’ estimates, the company reported, along with a bump in enrollment that came with a Brazilian acquisition last year.

Workers underestimate what employers spend on their health care, but overestimate their own health status.

Two of the largest U.S. drugstore chains, said they are running short of influenza vaccines as an earlier and more severe flu season drives up demand from Michigan to New Jersey.

UnitedHealth Group Inc., the largest U.S. provider of medical coverage, will join the Mayo Clinic in a research alliance designed to merge insurance records and medical data to find more efficient ways to deliver care.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that influenza is widespread in 47 states, but certain regions may soon start to see fewer cases.