Employee benefits

Critical-illness insurance is flying under the radar relative to other voluntary benefits, but a new MetLife white paper seeks to raise the product’s altitude among plan sponsors by showing how it adds financial protection and outlining steps to obtain the right amount of coverage.

The federal government's plans to build a national database of health care claims data covering tens of millions of individuals are on hold, at least temporarily, after privacy advocates protested the idea and the brief public comment period.

American CEOs are getting an earful on whether to keep or drop health insurance because of the health law, but Chris McSwain, director of global benefits at Whirlpool, said a business case on health coverage should also occur on the employee-family member level.

National Business Coalition on Health issued yesterday its annual findings that evaluate the quality and efficiency of U.S. health plans.

The American Medical Association has adopted a new policy that gives guidance to physicians using social media.

The growing number of limited medical plans that are receiving waivers from the Department of Health and Human Services for 2011 — a number that nearly quadrupled in the last couple of months, rising from 30 in September to 117 by Nov. 1 — now face some additional reporting requirements.

AARP and the Consumer Reports Health publication have launched a Web site for consumers to compare price, effectiveness, safety and convenience of medications.

One of the nation’s leading group legal plan providers recently acquired a lesser-known player, while a rival firm considered this avenue as one of several strategic moves to enhance shareholder value – proving the adage about strength in numbers may be particularly compelling in this business climate.

Two recent indicators of small-business activity have found that the nation’s economic engine is chugging along with a more optimistic outlook than previously believed – developments that could expand the number of voluntary benefit plan participants.

Humana Inc. recently expanded its digital footprint in the worksite market by launching an interactive, Web-based resource that shows how critical illness, disability and accident coverage offer financial protection in the event of an injury or illness.

Various months are designated throughout the year to educating consumers about the need for a particular insurance product line or service to ease financial burdens.

One-third of recently surveyed physician practices and 14% of surveyed hospitals do not conduct a regular security risk analysis of their electronic health information.

Whether an employer continues to offer health insurance once state-run insurance exchanges take effect in 2014 will largely depend on the size of the employer, according to a survey by Mercer.

Although voluntary turnover has dipped significantly this year, a new PwC Saratoga study says employers are giving more attention to career development and performance management in anticipation of increased turnover as the economy improves.

Dave Cirulis recently was named head of voluntary marketplace strategy for distribution at Lincoln Financial Group, which has spruced up its product portfolio as well as enrollment, service and technology capabilities. He reports directly to Robert Risk, the insurer’s vice president, group protection sales.

In response to a new American Payroll Association survey showing 43% of employees valuing health benefits more important than higher wages, Dan Maddux, the group’s executive director has suggested that employees consider pretax voluntary payroll deductions and flexible spending accounts to ease the sting of rising health care costs and uncertainty about health care reform.

Podcast: Strategic alliances can serve as an inexpensive foothold into the voluntary benefits marketplace for vendors that seek to broaden ...

Long-term care (LTC) insurance is back in the headlines, with several leading insurance carriers seeking rate increases to help offset investment shortfalls in an ultra-low interest rate environment and greater-than-expected plan usage.

The SPARK Institute has sent a comment letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission asking it to modify its proposed 12b-1 fee rule.

Flush with victory from election night, Republican strategists are delving into possible measures to repeal or significantly hamper existing health care reform legislation.