Health and wellness

Private retiree Medicare exchanges provide a glimpse of what public and private health insurance exchanges could look like.

Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan acknowledged late last week that his proposed health care reforms rely on many of the same spending reductions for which he has criticized President Barack Obama, something that could undercut a central message of the Republican campaign.

Encouraged by Rep. Paul Ryan’s focus on fiscal responsibility, many brokers and advisers remain satisfied a week after Gov. Mitt Romney announced his vice presidential pick, saying the seven-term Wisconsin congressman brings a fresh perspective to the presidential election.

If it’s okay to charge higher premiums on employer-provided health insurance to smokers or employees who refuse to take a health-risk appraisal, then why, asks guest blogger Bruce Shutan, is it wrong for the government to help us take better care of ourselves?

Employee morale continues a slow but steady decline from 2008 levels, but the benefits enrollment season, vastly approaching, offers employers the chance to positively engage their employees, according to recent research from Unum.

As carriers ramp up to gain market share ahead of PPACA, Aetna acquires Coventary —increasing its overall share of government health plans to more than 30%, and nearly 42 million members nationwide.

Working Americans would receive a set of capped tax credits to cover their health care costs under a proposal by Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan, who believes excluding employer-provided coverage from federal taxes provides an unfair advantage.

An employee-assistance expert who fears EAPs may be missing the mark on substance abuse assessments suggests a more holistic approach to worksite wellness.

Corporate America, take note: A new report sheds light on the national obesity epidemic’s regional trouble spots, as well as areas that are successfully battling bulging waistlines.

The Obama administration this week will try to encourage reluctant U.S. states to move forward with health insurance exchanges amid fears that time is running out for states to act on a reform provision meant to extend coverage to millions of low-to-moderate income uninsured Americans.

By choosing U.S. Representative Paul Ryan as his running mate, Mitt Romney has added some verve to what had been a tedious presidential contest.

Employers that develop a culture of health are able to bend the cost curve, but one potentially serious impediment is an alarming national obesity epidemic that has triggered multiple co-morbidity factors that run up expenses.

Although it’s unclear when obesity is deemed “severe” enough to constitute an ADA-protected disability, it is now clear that “morbid” obesity” warrants such protection.

PPACA compliance is expected to hit employers with large part-time employee populations hardest, while some firms may need to think twice about low-paid workers qualifying for Medicaid.

More employers are linking wellness incentives to completing lifestyle modification programs or progress made toward meeting acceptable ranges for biometric measures such as blood pressure, body mass index, blood sugar and cholesterol, finds Aon Hewitt.

In a gadget-driven world that has nearly erased any boundary line between work and life, there’s an app for just about anything. The employee benefits landscape is no exception.

Walmart Stores Inc, the largest private employer, endorsed a new Democratic proposal for controlling health care spending that would seek to keep the rising cost of medical services in line with wage growth.

With the cost of employer-provided health care benefits at large U.S. employers expected to rise another 7% next year, a new survey by the National Business Group on Health suggests employers are eyeing a variety of cost-control measures but also sharply boosting financial rewards to engage workers in healthy lifestyles.

Forty-seven million women will now have access to eight new prevention-related health care services under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced on Wednesday.

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