Insurance

The new reality of health care is here: shopping for benefits online via simple mobile apps; virtual care anytime, anywhere; and games to make chronic care management appealing. Despite that, challenges remain in the move to true digital health and, with it, better outcomes, a top Cigna executive said Monday.

Each year, Employee Benefit Adviser magazine grants awards to recognize excellence and innovation in the field. This year, we’ve added two new categories to reflect the growing role of the employee benefit adviser in having a positive impact on all facets of a client’s business.

While employers may recognize that the amount of time employees will spend in retirement is growing, people around the world fail to reflect this trend in their long-term financial planning.

While many plan sponsors may choose the same firm to audit their benefit plan that audits their company’s financial statements, doing so may not always be the best choice, cautions the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Commentary: Changing the course of ongoing consumer engagement will empower consumers to embrace the new consumer-directed health care dynamic and start changing their own behavior.

House Republicans yesterday introduced a plan to repeal the ACA and replace key pieces of it with high-risk health pools and tax credits that benefit industry experts oppose, saying it would undermine the employer-sponsored health care system in place today.

Chiropractors and other ancillary health care providers are breathing a sigh of relief following an about-face by federal regulators with respect to Affordable Care Act’s coverage of their services.

Benefit advisers can be a ‘vital’ resource for low-income earners who, according to new research, need better understanding of and engagement with their employers’ benefit offerings.

Achieving better enrollment rates for voluntary benefits depends on high-quality, relevant data.

The clock is ticking for various state legislatures that are pondering a change in the way their residents enroll in public health insurance exchanges ahead of the widely anticipated June ruling in King v. Burwell on whether federal subsidies will be scrapped in 34 states that rely on Healthcare.gov for signups.

The proposals for Healthcare.gov plans are subject to a review process before the final rates are published by Nov. 1.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but all 350 MHBT employees will join MMA under a new company name.

Despite nearly 9-in-10 enrollees through California’s state-run public exchange receiving a subsidy to help pay for their insurance, almost half say it is difficult to afford the monthly premium.

Benefits decision-makers continue to struggle with the notion of financially justifying their wellness dollars, as wellness ROI is still exceptionally elusive.

Too many employee benefit plan audits are deficient, finds a new report from the U.S. Department of Labor, putting up to $653 billion and 22.5 million plan participants and beneficiaries at risk.

The business benefits of private exchanges are starting to be realized by insurers and brokers alike, with an increased focus on voluntary products, savings for insurers and a reliance on brokers.

If the DOL's proposal to impose new fiduciary responsibilities on advisers in the retirement space becomes rule, many financial professionals fearing legal liability could abandon that market altogether, and cut off services to low- and middle-income investors, according to FINRA chief Richard Ketchum.

HR technology company Namely has launched an internal benefits brokerage as part of its goal to be an end to end HR solution for growing startups. But the company wants to work with other brokers, not in competition with them.

Nearly half of the 17 state-run public health insurance exchanges are suffering financial difficulties with the chief culprits being high expenses and tepid enrollment, which rose just 12% compared with compared to a 61% increase for Healthcare.gov.

Data suggest a strong correlation between an employee’s overall sense of confidence in the future and the benefits they participate in at work – particularly non-medical benefits such as life insurance, accident insurance and critical illness insurance.