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The Future of Vision

6 eye care and eye wear innovations that will alter your view of vision benefits

    1. Accu-Fit Technology – reads the shape of your eyes and automatically recommends the best prescription
    2. Glasses.com – takes a 3D image of your face and allows you to look at up to four pairs of frames from every angle
    3. Onsite or pop-up clinics – setting up a store right in your office/plant, offering onsite exams; promotes both the importance of regular eye exams and your company’s wellness program
    4. “Healthy” wearable tech – your glasses will be your hub for your personal health and wellness providing you with your blood pressure blood sugar levels, etc… and automatically share the data with your doctor
    5. Smart Contacts – contact lenses that use tears to measure blood sugar levels for patients with diabetes (no more pricking your finger); for glaucoma patients lenses that measure intraocular pressure sending an alert to your smartphone that it’s time to administer eye drops
    6. Online Exams – emerging technology that allows for a refraction (used to determine the level of correction) to be tested online

Thank you Shauna Whittingham, Eyemed.

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits. We are a broker helping companies with their Health & Welfare Benefits. We also help companies revaluate PEO Services, deciding if a PEO is a good choice and if so selecting and implementing the PEO.

Obamaco$t – What is hiding in the numbers.

Aetna’s Health Reform Weekly published a New Kaiser Family Foundation research found that single and family premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance in 2015 rose by an average of 4 percent, but the survey also found that workers’ out-of-pocket costs are rising at a much faster rate, with a 67 percent increase in deductibles since 2010. – The hidden cost of Obamacare. Ouch!

Obamaco$t – Rate Increases for 2016

Health insurance companies were seeking rate increases of 20 percent to 40 percent or more. Reason cited, new customers under the Affordable Care Act are seeking more treatment than expected. Increases of approximately half the amount requested is generally what state insurance agency approved. Some states fairing better than others.

The proposed increases indicate health carriers are still adjusting to the impact of the Affordable Care Act. The proposed increases, supported by reams of actuarial data, are fueling debate about the effectiveness of the health law.

A study by the Kaiser Foundation suggests that consumers would see relatively modest increases in premiums if they were willing to switch plans. However, to get low premiums, consumers may need to accept a more limited choice of doctors and hospitals and if they switch plans, there is no guarantee that they can keep their doctors.

 

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

Useful App: GoodRx

Drug prices vary wildly between pharmacies.

GoodRx finds the lowest prices and discounts. How?

Compare prices – Prescription prices can vary widely from pharmacy to pharmacy. The app allows you to compare costs for every FDA-approved prescription drug at more than 70,000 US pharmacies.

Find free coupons – Show the coupon displayed in the app at the pharmacy.

Shows the lowest price at each pharmacy near you.

The app is 5 star rated and easy to use. GoodRx was rated as one of the 9 Best Shopping Apps in June 2015 by AllYou and has been featured on: CNN, Prevention Magazine, Forbes, ABC News and Good Housekeeping.

How GoodRx Works (1:23)

This app is great for those with or without insurance. – Many insurance policies carry HSA qualified high deductibles. Identifying lower prescription costs is especially helpful for those that do not reach their deductible. App users can identify those pharmacies offering lower costs medications.

 

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits. We are a broker helping companies with their Health & Welfare Benefits. We also help companies revaluate PEO Services, deciding if a PEO is a good choice and if so selecting and implementing the PEO.

Top 8 Issues for Employers under ACA

To be fully compliant employers face 8 key requirements.

  1. All “applicable large employers” are subject – The trick here is properly counting part-time and variable hour employees.
  2. January 1, 2015 was the “effective date” for the new requirements. – Even if employers qualify for temporary relief they must report 2015 calendar year data to the IRS.
  3. Employers must be able to identify their “full-time employees”. – The rules include look-back and stability periods to determine whether variable hour employees need to be offered coverage.
  4. IRS Form 1095-C is used to report employee-level data to the IRS. – This reporting uses a complicated set of codes and must be provided directly to employees and filed with the IRS. The form reports on a monthly basis whether the employer offered medical coverage to the employee, whether the coverage provided minimum value and was affordable.
  5. Self-Insured Plans need to report coverage data for employees and any covered dependents. – Regardless of the number of employees employers are required to complete Part III of Form 1095-C
  6. IRS Form 1094-C is used to report employer-level data to the IRS. – 1094-C is the “transmittal letter” to the IRS with employer-level demographic data including exemptions to the employer mandate.
  7. Employers must disclose their “controlled group” on the Form 1094-C. – The names and EINs of other ALE members must be listed. (This is the first time the IRS has required this disclosure.)
  8. Employers filing 205 or more Form 1095-C must file electronically. – The IRS required filers to use its electronic submission system. The complexity of this system will make it extremely difficult for large employers to file on their own behalf.

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

New Law Increases ACA Information Reporting Penalties

The Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015 will increase the penalties employers are subject to under the Affordable Care Act’s information reporting provisions.

Information Reporting Penalties

Self-insuring employers that provide minimum essential health coverage (regardless of size) and large employers with 50 or more full-time employees (including full-time equivalents) that fail to comply with the information reporting requirements may be subject to the general reporting penalty provisions under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) sections 6721 (failure to file correct information returns) and 6722 (failure to furnish correct payee statements).

The penalty for failure to file an information return and the penalty for failure to provide a correct payee statement is increased from $100 to $250 for each return which such failure. The total penalty imposed for all failures during a calendar year cannot exceed $3,000,000, increased from $1,500,000.

Employers are required to report for the first time in early 2016 for calendar year 2015. The law will apply to returns and statements required to be filed after December 31, 2015.

Question: What does the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015 have to do with the Affordable Care Act?

 

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

Dark Chocolate – just what the Doctor ordered!

Just 30 calories per day of chocolate may be enough to help reduce your blood pressure. As far as serving sizes go, that’s about a Hershey’s Kiss worth.

But you have to eat the right kind of chocolate, according to Joseph Maroon, MD, author of The Longevity Factor. He recommends nonsweetened or minimally sweetened dark chocolate that’s at least 70 percent cocoa.

Dark Chocolate: The Benefits
In addition to the chocolate and blood pressure connection, dark chocolate can also help reduce atherosclerosis and blood clotting, aid blood flow, contribute to an overall reduction in heart attacks, and improve cholesterol levels. And it’s all thanks to the powerful antioxidants found in the cocoa bean.

More Good Reasons to Eat Chocolate
As if you need them . . .
• For better blood sugar. Chocolate enhances the effect of insulin and sugar utilization.
• For a finer complexion. Yep, fewer wrinkles and fine lines.

PS – Just to be safe, Employee Benefit Advisors enjoys 60 calories a day.
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This article appeared on Sharecare. It is just one of the many fun facts that will draw you back to the site on a regular basis. What is Sharecare? Sharecare was developed by Dr. Mehmet Oz and Jeff Arnold as an online health profile, just like you have social, professional, and creative profiles.

www.sharecare.com – An interactive platform that provides expert health information and allows you to ask questions and get answers.

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

Major Legal Challenge Still Lies Ahead of ACA

At the center of the challenge is the Appropriations Clause of the Constitution.  Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 says, “No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law.”

The lawsuit filed argues the administration is spending billions of dollars without the necessary appropriations from Congress.

The suit filed involves the fundamental question of executive power and Congress’s power of the purse. The issue is a provision of the health care law that requires insurance companies to reduce co-payments, deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs. The federal government reimburses insurers for the “cost-sharing reductions.” This type of assistance is different from the subsidies upheld by the Supreme Court last week. The subsidies, tax credits, help people pay insurance premiums.

The lawsuit challenges the Obama administration saying they did not receive, but needed, an appropriation to make these payments to insurance companies. Thus, President Obama requested the money as part of the budget he sent to Congress in April 2013, but Congress did approve the request. The administration began making the payments in early 2014, using money from a separate account established for tax refunds and tax credits.

In their lawsuit, House Republicans say, “Congress has not, and never has, appropriated any funds” for the cost-sharing reductions. The Obama administration argues that the House does not have standing to sue because its members have not suffered a concrete injury or specific harm. The case is “a generalized institutional dispute between the executive branch and one chamber of the legislative branch,” the Justice Department said.

 

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

 

Obamacare – 5 Years Later

Conclusion: If we look at the three main points of Obamacare we see (1) although there has been an increase in the number of insureds, it was minimal;  (2) costs have increased (vs. the decrease we were promised); and (3) the ability to keep your doctor has not held true for many Americans.

A new Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) report shows final enrollment in 2015 marketplace plans across the country stands at 10.2 million; 6.4 million Americans receive subsidies in the federally facilitated marketplaces. Weiss ratings looked at Obamacare 5 years after it was passed into law, here’s what they found.

Although the number of insured has increased, doctor visits have gone up as well as days spent in the hospital. Pro-Obamacare, the increase in usage makes sense since there are more people covered by insurance. Anti-Obamacare, more people overwhelm the healthcare system and make it more expensive for everyone.

In addition Weiss Reports, “Unfortunately, as we predicted some years ago, there are now fewer but larger health insurers, which has reduced competitive pressures. Additionally, the 15 percent of premiums allowed for expenses and profits offers no incentive to the insurers to keep health costs lower and perversely encourages them to increase spending. Consequently, Obamacare, ironically, has encouraged higher healthcare spending. However, once the challenge of medical expenses is addressed, we look forward to the day when healthcare is cheaper and more affordable.” (EBA says wishful thinking if you believe last point.)

Inevitably, if health expense issues, which were a major exclusion from Obamacare, are not addressed, prices will continue to rise. And that means costs (premiums) will get a lot worse before they get better.

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(EBA’s commentary – We were told 43-47 million were uninsured prior to the ACA and Obamacare would insure all but about 13 million. Now we hear 30 million will remain uninsured. End result, far short of expectations and not worth the expense.)

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

Voluntary Certification gives businesses more confidence when dealing with a PEO

Currently businesses bear the responsibility when PEOs have failed to pay all wages and taxes, even when they may have already been paid to the PEO beforehand.

Under a new voluntary certification effective January 1, 2016, when a Certified PEO (CPEO) Regulation (H.R. 5771, Division B, Title 2, Section 206) contracts with a business, the CPEO becomes solely responsible for paying wages to employees, and collecting employment taxes on those wages. The CPEO is still responsible even if the client business has not made sufficient payment to the CPEO.

Prior to this Act, when a business enters or terminates a PEO agreement, at a time other than the beginning of a year, the business had to restart the taxable wage base for FICA and FUTA taxes. Now, CPEOs become successor employers and restarts are not necessary. The Act also establishes that certain credits apply to the client business and not to the CPEO, including Work Opportunity Tax Credits (WOTC), Research & Development Credits (R&D), Empowerment Zone Credits (EZ) and Indian Employment Credits (IEC). Previously it was at the PEOs discretion whether to take these credits themselves, or pass them on to their client companies.

Employee Benefit Advisors provides employee benefits, tax-advantaged healthcare, compliance guidance for ACA and Health & Welfare DOL Audits, and PEO Advisory & Consulting Services.

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