New Preventive Care Services Schedule Now Available
Interim Final Rules related to the coverage of preventive services under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) were recently published. A complete list of required preventive services is available from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The following is a partial listing of preventive services required to be covered under Health […]
COBRA – Good News for Employers trying to Manage Loss Ratios
Employee’s eligible for Cobra can opt for “Marketplace coverage” instead of COBRA. Employees and their families eligible for, but not enrolled in, COBRA continuation insurance are able to enroll in Marketplace coverage outside of the normal open enrollment period, in most cases. It’s very possible employees eligible for COBRA continuation coverage could save on their […]
Fraud? – HDHP 50% Prompt-Pay Discount
Scenario: Employee has a HDHP and goes to Hospital. Hospital offer to discount the employee’s deductible by 50%. (i.e. Employee owes only half of the deductible, $3,000 debt is now $1,500.) The plan pays the full amount due above the deductible. Has fraud been committed (knowingly or not)? It is fraud because there’s a 3rd […]
W2 vs 1099 Worker – ACA Regulations make it Important to Get It Right
July 16th we blogged IRC 60566/6056 “will prove to be the most cumbersome and costly part of Obamacare.” We wrote: “Employers with part-time, seasonal and variable hour workers (someone working for a company with different job functions/classifications, thus hours under two different pay codes) will particularly have difficulties and will need a managed solution. This makes […]
What Makes a Great EAP?
Most employers now believe Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) are important elements in their total compensation and benefits offerings. They know the equation: by helping employees identify and solve personal concerns, EAPs create the opportunity for employees to focus and perform at their highest levels. The return for employers is proven time and again by staff […]
7 Advantages of Partially Self-Funded Health Plans
Obamacare allows no rate consideration for health conditions on fully-insured small group plans. Rates are the same whether a group is very healthy or very sick. Healthier groups must subsidize the cost for sicker groups. Since groups are not underwritten, the business owner usually has no way of knowing if the cost includes a subsidy […]
Healthcare Bluebook brings Price Transparency
Healthcare Bluebook provides transparency to consumers to compare healthcare costs and quality. Employers can provide a valuable tool to employees that will enable them to shop for the most affordable high quality care. How does Healthcare Bluebook work? Employees search for services using common language Employees learn the price range they can expect to pay […]
Humpty Dumpty Had a Great Fall
Employee Benefit Advisors blogged Oct 9, 2013 about court cases that have been falling under the radar. EBA said “These cases could dismantle health care reform as we know it.” – Yesterday the decision came down the “Court bars PPACA aid for federal exchange shoppers.” The decision has already been appealed, however, the way PPACA […]
Four Numbers that may cause you to say Four Letter Words
The U.S. Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service has issued the final regulations on the employer mandate under the Affordable Care Act. The new 6055 & 6056 regulations are 227 pages long and Employee Benefit Advisors believes will prove to be the most cumbersome and costly part of Obamacare. We say costly because we believe […]
Charity & Community
Over $8,000 was raised for CARRFOUR by Mike Schunk / Employee Benefit Advisors working with the Miami Finance Forum. The event itself raised $1,360 and then for every dollar donated, Carrfour was able to leverage $5.00 in government funding. This means a gift of $1,360 will yield $6,800 in government funding for an impact value […]