DOL proposes changes to Form 5500

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DOL proposes changes to Form 5500

The U.S. Department of Labor plans to revise Form 5500 to require insurers and health plans to report more information. The proposed changes focus on five broad goals: modernizing financial reporting, providing greater information regarding group health plans, enhancing data mineability, improving service provider fee information, and enhancing compliance with ERISA and the tax code. One element that is sure to attract the attention of smaller employers is a proposal to eliminate the exemption ...

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18
JUL
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, Finance, HR, Small Group

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ACA Reporting Deadlines Delayed

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ACA Reporting Deadlines Delayed

Yesterday the IRS released Notice 2016-4, which delays the ACA reporting due dates for both furnishing forms to individuals and filing forms with the IRS. This is welcome news to many employers who are scrambling to complete their first effort at reporting, which must cover the 2015 plan year.

The delay gives employers an extra two months to furnish forms to individuals by changing the deadline from February 1, 2016 to March 31, 2016. Employers have an extra three months ...

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29
DEC
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, HR, Time Sensitive!

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Spending deal would delay Cadillac Tax

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Spending deal would delay Cadillac Tax

Earlier this month, the Senate approved a bill to repeal many core elements of Obamacare, including the “Cadillac tax” on high cost health plans. At the time the vote was seen as a symbolic act because the bill’s supporters lacked the votes necessary to overcome President Obama’s veto. Although Senate Democrats are opposed to repealing the President’s health reform law, there is bi-partisan support for modifying, delaying, or eliminating the Cadillac tax. Under a Continue Reading →

16
DEC
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, Finance, HR

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PACE Act Passage Elicits Praise and Frustration

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PACE Act Passage Elicits Praise and Frustration

Earlier this month, President Obama signed the bipartisan PACE Act to stop the Affordable Care Act (ACA) from changing rules that apply to employers with between 51 and 99 employees. This is important both as a rare example of bipartisan cooperation to reform Obamacare, as well as a preservation of the status quo for employers in this mid-market segment. The Act has been praised by insurance brokers and business groups, but has ...

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23
OCT
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, HR, Public Exchange, Small Group, Strategy

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ACA Reporting Forms Released

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ACA Reporting Forms Released

Last week the IRS published the final versions of the forms and instructions that applicable large employers (ALEs) will need to use to report on employees’ 2015 health coverage. Draft versions of the forms were released in June and the final versions do not include any major changes. With the final versions now available, ALEs can begin working to complete the forms in advance of their February 2016 deadline.

Reporting under ACA Sections 6055 and 6056 was originally scheduled ...

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21
SEP
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, HR

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Big Changes at Assurant

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Big Changes at Assurant

Last week, Assurant, Inc. announced an agreement to sell its employee benefits business to Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, a subsidiary of Sun Life Financial, Inc., for $940 million. This transaction comes just three months after Assurant shut down operations at Milwaukee-based Assurant Health. It also coincides with the announcement of increased dividends to shareholders and a rise in the company’s stock price.

The employee benefits business purchased by Sun Life includes Assurant’s voluntary and employer paid dental, ...

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18
SEP
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, Small Group, Strategy

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Republicans Unveil ACA Alternatives

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Republicans Unveil ACA Alternatives

As the Republican presidential primary race is heating up, the candidates’ plans to repeal and replace Obamacare are receiving increased attention.

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker announced his plan to repeal and replace Obamacare, “The Day One Patient Freedom Plan,” at a factory in Minnesota on Tuesday. His plan includes a number of policy proposals that have long been popular among conservatives, including tort reform, selling health insurance across state lines, and Medicaid block grants for the states. One of ...

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21
AUG
0

Affordable Care Act, Employee Benefits, Medicaid, Medicare

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National Uninsured Rate Falls Below 10%

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National Uninsured Rate Falls Below 10%

Two national surveys show that the percentage of people without health insurance has dropped steadily since the Affordable Care Act’s public insurance exchanges launched in 2013. A separate analysis focused on Wisconsin concluded that while the state now has fewer uninsured than it did in 2014 and a lower uninsured rate than the national average, progress has not been as great as hoped. These findings come at a time when all viable legal challenges to the law have been resolved ...

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20
AUG
0

Affordable Care Act, Consumerism, Employee Benefits, Individual Insurance, Medicaid, Public Exchange, Small Group

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GAO Probe Focuses on Healthcare.gov Fraud

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GAO Probe Focuses on Healthcare.gov Fraud

The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported to Congress last Thursday that it has concluded an undercover investigation into the fraud detection capabilities of the federal health exchange website, www.healthcare.gov.

The GAO’s Director of Forensic Audits, Seto Bagdoyan, told the Senate Finance Committee that his investigators submitted applications for eighteen fictitious individuals last year. Of those eighteen, eleven successfully enrolled in a subsidized health insurance plan. And of those eleven, six were flagged as suspicious and terminated ...

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20
JUL
0

Affordable Care Act, Individual Insurance, Public Exchange

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Aetna-Humana merger drives fee-based model

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Aetna-Humana merger drives fee-based model

With Aetna poised to acquire Humana in 2016, industry observers have noted how industry consolidation generally and Aetna’s growing market share in particular will lead more intermediaries to adopt a fee-based compensation model. Although fee-based compensation for intermediaries is not a new concept, it is far less common than traditional commission based compensation. However, it appears increasingly likely that fee-based compensation will become much more widespread in the coming years.

Traditionally, insurance agents and brokers have been paid for ...

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13
JUL
0

Affordable Care Act, Consumerism, Employee Benefits, Finance, HR, Small Group, Strategy

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