healthcare – Page 22 – Saxon – Employee Benefits, Insurance & Wealth

Four Scenarios for Thursday’s Ruling on Health Care

Source: blogs.wsj.com/washwire
By Brent Kendall and Peter Landers

WASHINGTON–The Supreme Court’s eagerly awaited ruling on the 2010 federal health-care law is expected on Thursday, when the court will announce its final opinions of the term.

The high court announced two decisions on Monday. Three more, including the health-care case, remain pending.

Chief Justice John Roberts announced from the bench that Thursday will be the court’s final session before it takes a summer break. The chief justice said all remaining opinions will be announced then.

On the health care law, here are the most likely four scenarios on how the court could rule, as first laid out by Law Blog last week, shown in order of how much of the law would be struck down:

Scenario #1: The entire law is upheld.

The high court may conclude—as the majority of lower courts did—that Congress was acting within its powers under the Constitution when it required most Americans to carry health insurance or pay a penalty. That provision was at the center of the two-year legal battle, and if it survives, the rest of the law is likely to stay as well.

Such a ruling would be a victory for Democrats and President Barack Obama, who had passed the biggest reworking to the health system since the creation of Medicare in the 1960s and faced the prospect of the court nullifying their effort. It would also avert disruption for hospitals, doctors and employers who have spent more than two years preparing for changes in the law.

Even in this case, however, the law would face an uncertain future. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and GOP congressional leaders have pledged to repeal the law if they take control of Congress and the White House in November elections.

Scenario #2: The insurance mandate is struck down, but the entire rest of law stays.

This was the ruling of a federal appeals court in Atlanta last year, and the Supreme Court may choose to uphold it. In this scenario, the high court would conclude that Congress exceeded its powers with the requirement to carry insurance or pay a penalty. But it would judge that provision separable from the rest of the law.

This would be the worst-case scenario for insurance companies and set off a scramble for the Obama administration and supporters of the law to prove that it could still work. Unless Congress took further action, insurers would be required accept all customers starting in 2014–even those who are already sick–without imposing surcharges for pre-existing medical conditions. At the same time, the court’s ruling would mean people wouldn’t be required to carry health coverage. Insurers say that would lead to chaos in the market as people waited until they were sick to sign up for policies.

Scenario #3: The mandate and two related provisions are struck down but the rest of the law stays.

At Supreme Court arguments in March, the Obama administration, fearing the market chaos in scenario #2, argued that the insurance mandate was inextricably linked to two other provisions. Those provisions require insurers to accept all customers and restrict the insurers from charging more based on a person’s medical history. The administration said if the mandate were struck down, the other two provisions should go too.

If the court adopts that position, it would mean that the principal aim of the law—expanding coverage to tens of millions of Americans—would be unlikely to be achieved. Republicans would feel vindicated and push to repeal the rest of the law.

While not as disruptive as scenario #2 for health insurers, this scenario would still create broad uncertainty in the health business. Many parts of the law would remain, including those setting up new marketplaces in 2014 where consumers can shop for policies and get subsidies for coverage. Companies with 50 or more workers would have to start offering a set level of health benefits in 2014 or pay a fine.

Supporters of the law have said those provisions could still function, but questions would be sure to arise whether the marketplaces were workable without the core of the law.

Scenario #4: The entire law is struck down.

If the high court concludes that the insurance mandate is unconstitutional, it may agree with challengers that the only path is to invalidate the entire law.

Such a ruling would unravel all the work by the health industry and local governments preparing for the law. It would be a painful blow to Mr. Obama and Democrats who spent so much time and political capital on their health-care overhaul. Yet it would also put pressure on Republicans. They could no longer talk about repealing what they term ObamaCare but would have to figure out what, if anything, to bring before Congress to replace it. Gerald F. Seib discussed Republican challenges in the event of a negative ruling here.

by 6d-destani

Take Action to Eliminate Slip, Trip, and Fall Hazards

Slips, trips, and falls are among the most common cause of lost-workday injuries. Nowhere is the problem worse than in the healthcare industry. Here are some preventive measures implemented in that industry that could help reduce the risk of these incidents in your workplace, too.

Research conducted by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in three acute care hospitals led to the identification of the major causes of slips, trips, and falls, along with the development of effective measures for preventing them.

Over a 10-year period following the implementation of these preventive measures, workers' compensation costs arising from slips, trips, and falls in the three hospitals declined by 59 percent. These preventive measures could help reduce your workers' comp costs, too.

What's Tripping Up Workers?

The specific causes of slips, trips, and falls may vary—the slick floors in your workplace might be created by a different substance than those in a hospital—but the prevention principles can be broadly applied to any workplace and any industry.

Major risk factors identified by NIOSH and the CDC include:

1. Contaminants on floors and walkways. Kitchens, bathrooms, building entrances, and other areas where floors and walkways are often wet or contaminated present this type of risk. Effective preventive measures include:

Well-documented housekeeping procedures. The CDC suggests creating a written housekeeping program.
Two-step mopping. This technique, in which a cleaning solution is applied, then removed, is more effective than traditional damp-mopping and may reduce slipping hazards.
Slip-resistant shoes. In persistently slick areas, workers should wear appropriate footwear.
Correctly aligning pipes with the drain they empty into, unclogging drains regularly, and redirecting downspouts away from sidewalks.

2. Indoor walking surface irregularities. Damaged, warped, buckled, or uneven flooring surfaces can cause employees to slip, trip, or fall. Control this risk by:

Replacing or re-stretching loose or buckled carpeting
Removing, patching underneath, and replacing indented or blistered vinyl tile
Eliminating trip hazards over a quarter-inch high in all areas of pedestrian travel, using beveling or ramps
Replacing smooth flooring materials in areas normally exposed to water, grease, and/or particulate matter with rougher-surfaced flooring
Making sure elevators are leveled properly so elevator floors line up evenly with hallway floors

3. Outdoor walking surface irregularities. Outdoor falls can result from poorly maintained, uneven ground; protruding structures; holes; and rocks, leaves, and other debris. Improve safety by:

Patching or filling cracks greater than a half-inch wide in walkways
Highlighting changes in elevation with Safety Yellow warning paint
Eliminating concrete wheel stops in parking lots
Covering or highlighting underground watering system structures

4. Weather conditions. Ice, snow, and rain can cause slips and falls. In areas where this is a problem, you can improve safety by:

Providing additional mats when needed
Removing ice and snow from parking lots, garages, and sidewalks promptly
Placing freezing weather warning monitors at entrances to employee parking areas
Displaying contact numbers for the maintenance department so employees can report slick conditions
Placing bins of ice-melting chemicals in outdoor areas of heavy pedestrian traffic

5. Inadequate lighting. Inadequate lighting makes it harder to see hazards. Make hazards visible by:

Installing more light fixtures and/or brighter bulbs in poorly lit areas
Installing light fixtures that emit light from all sides

6. Stairs and handrails. Poorly designed or maintained stairs and handrails can lead to falls. Make these safer with:

Slip-resistant treads and nosing that cover the entire tread, especially on outside steps
Handrails at an appropriate height (34 to 38 inches from the stepping surface)
Handrails that extend the full length of the stairs plus 12 inches at top and one tread depth at bottom

7. Tripping hazards. General clutter, loose cords, hoses, and wires pose a tripping hazard along with improperly used floor mats. Eliminate these by:

Using wall-mounted storage hooks, shelves, and hose spools
Marking walkways and keeping them clear
Covering cords on the floor with a beveled protective cover
Using mats and runners large enough that users can take several footsteps on them, thereby cleaning contaminants off their shoes before the shoes contact the flooring
Using beveled-edge, flat, and continuous or interlocking mats
Replacing mats that are curled, ripped, or worn (secure edges with carpet tape if needed)

by 6d-destani

Time for employers to get proactive on workplace wellbeing

Oliver Gray, 22 May 2012

Source: HRmagazine.co.uk

Employee wellbeing might be firmly on the agenda for some organizations but are employers any nearer to really reaping all of the benefits associated with it?

Too many organizations take a reactive approach to wellbeing which leaves them missing out.

Too often organizations take a reactive approach to employee well-being. Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean employers have failed to think about well-being or aren't putting solutions in place, because many are. In fact, many medium to large organizations invest thousands of pounds every month paying for private medical insurance and annual health checks. But this is all reactive.

Private medical insurance can add huge value to businesses and individuals in terms of speeding up rehabilitation and getting employees back to work quickly. But it does not really help employees who are not sick or injured. Successful organizations know that there are huge benefits to be had from combining reactive health interventions, like private medical insurance, with proactive sessions to help employees really understand what simple changes they need to make to improve their health.

The forward thinking companies know that by taking a more proactive approach, focusing on both physical and mental well-being, and promoting healthy ways of living they have a real opportunity to make a positive change to the health, energy and performance of their staff. It is this that will reduce the cost of reactive health interventions, increase positivity throughout the organization and have a positive impact on the financial health of the organization.

In order to deliver real change we need to move away from thinking about well-being as a standalone activity, it is something that needs to be threaded through all talent management activities and that really becomes part of the culture. It is not enough to simply hold one event or workshop just to tick a box - putting in place healthy habits take time and therefore well-being activities need to be delivered regularly.

Only by helping employees understand what simple changes they need to make to change their habits will organizations reap all of the benefits of healthy, energized, high performing staff. By organizing health and wellbeing sessions that are relevant, dynamic, engaging and informative employees will be motivated to take action and it is this that will enable them to perform at their best.

Take stress as an example. Rather than focusing on stress, which is a word that creates so much negativity, instead organizations need to invest time coaching staff so that they become more resilient and are able to handle pressure. By training employees to be more resilient, giving them the tools to manage pressure effectively, employees are more likely to be able to handle the challenges that come their way. This means they are less likely to go off sick due to stress and are able to get on with their day job.

Organizations that are taking a proactive approach and making employee well-being part of their culture with directors, managers and employees buying into the concept are reaping the benefits. They are not only seeing a reduction in sickness absence and staff turnover but also an increase in performance, higher staff engagement and reduced healthcare costs.

by 6d-destani

Interest in health insurance exchanges grows

More say they would shop for coverage through a health insurance exchange

BY KATHRYN MAYER

More people looking to buy health insurance say they would shop for coverage through a health insurance exchange if they had the opportunity, according to a J.D. Power and Associates health plan study.

A majority of health plan members who purchase insurance on their own say they would likely use one of the state health insurance exchanges (55 percent), while 39 percent of those covered under an employer-sponsored program indicate they would shop for insurance through an exchange if it were available.

And more, the study finds there’s an increased level of interest in state-sponsored health insurance exchanges compared to last year. In 2012, 37 percent of health plan members say they wouldn’t likely use an exchange, compared with 50 percent in 2011 who expected to continue obtaining coverage at work.

The level of interest among those who obtain health insurance through work is an important implication for the future of employer-sponsored care, says Rick Millard, senior director of the health care practice at J.D. Power and Associates.

The study also finds substantial interest among health plan members in private health insurance exchanges, in which an employer might provide employees with vouchers for purchasing health insurance independently. Roughly 41 percent of employer-insured health plan members indicate they would use this approach if it were available.

by 6d-destani

Younger buyers buying asset-based LTC

By Marli D. Riggs

The sale of asset-based long-term care insurance protection continues to grow significantly, reveals research by the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.

More than half (53%) of male LTC buyers were under age 65, up from 48% in a prior year’s study, while women buyers under age 65 also increased to 50%, up from 44%, according to data gathered from insurers.

Meanwhile, premiums increased nearly 20% and the number of covered lives increased 13.5%.

"We expect the sale of asset-based or linked LTC products will continue to grow as they offer some highly attractive benefits to a category of buyers looking to protect their retirement savings," says Jesse Slome, AALTCI's director. "The growth of sales will only continue as more large players enter the marketplace.”

In 2011 the study finds that the initial single premium face amount of policies purchased was $100,000 or greater for 73% of new policies. Meanwhile, 96% of new life and LTC policies issued did not include a benefit increase option that bumped up available benefits to keep pace with inflationary growth of costs. Additionally the study of traditional individual LTC insurance policy sales finds that in 2011 some 96% included a growth option.

“At a time when long-term care is increasingly top of mind, these life insurance-based solutions avoid the ‘use it or lose it’ risk associated with traditional long term care insurance,” says Chris Coudret, vice president of OneAmerica. “In most cases, people make a single payment, effectively removing the risk of future premium increases.”

by 6d-destani

Confidence in Voluntary Benefits Rises

Profitability outlook increases over 2011 estimates

More brokers are confident about the voluntary employee benefits industry, a new survey shows. Results from Eastbridge Consulting Group’s Voluntary Industry Confidence Index finds confidence increased to 99.7 at year-end, up from 98.4 in a mid-year 2011 survey.

The index is calculated using three key expectation measures about the voluntary industry: sales growth, profitability of the industry, and employee enthusiasm about voluntary products.

“Feelings about the profitability of the industry rebounded the most,” says Gil Lowerre, president of Eastbridge. The percentage expecting lower profitability declined to just eight percent (down from 18 percent last time) and the percentage expecting increased profitability was up to 54 percent. “The percentage expecting sales growth for 2012 also improved nicely, with 95 percent expecting more sales,” Lowerre says.

The only measure that showed a decrease was employee enthusiasm about voluntary products. The mean was down from 3.82 to 3.80 primarily because more people said there would be “no change” in employee enthusiasm, explains Eastbridge vice president Bonnie Brazzell.

Eastbridge conducts the survey semi-annually and includes responses from individuals active in the market, among them carriers, brokers, vendors and employees. Like other confidence indices, the index is a single number that compares the current results to a baseline measure. The first Confidence Index survey was completed in December of 2005; the results from that survey serve as the “base” year (meaning the index was at 100 for that year).

By Kathryn Mayer

by 6d-destani

Employers Continue to Look for Savings

The recent trend of shifting more health care and benefit costs to employees is showing no signs of letting up, according to new industry research.

A survey displayed that 22 percent of employers had medical deductibles of at least $1,000 this year for in-network services for their most popular plans, according to a report in Business Insurance, compared with just 8 percent in 2008. Twice as many employers (44 percent) imposed that deductible level on out-of-network services this year, the survey found.

"The biggest change in the past two years has been the increase in cost sharing with employees," said Michael Thompson, a principal. "Employers have been careful not to shift premium costs to employees, but have decided that the better way to shift costs is to require those who use health care services to pay more."

A separate report by Milliman also points to an increase in cost sharing in PPO family plans. According to Healthcare Town Hall, a website sponsored by Milliman, the survey found that the average premium cost of those plans this year increased $1,319, or 7.3 percent. Of the total cost increase, employers paid $641, while workers picked up the rest, totaling an increase of $275 in additional cost sharing and an additional $403 in payroll contributions..

Many employers, however, are searching for solutions beyond deductible increases. More employers -- especially midsize companies -- are turning to voluntary benefits to reduce their burden while still offering valuable benefits to their employees, according to a new LIMRA study. While employers traditionally have used voluntary benefits as a morale booster, nearly 80 percent of polled employers said they are most interested in voluntary worksite benefits because they bring no direct costs to their business, an onlinePLANSPONSOR news report noted. Two-thirds said they offer such benefits because it boosts their overall benefits package and allows workers to receive services cheaper than if they tried to buy coverage in the marketplace.

Although the trend of cost sharing is growing, U.S. workers are starting to see improvements in their overall compensation, which is creeping back toward pre-recession levels, according to a recent survey published on the Society for Human Resource Management's website. Only 9 percent of polled employers still have a pay freeze in place - down from 48 percent in mid-2010. More companies also are restarting bonus programs in an effort to retain top talent, the survey said.

by 6d-destani

Voluntary benefits can help contain company costs

To recap a previous blog post before jumping straight in to the questions: Voluntary benefit plans help employers round out their employee benefit offerings amid cutbacks in company-paid core health care, allowing employers to provide employees with additional benefits without bearing the weight of increasing cost pressures. These optional benefits can serve as value-added tools to help attract and retain top talent. Employees often pay 100 percent of the premium on these voluntary benefits through payroll deduction. Many of these benefits can be offered to family and friends as well. It's up to the employee; it's their money, and it's not costing the employer anything.
How can companies determine if adding a voluntary benefit program is the right choice for them?

They have to look at the true cost of running a company. Adding a voluntary benefit program can help offset those costs for them. Many companies are looking to ways to cut costs in the health insurance arena. It is extremely costly to maintain these major benefits. Often, what these companies are doing, ultimately, is passing those costs on to their employees.

Most voluntary benefit programs will help reduce that cost to employees because of the unique system of these benefits. If employers decide to lower their cost of mandatory benefits by passing some of that cost on to their employees, the employees can then offset those costs by participating in, for example, auto and home insurance programs saving them money over the traditional coves they would shop on their own.

What should companies look for in a voluntary benefit program?

You want to choose a company that can provide access to a variety of types of voluntary coverage and choice for your employees in the plans available. The last thing you would want to do is to present a variety of new benefits to your employees, only to have them ultimately be confused about the different types of coverage, from different sources and the costs of each one. You will want to work with a company that can provide a powerful, effective and simple voluntary benefits package that will be communicated clearly to your employees to achieve the highest level of participation and acknowledgement of the added perks.

What is the benefit of having several policies within the same voluntary benefit package?

Simply put, the renewal process for any benefit plan can be extensive to research and implement at the term of each and every policy, not to mention having to do that multiple times across multiple carriers for multiple plans. That is a huge migraine in the making just thinking about it! By having your plan developed and presented in a unified way to your employees, you will not only save administrative costs communicating these benefits, but you will also save time and money when it comes time to renew.

If you have additional voluntary benefit questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office to learn more!

by 6d-destani

Employers Get Creative with Tight Budgets....

Voluntary benefits are on the rise, but why is that the trend we are seeing? The economy is in recovery, but it is and will continue to be a slow climb up a very tall mountain. Company belts have not loosened and with the overall impact of healthcare reform still uncertain, it still may be quite some time before they let those belts out a notch or two.

According to HR Daily Report, this is why more employers are looking at Voluntary Benefits as a lower-cost incentive to attract new and retain existing talent. Employers are taking to offering employees everything from auto and home insurance to legal plans or even pet insurance. All of these being growing trends in employers looking to stay competitive. That's the assertion at a recent presentation at the 2011 Health Care Benefits NY conference. Outlined in the course of that presentation was a list of the most popular group voluntary benefits, now and in the future.