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Medicare Part D Notice Reminder:
Deadline of October 14th

Employers with group health plans that provide prescription drug coverage to individuals who are eligible for Medicare Part D must comply with certain disclosure requirements.
Group health plan sponsors must disclose to individuals who are eligible for Medicare Part D whether their prescription drug coverage is at least as good as the Medicare Part D coverage (in other words, whether their prescription drug coverage is “creditable”). These disclosures must be provided each year prior to Medicare’s annual open enrollment period, and at certain other designated times. The annual open enrollment period for Medicare Part D is October 15th through December 7th, so notices must be provided by October 14th.

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Employer Reporting – 2017 Draft Forms and Instructions

The IRS released the 2017 draft forms and instructions for the ACA employer reporting requirement.  The 2017 draft forms and instructions are very similar to those used for 2016. Given that they have only minor changes (along with a few clarifications of existing requirements), the most significant change is the deletion throughout of anything referring […]

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6 Common Gaffes to Avoid When Considering a Self-Funded Plan

Self-funding is a common method for employers over 100 employees to avoid the costs of a fully insured medical plan. A fully insured plan takes all of the claims risk from an employer group to the insurance company and collects a premium to do so.

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Are You Prepared for a Legionnaires’ Outbreak?

Legionnaires’ disease is a condition that our healthcare organizations do not frequently encounter, yet the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that between 8,000 – 18,000 people a year are hospitalized with this disease, and more than 10 percent of the cases are fatal3.

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Cyber Insurance Protects Company and Client From Attacks

Every week we hear of a new virus, hack, or ransomware that threatens our business operations or employee or client information.

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Wellness Runs in Manufacturing Industry

Each segment of the manufacturing industry has a major issue forefront in their budget process: the rising costs of healthcare. These increasing healthcare costs are the number one concern right in front of unfavorable business conditions, according to the most recent survey from the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM).

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IRS Decreases ACA “Affordability” Percentage

The IRS issued guidance in Revenue Procedure 2017-36 that decreases the percentage from 9.69% to 9.56% for purposes of determining the affordability of employer-sponsored group health coverage in 2018. This percentage affects which applicable large employers may face potential penalties under §4980H(b) for failure to provide affordable coverage and which individuals may qualify for subsidized coverage through a public Exchange (Marketplace).

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Employer Reporting – 2017 Draft Forms and Instructions

With Congress failing to make any significant changes to the ACA, applicable large employers (ALEs) need to prepare for another year of ACA employer reporting. The IRS has released the 2017 draft forms employers will use to report 2017 plan data early in 2018. 2017 instructions have not yet been released. The 2017 draft forms […]

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Human Capital Management Technology –
Ask the Experts

For the last decade, improvements in technology have driven and transformed the development of industries worldwide. Human Resources is no exception –

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Washington Paid Sick Leave
Effective Jan. 1, 2018

On Nov. 8, 2016, Washington voters approved Initiative Measure No. 1433, a ballot measure that increases Washington’s minimum wage and requires employers to provide employees with paid sick leave, effective January 1, 2018.

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Washington Enacts Paid
Family and Medical Leave

On July 5, 2017, Governor Jay Inslee signed Senate Bill 5975 into law, providing paid family and medical leave benefits to eligible workers, effective Jan. 1, 2020. Key aspects of this leave program, which will be administered by a state agency, are as follows:

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Where Are the Workers and How Do We Hold Onto Them? Part 2: The Millennial Generation

In our last white paper, we addressed long-term care (LTC) as a benefit that we think many professional services employers may want to consider as a way to benefit

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