Tag: benefits

After Pondering King, SCOTUS Stalls on Reform Subsidies

The U.S. Supreme Court has not yet acted on a request to hear a case that seeks to eliminate health insurance premium subsidies in the states that refused to set up their own health insurance exchanges. The High Court discussed whether to hear King v. Burwell on Oct. 31; however, its Nov. 3 orders from […]

Fewer Exec Compensated with Pensions or SERPs

Nearly three-quarters of newly hired corporate executives are now treated like their rank-and-file when it comes to retirement benefits, with few being offered the traditional “top-hat” defined benefit plan that used to be as common as a company car and stock options for senior managers. In making this transition away from DB plans, however, some […]

Third EEOC Wellness Lawsuit Draws Industry Ire

An employer group criticized the latest legal challenge to an employee wellness program filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The commission alleges that Honeywell International, Inc.’s biometric testing incentive for employees and their spouses violates the Americans with Disabilities Act and Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. “This is an outrageous development, and one that […]

It’s PPA Restatement Time! … Wait, What’s That?

By Brandy Cross, Milliman Have you heard about PPA restatements but aren’t sure what’s required? Let’s start with some background on the process, and then describe steps that retirement plan sponsors should take to implement it. All plans that use a preapproved plan document must be restated before April 30, 2016. Failure to amend by this date will […]

Insuring long-term disability insurance

by Richard E. Johnston In Canada, benefit plans are subject to legislation related to income tax, human rights, and employment standards. However, there is little specific regulation of benefit plans other than pension plans. A key exception is the provision of long-term disability benefits that are not funded under an insurance contract—at least for federally […]

Health Care Reform Mandates: Impending Dates

The next three months are crunch time. Employers have to get moving on several deadlines, most of them required under health care reform. Some reform rules should have taken effect in 2014, but were subject to the year-long delay instituted by the Obama administration. Health Plan Identifiers Nov. 5, 2014 is the deadline for large group […]

Will City Slickers Give You Your Next Big Idea?

Among my favorite movies is the 1991 film City Slickers. Billy Crystal plays radio ad salesman Mitch Robbins, who is having a bit of a midlife crisis. Mitch and his two best friends decide to leave New York City to spend 2 weeks on a cattle drive in the Southwest. It’s there that Mitch meets […]