News

In the wake of the health care reform, alternative funding solutions for health benefits continue to gain traction among small to mid-size groups. Pending changes to small group rules in January 2016 are driving demand for the funding solutions. Most prominently, groups with 50-100 employees will be subject to community rating legislation that governs how […]

Do you sometimes wonder if our society has made substantial progress over the last 20 years in routing factual information into the hands of educated consumers? While we can point to areas of vast improvement in certain markets, other areas leave us scratching our heads. One of those is the realm of the Affordable Care […]

Opponents of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are hoping the third time is the charm. Although the Supreme Court has twice upheld central features of President Obama’s signature health law in landmark decisions, conservative activists are still hopeful that another one of their legal challenges will get a day in front of the […]

The federal health insurance marketplace may have issued subsides to persons not eligible to receive them during the first open enrollment period, a new report from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General has found. To verify the information of an applicant’s eligibility for a qualified health plan and potential […]

Employer branding should make your company stand out from the competition. When you’re seeking high-quality talent for your company, you can’t rely only on the appeal of a specific role to get the results you need. Your business should also be a place where people truly want to work. An employer brand is a powerful […]

Vision and dental benefits can be harnessed to play a larger role in employee health than the sum of their parts. That’s due in part to the fact that many people find visiting a medical doctor intimidating, but have no qualms about having an eye exam or dental check-up and cleaning. “The mouth is the […]

Non-union employers are often under the misimpression that they are not affected by the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) — the federal statute governing union-related issues in the private sector. A recent court decision stands as yet another reminder that this is not the case, and that non-union employers can still run afoul of the […]

A recent study by the Guardian Life Insurance Company of America reveals how Americans perceive and value their employee benefits. The report, the third annual Guardian Workplace Benefits Study, uncovers a significant disconnect between employers and employees when it comes to benefits offered in the workplace. According to the report, nearly two in three workers strongly […]

Commentary: The 401(k) space is in the infancy of a complete overhaul. With employees fighting back and winning against high fees and a new fiduciary standard on the way, we’re on the cusp of some radical changes to the corporate retirement landscape. This movement started about five years ago. A July 2010 study by Transamerica found […]

Commentary: Temporary agency workers, leased workers, and independent contractors provide organizations with flexibility, but they can also create unknown risks for employers. Companies using contract and other types of temporary workers may not consider these personnel to be employees, but the law might disagree. Organizations hiring agency workers, leased workers, or independent contractors could be […]