Archived Webcasts and Podcasts

Dependent Eligibility Verification Audits are an increasingly integral part of health care cost containment, ERISA compliance, and PPACA "Pay or Play" analysis. On average, 4-8% of Dependents enrolled in company benefits are NOT eligible. This costs employers 10's of thousands, 100's of thousands - even millions of dollars annually. Time and Money are the most common objections to conducting an audit, along with fear of adverse employee reaction. This webinar explores Best Practices, mistakes to avoid, and the substantial ROI achieved from a comprehensive dependent audit. Participants will learn what fraud in a benefits plan looks like, how prevalent fraud really is, and what type of savings they can generate for their company with an audit.

Nobody- not Congress, the US Supreme Court, the President or any Wellness Initiative- can immediately impact the cost of health care better than a Dependent Eligibility Audit. Dependents are responsible for over 70% of most company’s health care costs, but on average, 4-8% of those dependents are ineligible for coverage and cost individual employers a FORTUNE annually. Whether your company has 50 employees or 5,000, this session will de-bunk universal myths surrounding Dependent Audits like “We don’t have fraud” (yeah, right!) and share best practices and worst mistakes. Attendees also receive an ROI calculator tool to determine expected savings in their own company.

With the Form 5500 season upon us, this presentation will address basic reporting requirements, provide practice tips, highlight areas the DOL and IRS are focusing on, and walk through how to avoid the top five Red Flags your filings may have.

This presentation will guide HR professionals through the Form 5500 filing to help them gain a better understanding of the information required to be reported and Find out what is new for 2012, how to simplify indirect (Schedule C) service provider compensation reporting, what is and how to report ‘nonmonetary compensation’ and how to perform an effective manager review of each filing before submission.

This course reviews the Affordable Care Act. The first part of the course discusses the general requirements of the Affordable Care Act, including those requirements that apply to companies today. Specifically, the course discusses the extension of dependent coverage to age 26, limits on pre-existing conditions and essential health benefits, coverage of emergency services, cost-sharing restrictions on certain preventive care coverages, the new appeals process, initial authorization by primary care physician restrictions, limits on reimbursements of certain medications, automatic health plan enrollment, additional preventive services, non-discrimination requirements, and more. The second part of the course discusses requirements that take effect in 2012 and beyond. Specific topics include health FSA salary reduction contribution limits, Medicare Part D subsidy elimination, changes to waiting periods, limitations on pre-existing conditions and essential health benefits, restrictions on cost-sharing, clinical trial requirements, wellness programs, new Summary of Benefits and Coverage regulations, new HIPAA certification requirements, state Exchanges, the individual mandate, and more. Penalties and taxes associated with non-compliance are also reviewed. Among the penalties and taxes that are reviewed are: the Code section 4980D health plan non-compliance excise tax, the excise tax on HSA distributions for non-medical purposes, the annual fee assessed on plan sponsors, medical loss ratio rebates, medical expenses deduction limit, additional FICA and SECA payroll tax, new investment income tax, $2,000 penalty for each full-time employee who seeks coverage through Exchanges, $3,000/$2,000 penalty for each full-time employee who receives a subsidy because employer’s coverage is unaffordable, annual fee on certain entities that provide health insurance, reinsurance fee, 40% excise tax on “cadillac” insurance plans, and more.

This session will address the new fee disclosure documents and offer plan sponsors the keys to deciphering the information provided therein. We will also map out the next steps required of plan sponsors: 1) benchmark the services provided and the fees received to determine reasonableness, 2) provide participant-level fee disclosure. Like the game Where’s Waldo??, this session will give you the maps and guidance to find the character – but more importantly, find answers and practical action steps. Simply filing the disclosures away will only lead to problems when the next disclosure requirement hits in August 30th. The DOL is offering plan sponsors an opportunity to fix their plans and we can help show the way. Don’t miss this session!

The purpose of this webinar session would be to discuss in detail the fees that must be disclosed beginning August 30, 2012 How often thereafter these fees must be disclosed To whom must these fees be disclosed and in what formats Exactly what fees must be disclosed What are some strategic courses of action you might consider in preparing for fee disclosure And what proactive preparations might you consider for the inevitable day when participants coming knocking on your door with questions about these fees? You will learn: a. how to prepare for August 30 b. how to prepare for after the first disclosure reactions c. who can help you prepare for those two events

A variety of factors have contributed to the stunning rise in litigation against retirement plan fiduciaries. This problem for employer/plan sponsors is compounded by two other facts. First, ERISA imposes personal liability on plan fiduciaries. Second, many corporate officers, employees and even board members serve as ERISA fiduciaries. Some knowingly. Some not. As in many other areas of the law (and American society) the courts have rapidly expanded the remedies available to sympathetic plaintiffs and the possible claims against “deep pocket” defendants. For a fiduciary accused of breaching his or her duties under ERISA, the stakes are high. The federal courts have uniformly held that ERISA's fiduciary duty is "the highest duty known to the law." ERISA authorizes lawsuits against a plan fiduciary by plan participants, beneficiaries, the plan administrator, other plan fiduciaries, and the U.S. Department of Labor. Both civil and criminal penalties can apply. However, there are strategies to protect plan fiduciaries from potential liability. The surprising thing is how many employers/plan sponsors fail to take full advantage of these strategies. Human resources professionals should act to protect their officers, employees, board members and others who serve as ERISA fiduciaries.

There are three developments that have made communicating benefits harder than ever:

• The increasing complexity of benefits, especially health benefits
• The general difficulty in getting anyone's attention
• The need to master multiple communications channels

Fortunately, there are new ideas and methods for communicating during the open enrollment period that will help you battle past these challenges.

This webinar will look at the thinking that lies behind successful open enrollment communication programs and shares some specific tips and techniques. Among the techniques we will explore are the use of video, social media, and “federated” creation of content. We can do better communication than ever, but we have to embrace the right tools and right mindset.

Plan sponsors and fiduciaries have been hit by a barrage of class action and other lawsuits from retirement plan participants including a recent $40 million dollar verdict in the Tussey v. ABB, Inc. case. In addition, the United States Department of Labor has recently issued new 401(k) fee disclosure regulations that become effective in July of 2012 which can be expected to increase participant attention to (and possibly concerns regarding) their 401(k) plans. Fortunately, there are steps that can be taken to help protect your company (or, if you are a service provider, your clients) from 401(k) plan benefit claims and litigation. This webinar will feature a case study approach to help you formulate strategies to protect against lawsuits in your 401(k) plan.

As employers consider adopting LGBT-friendly benefit policies, they confront questions regarding eligibility, verification issues, plan amendments, tax compliance, civil rights issues, compliance with ever-changing state and municipal law, and even new requirements for companies seeking certain government contracts. Companies that have adopted domestic partner policies will have to deal with eligibility, compliance, and tax reporting issues that they did not have before. Moreover, the domestic partnership landscape has been changing constantly as more municipalities add domestic partner registries and impose new requirements on contractors, and as more states recognize gay marriage. This session educates the HR professional on the various compliance and legal issues they may face when implementing and administering a plan that provides domestic partner benefits.