ObamaCare: From “No Way” to “Now What?”For flexible strategic planning, there are four major phases to consider: Legislation, regulation, compliance, and litigation.
It’s Time to Listen to Health Care ConsumersReleased April 14, 2010, a Mercer study for the American Association of Preferred Provider Organizations (AAPPO) showed that insurance with health care consumerism now covers an estimated 23 million lives. Health care consumerism includes insurance plans with personal care accounts attached to the insurance coverage.
CCH Offers Complete Text, Explanation, Analysis of New Health Care Reform LawNow, there’s a single, comprehensive resource from CCH that explains and makes accessible the sweeping changes brought about by recently enacted health care reform legislation: CCH's Law, Explanation and Analysis of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Including Reconciliation Act Impact.
VitalSpring Launches Code Blue Initiative to Help Employers Respond to New Health LawCompanies Should Take Control of Health Care CostsSeven proactive steps executives can take to controlling health care costs
Employers' Support Leads to Increased Biometric Screening and Health Coaching Growth in 2009Encouragement and incentives drive employees towards better health
Latest DSS Research Survey Reveals That Consumers Are Torn Between Access and CoverageIn the most recent survey, Americans were given a choice between making their first priority providing some level of health insurance coverage for all citizens or slowing down the rapidly rising costs of health care.
Care.com Now Offers Resources Through Ceridian LifeworksToday Care.com (www.care.com), the premier source of trustworthy family care options, announced a partnership with Ceridian Health & Productivity Solutions. As part of the agreement, Care.com will provide caregiving resources and discounted access to its nationwide network of care providers for Ceridian LifeWorks program customers and their employees.
Towers Watson, UnitedHealthcare Partner to Design Solution for Employer-Based Retiree Health ProgramNew Retiree Health Collaborative Gives Employers Simple Alternative to Managing Their Own Retiree Medical Programs While Enhancing the Value of Retirees’ Health Benefits
A First Look at the Impact of Health Care Reform on EmployersThis bulletin focuses on the Act’s effects on employer-sponsored health coverage and new employer responsibilities.
Corporate America weighs in on health law costsA pair of top U.S. industrial companies gave some of the first estimates of what the nation's health care overhaul will cost them...
Health Reform – the Ultimate FixA majority of Americans believe that a health reform fix is needed. For those in power the following is the perspective of a concerned physician and an actuary, two professionals who work in the dysfunctional system. Please read, it’s important for a few noble Congressmen and women to listen to these insights. Consider what kind of fix you may be voting for.
MagnaCare Positioned for Growth in National Health Care Marketplace, Expanding Member-Centric PrograMagnaCare, ( www.magnacare.com) a health plan services company with national reach, today announces plans to build on its stable customer base and dominant position in the fiercely competitive NY/NJ/CT region to expand into the broader health care services market.
Companies Face Worker, Health Care Challenges as Millennium Closes Overall Outlook for 2010
Reform Prospects, Recession Remain on the Minds of ManySurvey Respondents See No Clear Winners This Year
Any Reforms Must Strengthen Both Health Care and EconomyInitial Focus Should Address Cost
Maximize Corporate Value When Implementing Parity ActMental health parity has been misunderstood as long as it has been debated. The cost concerns expressed for many years have been eliminated, with years of experience showing the beneficial corporate and improved health effects of recognizing the mind-body relationship.
Lack of Reform Helps Preserve HSAs Not only did HSAs survive under Obamacare, they were poised to become a cornerstone of the program.
Awareness Can Be Key to Success of HDHPA study finds that high-deductible health plans (HDHP) coupled with health savings accounts (HSA) can be a good fit for many employers and employees.
Zions, Employees Reap Rewards of CDHPsConnectYourCare helps Zions Bancorporation remedy a classic health care conundrum.
Companies Use Personal Touch With Health Care Once employees begin to manage their own Personal Value, they will begin to understand that their investments in performance, wealth, and health will accompany them from job to job within or outside their current employer.
Government Agencies Issue Interim Final Regulations on Mental Health Parity And Now ... The Rest of the StoryConsumer-driven plans and on-site clinics are unquestionably the right combination in today’s environment.
Remember CDHC? Consumer-Directed Health Plans Offer OptionsWill consumer-directed health care (CDHC) play an important role in employer benefits during this new decade?
Chronic Diseases and Health Care Accounts, Dispelling the MythIndustry data shows those with chronic care needs, who have account-based plans, have lower medical costs as compared to those with traditional plans...
Knoxville Takes Charge of Health Care Costs with NavigatorMD AnalyticsThe city of Knoxville, TN, offers an innovative wellness program that includes HRA contributions for physical activity, tobacco avoidance, and chronic disease self-care.
Human Resources Targets Your FamilyHR has yanked the junk food and badgered you to get healthy. Now it's eyeing your spouse and children
Insurer Steps Up Fight to Control Health Care CostUnitedHealthcare takes an aggressive approach to cut health costs ahead of the wave of reform.
Employer Satisfaction With Health Insurers Is DecliningEmployers in the United States have become less satisfied with their health insurers, according to a study released today by PricewaterhouseCoopers' Health Research Institute.
Goodbye Executive Medical Reimbursement Plans?Wolters Kluwer Health Reform Talk blog: January 15, 2010
Understanding Key Provisions in Federal Health Care ReformTo help employers prepare for the changes, Business Insurance provides answers to frequently asked questions about what to expect from health care reform.
Aflac Becomes the Most Preferred Carrier for Voluntary Insurance Among BrokersA survey of 358 brokers finds Aflac is the number one preferred carrier for voluntary insurance among brokers.
Employer Health Mandate May Be DroppedAP Sources: Health Bill May Drop 'Millionaires Tax,' Requirement for Large Employer Coverage
Health Reform Impact on Consumer-Driven Health Care Likely to be ModestAnalysis of: Reform Bill Could End Popular HSAs, Flex Spending
Excise Tax on 'Cadillac' Health Care Plans is a Bad IdeaMore than 80% of the taxes for health care would come from individuals paying higher income, Social Security and Medicare taxes -- not from employers and insurers.
New Applications Provide Employers with Competitive Position of Health Care Costs, Benefit Plans...New Application from Thomson Reuters and HighRoads Provides Employers with a Deeper Understanding of the Competitive Position of Their Health Care Costs and Benefit Plans
Pan-American Life Insurance Group Launches New Company Offering Limited Medical BenefitsProduct portfolio offers alternatives to major medical health benefits
CCH Special Report Details Employer, Medicare Provisions of Senate Health Care Reform BillCCH has issued a Special Report on the Senate version of health care reform legislation, detailing the provisions of the bill which passed by a vote of 60-39 on December 24, 2009.
CIGNA Names Key Executive LeadershipDavid M. Cordani, president and chief executive officer of CIGNA Corporation, today announced his executive leadership team for the company. The appointments are effective immediately.
Businesses to Push for Modifications to Senate BillBig employers stress over taxes and fees proposed in both Senate and House health reform legislation.
HMS Acquires Verify Solutions, Adding Dependent Eligibility Audit Services...Acquisition moves HMS into the employer-based market with a valuable new service that fits well with mission to help control health care costs
Aetna Provider Collaboration Program Delivers Positive Results for Pennsylvania Medicare MembersAetna and PMA Medical Specialists LLC, of Phoenixville, Pa., have completed the first year of their unique pay-for-performance program for Aetna Medicare Advantage plan members residing in Pennsylvania.
Americans Would Feel Varying Effects from Health BillHere are some of the largest groups to be affected by health reform...
Priority Health Offers Employers More Options in WellnessPriority Health Launches A New Line of Wellness Packages
Group Health Insurance Program Launched by Benepath.comOnline health insurance quotes leader Benepath.com announced the expansion of their online presence into the group health insurance market.
Humana Develops Social Media Tool Combining Twitter Search with Mapping FunctionHumana's new social media tool allows users to see, join conversations as and where they happen.
U.S. Health Bill Passes Crucial Senate TestIn a middle-of-the-night vote, Democrats unanimously backed the first in a series of three procedural motions to cut off debate and move the bill to a final vote by at least Christmas Eve.
Squeezing Costs out of Health Care...Squeezing Costs out of Health Care Tops PricewaterhouseCoopers' List of 2010 Health Industry Issues
Senate's Solution: Consumer Choice Is Dead on ArrivalAccording to the health care reform bill, there's an easy way to solve the problem of the uninsured in this country: buy it, sell it or else...
Companies Expanding EAP OfferingsShort-Term Counseling Often Cheaper Than Therapy Through Medical Plans
UPMC Health Plan Offers Brain Fitness Software to Improve HealthInsurer Promotes Healthy Minds and Bodies
CDHPs Deliver Real World Health Care ReformCIGNA Study: CDHPs Could Bend the Cost Curve 26% over Four Years and Improve Health Care Quality
Employer Contributions Shifting in Consumer-driven Health PlansWorkers with employee-only coverage have seen their annual employer contributions decrease
RedBrick’s Health Earnings System Projected to Generate Five Percent Savings...RedBrick’s Health Earnings System Projected to Generate Five Percent Savings on Health & Productivity Costs for Welch Allyn
Is There a Doctor in the Corporation? Maybe SoonEmployers find putting employee wellness first curbs costs and boosts performance
Lighthouse1 Helps Canopy Financial and CareGain Partners, Customers Avoid Service DisruptionLighthouse1 has created a special migration program for customers and partners of Canopy Financial, including HealthDirect and CareGain.
Market Based Health Care Reform AlternativesGovernment-based overhaul has completely monopolized the debate on healthcare. Here are seven examples of successful market-based healthcare alternatives that you should know about.
Focus on Men’s Health Worth Employer’s While Employers and Health Plans Examine Rates of Chronic Disease Within Certain Employee Populations
Employers Hold the Line on Health Benefit Cost IncreasesLarge employers add health management programs; small employers move employees into account-based high-deductible plans
Value-Based Benefits Solution Paves Road to Member-Level Benefit Design and IncentivesNew TriZetto Value-Based Benefits Solution Paves Road to Member-Level Benefit Design and Incentives
Long-Term Care Insurance: The Next Big Thing in HealthcareProfit from the Burgeoning Market for Long-Term Care Insurance
Employers with CDHPs Prefer HSAsMajority of Employers with Consumer-Driven Health Plans Prefer Health Savings Accounts, Says Aon Consulting
Sibson Consulting Announces 2009 Healthy Hospital SurveySibson Consulting is seeking to evaluate the maturity of employer health and productivity programs and measure the impact of various strategies and practices by surveying health care and hospital employers' best practices in absence, health, wellness and productivity initiatives. Data gathered from this new, on-line survey will allow Sibson to establish a set of benchmarks for peer organizations both within the hospital and healthcare sector and beyond. (Last year, Sibson published results of its 2008 Healthy Campus Study.)
The Essential Benefits Package--An Employer ModelFollowing Wolters Kluwer Health Care Reform Talk blog
Use Open Enrollment to Engage Employees in Health Care DecisionsA study by the National Business Group on Health and Watson Wyatt found that the best and most consistent performing companies are more than twice as likely as poor performing companies to have more than 50 percent of their employees enrolled in a consumer-directed health plan...
eHealth, Inc. Announces Partnership With CareCounsel, a Leader in Health Advocacy ProgramsCareCounsel to Utilize eHealth's Technology Platform When Providing Industry Leading Healthcare Assistance and Advocacy Services
Key Influencers Convene to Improve Health Outcomes, Lower CostsKey Influencers Convene in Chicago to Advance Behavioral Economics in Healthcare and Improve Health Outcomes and Lower Costs
John Hancock's Enhanced Flagship Long-Term Care Insurance Product Available in Additional States'Custom Care II Enhanced' features broad range of innovative benefits
Employer Contributions Shifting in Consumer-Driven Health PlansWorkers with employee-only coverage have seen their annual employer contributions decrease, while those with family coverage have seen their annual employer contributions increase, according to a new survey released today by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).
How Does Union Membership Affect Health Insurance Coverage?How does union membership affect the likelihood of a worker having health insurance benefits?
An Insider’s Guide to Surviving Health CareHelp for the unemployed… and anyone else wanting to save money
GM Salaried Staff Get Only Consumer-driven Health PlansEmployer Health Benefits SurveyThe Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research & Education Trust Employer Health Benefits Survey -- 2009 Summary of Findings
Workers Will Pay More for Health Care, Consulting Firm SaysNo matter what happens with health-care reform this fall, employees should expect to pay more for health insurance in 2010 -- especially with co-pays and deductibles.
Ceridian: Subsidy’s Complexities May Have Limited COBRA EnrollmentCOBRA subsidy compliance limits enrollment
A Better Health Care AlternativePublic plans aren't cutting it? Look to the Swiss.
Weekly Health Care Reform Pulse: Senate Finance Committee Bill Marks Intense New PhaseFollowing Towers Perrin Health Care Reform Blog
Health Reform Talk: The Baucus Proposal and Larger EmployersFollowing Wolters Kluwer Health Reform Talk Blog
MedRisk, Inc. and Coventry Workers’ Comp Services Announce New PartnershipMedRisk, Inc. and Coventry Workers’ Comp Services Announce New Partnership
Consumer Health Plans Pass HMOs in PopularityNumber of Retail Clinics Shrinking; Growth Slows as Partnerships Sought with Hospitals Experts say calculated growth will lead to stronger longevity in a market that has seen some notable failures in recent years.
How CEOs Can Help Fix Health CareIt's time for American companies to turn health care costs from a weakness into a strength.
CDHC Becomes PracticalEmployers across the country are making CDHC more applicable.
Build a Terrific Plan Design and Watch CDHC Work for Your OrganizationSustaining fabulous results is due to continuing and extensive employee education that drives behavior changes. By Marie Dufresne
More Limited Benefit Health Insurance Options on Horizon?Offering limited benefit plans helps companies cut turnover, boost workplace appeal. Here’s what to look for in the plan design. By Susan Nicolai
Orion Health and Cisco Announce New Medical Data Exchange Solution to Integrate, Share and Report PuOrion Health and Cisco Announce New Medical Data Exchange Solution to Integrate, Share and Report Public Health Data
Fletcher/CSI Presents Using Competitive Intelligence to Improve Product Development, Strategy...Fletcher/CSI, LLC, experts in competitive intelligence and primary research, announced today the company will present Using Competitive Intelligence to Improve Product Development, Strategy, and Best Practices at the 2009 New Product Innovation, Design & Development for Health Plans Conference in Chicago, IL on September 22nd, 2009.
Health Care Claim Costs Expected to Rise 10.5 %Costs for employer-provided health plans are expected to rise more than 10 percent within the next 12 months, a jump workers may feel in their paychecks or through changes to their insurance coverage.
The Cost of Employers Waiting for Heath Care ReformThis year, with major potential changes in healthcare looming every night on the evening news, many employers have virtually shut down discussions on what to do with their employee health benefit plan. This is costing these employers much more than they realize.
Health Care Debate Misses Issue of CostsWith health care costs increasing at more than twice the general rate of inflation, any reform that does not adequately address costs will bankrupt both our economy and the U.S. Treasury, and thus ultimately will fail.
Connextions Cited in Leading Industry Analyst Firm's 'Hype Cycle for Health Care Payers'Connextions Help Plans Attract, Retain and Serve Health Insurance Consumers
ConnextionsHealth Introduces Turnkey, Rapid Ramp Call Verification SolutionNew CMS Guidelines on Verification Calls Leave Only 60 Business Days for Health Plans to Comply
Mobile MedCheck Brings Back House CallsHealth Insurance Innovation Is PossibleFormer U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson References Liazon on Larry King Live
Lightspeed Research--The Foresight Group, Announced the Annual Meeting for The Healthcare ConsortiumLightspeed Research - The Foresight Group, a global provider of innovative employee survey solutions, 360 surveys, and manager feedback surveys, announced today the annual meeting for The Healthcare Consortium scheduled for November 2, 2009, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Chicago, IL.
Survey: Consumer Driven Health Plans (CDHPs) in the U.S. Have Surpassed HMO Plans United Benefit Advisors (UBA) from its 2009 UBA Health Plan Survey reveals Consumer Driven Health Plans (CDHPs) in the U.S. have surpassed HMO plans in covered employees
Building a Health Marketplace that WorksIn the debate about health reform, many issues are getting an inordinate amount of attention, but one is not getting the detailed consideration it deserves. How it is finally resolved is likely to be one of the key factors of the ultimate plan’s success or failure. That issue is the design of the health insurance exchange.
Leading Health Website Offers New Approach to Comparative MedicineRateADrug.com introduces a methodical way for patients to compare conventional treatments to alternative and complementary therapies.
Online Health Insurance Resource, HealthInsurancePlan.us, Launches New State By State Insurance GuidHealthInsurancePlan.us announces the launch of a new state by state guide to health insurance plans. The guide helps users compare California health insurance with Florida health insurance, and every state in between.
Asparity Helps Consumers Select Health Plans and Control CostsDecision support tools are ‘exchange’ featured in national debate on health reform