The DOL has issued the 2012 Form 5500, Schedules, and Instructions. Click here for a summary of changes affecting 401(k) and health and welfare plans.

The IRS has issued final regulations implementing the fees on health insurers and self-insured plan sponsors to fund the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (sometimes referred to as CER, PCOR, or PCORI fees). These fees apply to policy and plan years ending after October 1, 2012 and before October 1, 2019 (i.e., for seven full policy or plan years). Click here to continue.

The Department of Health and Human Services has issued two sets of proposed regulations issued under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act that will affect the design, availability and cost of health insurance plans, primarily in the individual and small group markets. Click here to continue.

Eighteen states and the District of Columbia intend to set up health insurance exchanges in 2014 where the uninsured, among others, will be able to obtain coverage, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. Click here to continue.

Employers are keeping their healthcare costs down, in part by continuing to shift more costs to their employees. Private healthcare exchanges represent the next step in this approach.  Click here to continue.

As private exchanges expand and companies consider a future beyond the traditional employer-sponsored health care system, benefits experts weigh in on consumers' readiness for 'defined contribution health'. Click here to continue.

On January 2, 2013, President Obama signed the American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA), extending many programs that expired at the end of 2012. Click here for a summary of the major provisions affecting employers. 

A number of recent National Labor Relations Board rulings focusing on social media, class action waivers, confidentiality of workplace investigations, and at-will employment policies relate equally to the union and nonunion workplace, according to John E. Higgins, moderator of a Nov. 28 American Bar Association webinar. Click here to continue.  

Keeping Key Leaders

Encouraging executives from acquired companies to stay on and help with the transition involves more than compensation and perks. Cultural and role considerations are also essential.  Click here to continue. 

EEOC Targets Employment Discrimination of Domestic Violence Victims

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently weighed in on the possible application of Title VII and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to employees who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.  Click here to continue.  

Want to Ban Smoking? Watch Out for State Laws

Employers hoping to cut health care costs naturally look to reduce unhealthy behaviors, and perhaps none is more preventable than smoking. And few are more expensive - a smoker costs a company $12,000 more a year than a nonsmoker, with an annual medical pricetag of more than $95 billion. Add on another $97 billion a year in lost productivity, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and it's easy to see why CFOs and benefits managers would want to implement smoking-cessation programs and smoke-free policies. Click here to continue. 

With the U.S. Department of Labor stepping up its enforcement efforts, plan sponsors need to make sure they are in compliance with every rule and regulation when it comes to their retirement plans. It isn't enough to just be prepared. When January rolls around, plan sponsors need to know whether they are eligible for an audit and if they are, they need to submit an independent plan audit with their IRS Form 5500. Click here to continue.  

A rise in corporate 401(k) balances and contributions reveals that the new design of retirement plans is working. Financial experts think companies can do even better in helping their workers to realize retirement readiness. Click here to continue. 

Limiting Social Host Liquor Liability

A bartender is legally liable for serving alcohol to a patron who becomes intoxicated and then injures a third party. Does a business face a similar exposure when it hosts a social event where alcohol is served, such as an open house or employee picnic?  Click here to continue.  

Click here to read the December issue of our Insurance Chatter newsletter.

Hopes of getting the hardest-hit stretches of the Jersey Shore rebuilt by next summer are fading, as delays in insurance settlements mount and uncertainty hangs over federal aid.  Click here to continue.  

Properly Cover Those Incidental Farming Exposures

America has countless numbers of "gentleman farmers." Webster's Dictionary defines a gentleman farmer as "a man who farms mainly for pleasure rather than profit." A "gentleman farmer" typically has an independent source of income but still has incidental agriculture-related loss exposures that may not be covered by a standard, unendorsed homeowners policy. Click here to continue.