Employee Benefit News back issues from April 2002:
Avid listeners.(employee benefits at Freddie Mac)(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002; ... With revenues up 22% last year and turnover below 5%, financial services firm Freddie Mac has worked hard to become an employer of choice through its competitive pay and comprehensive benefits. Headquartered at a campus complex in McLean, Va., Freddie Mac has built its culture ...
Deluge of 401(k) bills swamps Congress.(pension plan reform)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Yogi Berra would call it deja vu all over again. As a result of the Enron debacle, Congress is mulling over the prospect of retirement plan reform for the second time in as many years. Reps. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Ben Cardin(D-Md.), the architects of last year's omnibus ...
Skittish sponsors reconsider plan blackouts.(retirement plan blackouts)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Controversies surrounding the operation of retirement plans at bankrupt energy giant Enron are forcing employers nationwide to re-examine routine operations and policies of their 401(k) plans. Much attention has been focused on a blackout of Enron's 401(k) plan lasting from Oct ....
Retention stressed for recovery.(U.S economic recovery and employee retention)
Apr 01, 2002; ... With economic recovery projected for the second half of this year, associated job market growth and national recruiting may test the commitment of many employees to their organizations. And if so, analysts warn, employers that have pushed retention efforts to the back burner could get the ...
Benefitnews.com Connect.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 01, 2002 ... Retirement confidence outpaces saving Seven in 10 Americans express confidence that they will have enough money to live comfortably in retirement, yet just 32% have calculated how much money that dream will require. This seeming contradiction illustrates the ...
Benefitnews.com Adviser.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 01, 2002 ... Naysayers have doubted whether group legal benefits will ever achieve significant penetration with sponsors and employees. But Hyatt, the nation's largest legal provider, says 2001 enrollment for the voluntary benefit was up 33%, the second consecutive year that business has increased more ...
Getting in touch with resentments.(gastric bypass surgery coverage on employee benefit plans)(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002; ... What began as a short news item in one of our e-newsletters, Benefitnews.com Connect, blossomed into a firestorm that presents a disturbing glimpse into resentments not typically expressed in the benefits profession. In the Feb. 12 issue of Connect, we reported that some state ...
Meetings to address burning question: "Is consumer-driven health care right for us?".(www.benefitnews.com.)(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002 ... The questions being directed at benefit decisionmakers are becoming quite pointed. "You had a nice run with traditional managed care techniques in the 1990s, but medical inflation is back in double digits. What's left in the arsenal? What have you done for us lately? What will ...
Heart disease management program boasts high ROI.(Northeast Utilities System uses Cardium Health Services)(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Benefit professionals at Berlin, Conn.-based Northeast Utilities System are updating an old axiom by demonstrating that, sometimes, you have to spend money to save money. The lesson from the self-insured employer covering 25,000 employees, retirees and dependents has come ...
Outventurist proves mettle to clients and employees.(Black Mountain Management)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Amid widespread organizational restructuring in the mid 1990s, businesses began farming out massive piles of paperwork in order to focus brainpower on their "core competencies." It was also around the time that Credit Suisse First Boston was considering outsourcing its employee ...
Worksite marketers band together for sales.(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Voluntary benefit marketers who have found it difficult to simultaneously cover ground and reach new heights are applying a new tool to their trade: producer groups. Certainly, banding together to increase clout and profit certainly is itself nothing new. Other types of ...
Scrutiny arises with growth of supplemental health.(voluntary critical illness policies)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Supplemental medical coverage has taken root in employee benefit packages, but the growth has been accompanied by criticism that some marketers cross the line between consumer education and heavy-handed sales tactics. The most popular such voluntary products include critical ...
Legal coming of age.(benefit plans that include legal services)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Despite recessionary times and related cost pressures, voluntary benefit sponsorship remains strong, as witnessed partly by employers' interest in group legal plans. Indeed, tough economic times often compel employers to maintain or increase voluntary offerings, especially if ...
Tecology: How agile organizations adapt to change.(human resources management)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Change can come suddenly, over time and from many directions. Economic expansion or contraction, mergers, acquisitions and shifts in policy all bring significant change, which today is further accelerated by the widespread embrace of information technology. These changes pose ...
A wealth of choice: Advances in human resource information technology and hosting models make solutions available for employers of all sizes.
Apr 01, 2002; ... Widespread adoption of Internet-based technology is making it easier for employers of all sizes to implement human resource information systems (HRIS) that host employee data and give users the ability to conduct transactions. The integration of data from separate systems made ...
The bottom line on vision benefits.(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002 ... Every classroom has a teacher's pet - a student who always has the right answer, finishes all of her assignments on time and never raises the ire of the teacher. And in the generally rowdy benefits classroom, nothing pleases a benefits manager more than an easy to administer, ...
Employers warm to on-site medical clinics.(Whole Health Management Inc.)(Company Profile)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Once eyed askance as a clinical backwater, on-site occupational health services are getting a boost from emerging market forces to align the interests of employers, employees, and the health care professionals who serve them. Cleveland, Ohio-based Whole Health Management, ...
Paths to integrated disability further defined.(Integrated Benefits Institute report)(Brief Article)
Apr 01, 2002; ... A recent study from the Integrated Benefits Institute (IBI) reports that, contrary to conventional wisdom, employers do not need to overhaul their HR and benefits departments in order to integrate their benefits and achieve both savings and satisfaction. Moreover, says IBI ...
Necessity is the mother of retiree medical re-invention.(Financial Accounting Standards Board rule forces employers to change retirement benefits)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Faced with mounting fiscal obligations, employers are using a variety of tactics to sustain retiree medical benefits without breaking the bank, according to several recent examinations of employer financial statements. In 1992, the quasi-governmental Financial Accounting ...
Benefits with an independent streak.(benefits for contingent workers; Yurcor)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 01, 2002; ... Knowledge workers in lucrative fields such as information technology, management consulting, and graphic design often have a strong entrepreneurial streak that can lead them to strike out on their own as independent contractors. "We're a quirky group, but we're highly ...
From here to maternity: Prenatal education gave birth to additional, cost-effective benefits for Mutual of Omaha employees.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... What began as a maternity education program for Mutual of Omaha's expectant mothers in the late 1980s has since blossomed into a comprehensive suite of parental benefits with an enviable bottom-line impact on company costs. At its core, the Nebraska-based insurer's parental ...
Congress squelches 401(k) stock caps.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002 ... In recent weeks the legislative reform focus for 401(k) plan investments has shifted from limiting the individual employee's investments to limiting the employers' contributions. This is a good thing. However, employers lobbying to block any meaningful change with regard to ...
Vendors respond to quality concerns.(health care)(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... Health care executives are scrambling to produce quality metrics in response to plan-sponsor purchasing initiatives such as those developed by the Leapfrog Group, said speakers at last month's summit of the National Committee for Quality Health Care (NCQHC). "Payers are going to ...
Almanac highlights health care plans.
Apr 15, 2002 ... EBN's annual Health Plan Almanac features plan census and contact information for the nation's largest health care companies, beginning on page 21. In-depth coverage features Associate Editor Jill Elswick's health industry trend report, which examines some employer responses to ...
Benefitnews.com connect.(several brief articles concerning employee benefits)(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Justices overrule DOL on FMLA notification Employers cheered the recent Supreme Court decision striking struck down a Labor Department rule regarding employee notification for Family and Medical Leave, but legal experts advise employers to proceed with caution when handling FMLA ...
Benefitnews.com adviser.(several brief articles regarding employee benefits)(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002 ... 401(k) plans lift stock restrictions Financial advisers wishing to help employers benchmark their 401(k) plans should take note of a new Fidelity study that found 66% of 401(k) plan sponsors that provide matching contributions in company stock do not impose trading restrictions ...
Health costs strip away employee insulation.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... Employers facing a second year of double-digit increases in health coverage costs are scrambling to regain some control over benefit expenditures. If trends continue as industry experts predict, costs for health benefits could double within five years, threatening the profitability of many ...
Heroes ride back from the sunset.(the effect of recent events on human resource departments)(Brief Article)(Editorial)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Recent events challenge the state religion of many HR departments: collaborative management and collective responsibility. Is it time for the return of the lonely hero? The kind of individual who doesn't shy away from accepting personal credit for superlative successes, and humiliating ...
FSA participation may build with plastic.(flexible savings account)(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... Plastic forms of payment are making strides toward becoming the definitive calling card of flexible savings account (FSA) participants, who may grow in number as a result of the new conveniences. FSA enrollment has been sluggish over much of the last decade, with industry ...
Health plan, bank team on new medical card.(MinervaHealth, Zions Bank)(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... Imagine an employee sidling up to the counter in a doctor's office, waiting to hear the damage. But instead of breaking out into a cold sweat at the thought of having to write a check, the employee coolly hands over a card that speeds him out the door. The difference with this ...
HIAA research optimistic on LTCI market.(Health Insurance Association of America; long-term care insurance)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 15, 2002; ... For years, researchers have lamented the relatively sparse number of long-term care insurance (LTCI) policies purchased, blaming high premiums and the lack of a tax deduction for low sales. However, a recent study by the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA) puts a new ...
Banks, insurers feel their way to new benefit roles.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... In the wake of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which repealed a law prohibiting financial institutions from selling insurance, banks have been racing to dig into the insurance market. And yet, despite the recent rash of insurance company purchases by financial institutions, bank and ...
Health Plan Almanac 2002: Boiling point.(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 15, 2002; ... If it were true that a watched pot never boils, employers would be perched, hawk-like, above the cauldron of rising health costs. But years of double-digit trends appear to have culminated in the long-dreaded boiling point, and plan sponsors can't eye the kettle without getting splashed. ...
Health plans hope quality is their best defense.(interview with Karen Ignagni, president and CEO of American Association of Health Plans)(Interview)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Managed care companies are clearly on the defensive as employers struggle with costs that are expected to soar an average of 15% this year and patients continue demanding more coverage and access. In Washington, the push for patients' rights legislation appears to be gaining ...
Top 40 managed care organizations.(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Plan type with Total Plan namehighest enrollment enrollment Aetna U.S. Healthcare HMO 17,200,000 United Health Group POS 16,500,000 CIGNA Healthcare Companies PPO 14,400,000 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan Inc. HMO 8,100,000 ...
Largest PPO-only plans.(Statistical Data Included)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Health Management Network1,250,000 MedCost LLC914,084 Midlands Choice 660,000 Associates for Health Care Inc. 450,000 Arizona Medical Network ...
Health Plan Almanac 2002: Health Plan Listings.(Directory)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Welcome to the 7th annual EBN Health Plan Almanac, featuring information about the nation's leading health plans. Following a decade of consolidation and intense competition for market share, the nation's health plan industry is now coming under intense pressure from investors ...
Health Plan Almanac 2002: Health Plan Listings - cont'd.(Directory)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Health Management Network 1600 W. Broadway Rd., Suite 385, Tempe AZ, 85282 Phone: 480/921-8944 Fax: 480/894-5230 Plan type(s): PPO Enrollees: 1,250,000 Physicians: 79,400 Affiliation: HMA Inc. ...
Clinicians, insurers bolster support for mammography.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... A Danish study that derided mammography screenings ability to save lives has prompted government agencies, medical advocacy groups and insurance companies to defend the procedure. In fact, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), an independent panel of medical experts ...
Claims face greater skepticism after ADA ruling.(Americans with Disabilities Act)
Apr 15, 2002; ... The Supreme Court recently handed employers a victory in its decision to narrow the definition of disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when it ruled that an auto worker's carpal tunnel diagnoses did not qualify her for special treatment. In Toyota ...
Index funds earn more than passive interest.
Apr 15, 2002; ... It's no secret that over the long haul, broad-based equity index funds tend to outperform most of their peers in the universe of actively managed mutual funds. Amid post-Enron sensitivity to portfolio diversification, financial gurus from every media outlet are reciting this fact. ...
We need to put 401(k) diversification on the agenda.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002; ... If the 1970s had "Watergate" as a catch-all term for questionable politics, this decade has "Enron" as a poster child for many things that are wrong with American business today. The collapse of this once-mighty company has crushed the retirement prospects of many of its ...
Employer-assisted housing gains momentum.
Apr 15, 2002; ... Employer-assisted housing programs are slowly gaining traction as companies seek creative ways to recruit and retain workers with benefits that also boost local communities. Just 6% of employers currently offer mortgage assistance benefits, while another 3% have programs to ...
Online guidance promotes healthier expat experience.
Apr 15, 2002; ... A new wave of online resources is helping expatriates access medical care and generally reduce the anxiety of international assignments in a nervous world. With the substantial economic investment employers make in expatriates (estimated at $1 million for a typical three-year ...
Weiss authors guide for baby boomers.(The Ultimate Safe Money Guide)
Apr 15, 2002 ... Weiss Ratings Chairman Martin Weiss has published a new book to provide baby boomers with a blueprint for wealth growth. Titled The Ultimate Safe Money Guide, the book addresses the conflicts of interest that test the stock brokerage industry and suggests methods for selecting a ...
Company food bills make journey online.(SeamlessWeb Professional Solutions Inc.)(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002 ... New York City-based Seamless Web is helping companies coordinate their food order bills in a more effective manner. Seamless Web offers cost-cutting meal, catering and other services to large corporate clients. Instead of drudging through the arduous work administrators often do ...
Corporate Vitamin rolls out vitamin plan.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002 ... In an ongoing effort to promote wellness in the workplace, Miami, Fla.-based Corporate Vitamin Services has introduced its Corporate Vitamin Plan. This alternative offers a means to provide a reminder of the commitment made by the company to protect the health and well-being of ...
Info Source.(Brief Article)
Apr 15, 2002 ... As a service to readers, EBN furnishes the names, location and telephone numbers of organizations whose products and services are highlighted in each issue. Page numbers identify where organizations are mentioned. Aetna, Hartford, Conn. 860/273-0123, www.aetna.com, page 37 ...
Benefits Cyberguide: Searching for answers on benefits products and services? Go to SourceBook Online at BenefitNews.com Among the companies you'll find are these SourceBook Online sponsors.
Apr 15, 2002 ... BEHAVIORAL HEALTH EAP Consultants Inc. - www.eapconsultants.com FEI Behavioral Health - www.feinet.com MHN - www.mhn.com National Employee Assistance Services Inc. - www.neas.com COMPREHENSIVE BENEFITS CONSULTING SERVICES ...