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Last week was a particularly rough week for health care reform as PPACA took some serious hits. First, Judge Roger Vinson from the US District Court for the Northern District of Florida ruled that PPACA was unconstitutional as a whole.&nbs... More...

In some prior entries, I have made reference to the obligations of employers to make contributions to their own benefit plans and the obligation to make contributions to a multiemployer benefit plan. These references have generally been associa... More...

Every once in a while I like to throw in something that does not appear to immediately be a "benefits" related item but secretly is. Susan Jordan of our Pittsburgh office brought this case to my attention and I thought it might b... More...

Back before the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was passed, most flexible spending accounts provided for reimbursement of "over-the-counter" medicine and drugs. Many FSA programs began using the "debit card" syste... More...

Employers with unionized employees are all too familiar with the issues that arise in the negotiation and maintenance of collective bargaining agreements. It is not uncommon for the union to require the employer to participate in the union mult... More...

More and more defined contribution plans offer "target date funds" as investment options. Some estimates range as high as 75% of plans make these funds available to participants. These types of funds tailor investments to ... More...

One of the components to health care reform that has been of great concern is the application of code section 105(h) on insured plans. Plans that had lost grandfathered status would have been subject to the non-discrimination rules that self-in... More...

Before everyone gets excited about engaging in an argument about the constitutionality of health care reform and debating the various cases that are pending on the topic, understand this is not what this posting is about. I am just bringing out... More...

In the past, I have written about the importance of including accurate language in summary plan descriptions and how significant it is for plan sponsors to include appropriate "discretionary authority" language and "reservation of righ... More...

Susan Jordan, from our Pittsburgh office, provides the following related to the IRS guidance issued on "in-plan" Roth rollovers: Included in the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 is a provision whereby amounts accumulated in a 401(k) plan can... More...

You might recall that The Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA) requires that administrators of all defined benefit plans (including multiemployer benefit plans) to provide an annual funding notice to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), p... More...

In May of this year, the IRS began issuing "Compliance Questionnaires" to some 1,200 401(k) plan sponsors. The purpose of the questionnaires was not for an external audit, but rather to encourage sponsors to conduct an internal audit ... More...

When talking about healthcare reform, grandfathered status remains an important concern. Previously, it was clear that, for self-funded plans, changing third-party administrators would not cause a loss of grandfathered status. But for ins... More...

The Australia Institute recently released a study with disturbing results on worker's health. A poll involving 1360 people found that 27% were too busy to go to the doctor even though they needed to and 44% admitted to avoiding GP appointmentsin t... More...

In response to my last entry about 105(h) discrimination, several people have noted to me that the penalties for failing the discrimination testing under PPACA are not levied on the HCEs. If the plan Instead, there is an excise tax of $10... More...

One of the things that PPACA (or health care reform, or even "Obamacare") adds to the mix of plan administration is the concept that insured health plans will now be subject to "discrimination testing" under IRS Code Section ... More...

By Rebecca Harris, MS, LPC, CEAP At last those horrible campaign ads have ended! The negativity was driving me crazy, and the counter attacks were not at all helpful or informative. I wanted to vote for “C” – none of the above! Is anybody telling... More...

Each year, employee benefits professionals diligently await the release of the cost-of-living adjustments for the upcoming plan years so that various benefit limits can be properly maintained. Susan Jordan, from our Pittsburgh office share this... More...

The “Fifties Weekend” held in and around the Wildwood Convention Center, on the Jersey Shore, lived up to the city’s namesake: a) first there was a Fri night dance MC’d by a former Philly radio personality/DJ, Jerry Blavat, “The Geeter (or was it t... More...

You might recall last week I wrote about the DOL's new rule requiring disclosure of fees and expenses associated with management of their 401(k)-type retirement plans. At that time, the proposed rule was available. The DOL has now issued ... More...

The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration has announced a proposed rule to update the definition of "fiduciary." The proposed rule will further clarify the regulations to more broadly define the te... More...

~Being Scared Can Be Good For Your Child’s Development Children Like Being Scared: Whether it's shuddering through the latest horror film or delighting in the gory side of Halloween, many children seem to love being scared. What is it about bein... More...

Caregiver Stress Accounts for 27% Increase in Health Insurance for Employers The impact of Elder Care issues on corporate America will continue to grow as our elderly population increases. Employees juggling job responsibilities with care giving ar... More...

Employees — or even owners — may suddenly need a lot of time to look after an aging parent. Small businesses are ill-prepared for the growing effect that elder-care issues will have on their workforces, not to mention their bottom lines, experts sa... More...

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration announced issuance of a final rule requiring disclosure of fees and expenses associated with management of their 401(k)-type retirement plans. Under the rule, worker... More...

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News

PPACA is Unconstitutional and 1099 Reporting May Go Away (a rough week for reform)

Shareholder Personally Liable for "Delinquent Contributions"

Supreme Court Finds Medical Students Are Employees for FICA Purposes

IRS Releases Additional Guidance on "Over the Counter" Restrictions

Withdrawal Liability: Don't Let it Sneak Up on You!

Target Date Funds: More Disclosure Required

Non-Discrimination Put on Hold: Insurance Plans get a Reprieve

Health Care Reform is Unconstitutional, sort-of, at least maybe.

Supreme Court Looks at Deficient Plan Communications: Fiduciaries Beware?

IRS Comes Through with Guidance on In-Plan Roth Rollovers

EBSA Proposed Rule for Annual Notices for Defined Benefit Plans

Did You Get a 401(K) Compliance Questionnaire? Don't Ignore It!

Changing Insurers Does NOT Compromise Grandfathered Status

SICK WORKERS TOO BUSY TO SEE A DOCTOR

Penalties for Failing 105(h) For Your Insured Plans

So What Does Non-Discrimination Mean? Health Care Reform and Section 105(h)

Guiding Principles Part 1- Undercover Boss

IRS Announces Cost-of-Living Adjustments for 2011

A Painful Paradox of Patriotism or Turning the ‘50s Beat into ‘60s Beef

Final Rule issued on 401(k) Fees

DOL Proposes New Rule for Defining "Fiduciaries"

Solutions EAP Weekly Etip: Halloween Tips Part I

Caregiver Stress Accounts for 27% Increase in Health Insurance for Employers

Is Your Business Prepared for the Silver Tsunami?

DOL Issues Final Rule on 401(k) Fee Disclosures

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	Cartus Global Survey Shows Trend to Shorter-Term International Relocation Assignments

	Rewards, Vacation and Perks Are Passé; Canadians Care Most About Cash