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	<title>CSI Benefits Industry News</title>
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	<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog</link>
	<description>Current Events in Employee Benefits</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:24:12 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<item>
		<title>Key notification and communication requirements in health care reform</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/key-notification-and-communication-requirements-in-health-care-reform/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/key-notification-and-communication-requirements-in-health-care-reform/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:33:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health care bill]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Care Law]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health care reform]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=477</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[You’ve likely been focusing mostly on the plan design and administration requirements of health care reform. But, the law has a series of new notification and communication requirements that start this year and extend over the next several years.

You’ll need to be thinking not only about the strategic communication needs—how to keep employees engaged in their health and managing costs—but also how to meet these legal requirements in a way that adds the most value. (And, creates the least amount of additional work for you and your team.)

Much is still in flux about the changes in health care, but this article captures the key notification requirements and what to look for as regulations are issued.

Seven health care reform notices ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/key-notification-and-communication-requirements-in-health-care-reform/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Health-reform regs overhaul claims appeals process</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/self-insured-health-plans/health-reform-regs-overhaul-claims-appeals-process/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/self-insured-health-plans/health-reform-regs-overhaul-claims-appeals-process/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 27 Jul 2010 21:02:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Self Insured Health Plans]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Appeals process regulations]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health care reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PPACA]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=472</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Obama Administration released interim final regulations aimed at creating a system of checks and balances for the internal and external appeals processes of health claims.

Governed by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the interim final rule requires group health plans and insurers to establish a comprehensive appeals processfor patients who appeal decisions on coverage, services and claim payments. The interim final regulations apply to self-funded health plans, but not to grandfathered plans under the PPACA.

The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and the Treasury issued the interim final rule, which will take effect on Sept. 21, 2010.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/self-insured-health-plans/health-reform-regs-overhaul-claims-appeals-process/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Health Care Reform: Preventive Services Interim Final Rules Released</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-insurance/health-care-reform-preventive-services-interim-final-rules-released/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-insurance/health-care-reform-preventive-services-interim-final-rules-released/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 23 Jul 2010 15:18:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[affordable care act]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[preventive health services]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=465</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[On July 14, 2010, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Treasury released final interim rules implementing the preventive health services provisions under the Affordable Care Act. Read this alert to learn more about the new rules.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-insurance/health-care-reform-preventive-services-interim-final-rules-released/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Report: Costs of PPACA exceed previous estimates</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-insurance/report-costs-of-ppaca-exceed-previous-estimates/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-insurance/report-costs-of-ppaca-exceed-previous-estimates/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 20 Jul 2010 16:19:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Costs of PPACA exceed previous estimates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[impact on employers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PPACA]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=460</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Two integral provisions of the health care reform legislation, “dependent eligibility” and “affordability,” will likely result in much higher health care costs for employers than previously estimated by government officials and other industry consultants, according to a new report.

The bswift Special Report on the Impact of Health Reform on Employers analyzes the 2010 benefits premium, contribution and dependent data of 242 bswift client organizations. The sample includes mid-sized and large employers with 50 to 15,000 employees representing a variety of industries, including retail, manufacturing and professional services.

“The bswift Special Report highlights the dramatic differences in impact of PPACA among employers. For some, the impact is negligible. For many others, PPACA may increase costs substantially for 2011 and may also require a complete overhaul of the organization’s health strategies in the next three years,” says bswift CEO Rich Gallun.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-insurance/report-costs-of-ppaca-exceed-previous-estimates/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>PPACA checklist for open enrollment</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care-reform-2/ppaca-checklist-for-open-enrollment/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care-reform-2/ppaca-checklist-for-open-enrollment/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 15 Jul 2010 23:28:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[CLASS program]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dependent coverage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FSAs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HRAs or Archer MSAs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HSAs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lifetime dollar limits]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PPACA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pre-existing condition exclusions]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=445</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Like Santa, I imagine you’ll be making a list and checking it twice (20 times?) to make sure you have all your talking points in order so you can communicate effectively to employees how the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will affect their benefits enrollment options.
(You might even envy Santa, in that he only has to check his list for young children, not adults up to age 26!)
At any rate, to help you ensure you communicate anything and everything, Mercer’s developed a list of what you’ll want to do and say before enrollment season kicks off this fall — and surely before many PPACA provisions take effect for plan years beginning on or after Sept. 23 (for most plans, Jan. 1, 2011). Take notes, pros. Here’s what to do if you have:
]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care-reform-2/ppaca-checklist-for-open-enrollment/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>HSAs: Growing in all directions</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/uncategorized/hsas-growing-in-all-directions/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/uncategorized/hsas-growing-in-all-directions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 14 Jul 2010 22:15:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Insurance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health Savings Accounts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[HSAs]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=435</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Having recently surpassed the $1 billion mark in HSA assets, OptumHealth's Todd Berkley shares how the consumer-directed accounts are fairing as the economy struggles to recover.
]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/uncategorized/hsas-growing-in-all-directions/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title></title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/webinar-series/392/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/webinar-series/392/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Jul 2010 14:48:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Webinar Series]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Free Webinar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New Developments in Compliance]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=392</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Free Webinar

New Developments in Compliance

Mark Your Calendar

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010



11:00 AM Central Daylight Time ]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/webinar-series/392/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>‘Bill of rights’ brings hope, but also frustration</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care-reform-2/%e2%80%98bill-of-rights%e2%80%99-brings-hope-but-also-frustration/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care-reform-2/%e2%80%98bill-of-rights%e2%80%99-brings-hope-but-also-frustration/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 30 Jun 2010 14:53:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care Reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patient's Bill of Rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lifetime limits]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Preexisting condition exclusions]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=428</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The regulations in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act’s Patient’s Bill of Rights, which address preexisting condition exclusions, retroactive rescissions, lifetime limits, annual dollar limits and other consumer-protection mandates, aim to "put American consumers back in charge of their health coverage and care," according to a healthreform.gov fact sheet.

However, after a week to digest the legislation’s interim final rules, EBA’s health reform panelists are left wanting more.

For Dave Lapka, president of logistics consulting company D360, the issue begins with the title.

"Interesting choice of titles: ‘Patient's Bill of Rights.’ The definition of rights as applied in the U.S. Constitution represent things that the government can't take away from states or citizens," he says. "The term ‘rights’ in this application is really just a listing of minimally acceptable cost levels. It then includes the possibility of waivers, so that significant cost increases or coverage limitations don't occur. So you might have changes or you might not — a bureaucrat will decide once the political winds are determined. If policies are ‘waive-able’ were they ever really rights?"

Lapka refers to a provision in the rules that allows for plans with an annual dollar limit, such as limited medical plans, to seek a waiver that would allow for a delay in compliance as long as the plan "can prove that its current annual limits are necessary to prevent a significant loss of coverage or increase in premiums," according to a Hewitt overview.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care-reform-2/%e2%80%98bill-of-rights%e2%80%99-brings-hope-but-also-frustration/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Canadian insurers predict high cost increases for drugs</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/canadian-insurers-predict-high-cost-increases-for-drugs/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/canadian-insurers-predict-high-cost-increases-for-drugs/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 28 Jun 2010 16:03:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[biologic drugs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[brand drugs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health cost trend]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[heatlh care costs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Pharmaceuticals]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[prescription drugs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[workplace wellness]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=424</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[nsurers in Canada are expecting overall health care costs for employers to rise 15% this year, the highest growth rate in five years.

This overall health care cost includes prescription drugs, medical plans, hospital coverage and dental care. Buck Consultants 2010 Canadian Health Care Trend Survey analyzes the health cost trend assumptions that factor into the premium rate setting of 13 major Canadian insurers.

Pharmaceuticals, which represent 60% to 70% of health expenditures, remain the fastest increasing expense paid by group insurance plans, with an expected increase of 15.8% in 2010. This is up slightly from last year's increase of 15.6%.

“This is surprising considering the patents on several high-cost brand drugs are expiring this year, opening the door for lower cost generic drugs,” says Michele Bossi, practice leader of Buck's Canadian health and productivity consulting practice. "We are also seeing a trend among provincial governments toward introducing legislation that will reduce generic drug pricing over the next few years."

She says counteracting the downward trend is the increased risk to private plans caused by the explosion of expensive biologic drugs into the market. The world of biologics is uncharted territory, making future drug costs difficult to predict.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/canadian-insurers-predict-high-cost-increases-for-drugs/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Gov’t unveils new Patient’s Bill of Rights under PPACA</title>
		<link>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/gov%e2%80%99t-unveils-new-patient%e2%80%99s-bill-of-rights-under-ppaca/#utm_source=feed&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=feed</link>
		<comments>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/gov%e2%80%99t-unveils-new-patient%e2%80%99s-bill-of-rights-under-ppaca/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:57:05 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ken Mensio</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Health Care]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health care reform]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patient’s Bill of Rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PPACA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Preexisting condition exclusions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[regulations]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/?p=386</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Federal regulators released interim final rules implementing a new Patient's Bill of Rights under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The guidance addresses preexisting condition exclusions, retroactive rescissions, lifetime limits and annual dollar limits.

Source: Employee Benefit News article used by permission

"These rules effectively put in place a basic set of consumer protections known over the years as the 'Patient's Bill of Rights.' This is a concept introduced 15 years ago and supported by both Democrats and Republicans," said Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius in an e-mail statement.

The Federal Register will publish the rules on June 28. The new regulations, issued by the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury, will take effect for most plans on or after Sept. 23. For calendar year plans, the rules will take effect Jan. 1, 2011.

The interim final rules, which are nearly 200 pages, focus on PPACA provisions that apply to all health plans, including grandfathered health plans. According to consultants at Hewitt Associates, the provisions in the interim final rules adopt the following:]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.csibenefits.us/blog/health-care/gov%e2%80%99t-unveils-new-patient%e2%80%99s-bill-of-rights-under-ppaca/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
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