Benefits Cafe began a COVID-19 Crisis Update page last week where we have information from governments and insurance companies about their revised policies to accommodate these unusual times. The update page also has breaking news that should be helpful to businesses that are forced to make difficult decisions. Today, [...]
Less than two weeks ago, I wrote a blog post that predicted that fireworks would hit California’s small group health insurance market with UHC’s new Association Health Plans. Well, sparks flew. Yesterday, UnitedHealth Care announced that because of “regulatory inquiries over the past couple of weeks” UHC has suspended the [...]
UnitedHealth Care (UHC) kicked-off Summer 2019 with a bang. During a webinar to their top brokers on July 1st, they made the game-changing announcement that they will introduce 9 new Association Health Plans (AHP) into the California small group marketplace (1-100 employees.)By screening enrollees for pre-existing medical conditions and [...]
On Wednesday, I was fortunate to be included in a round table discussion with the senior leadership of Kaiser Permanente's small group sales and account management team. To encourage discussion, Kaiser limited participation to a few key brokers. (2019 Kaiser Key Broker Engagement Luncheon, Pasadena, California. Third from [...]
Many employers want to know why medical insurance rates continue to rise and whether they're paying too much compared to other businesses. Two recently released reports address these questions: Medical Cost Trend: Behind the numbers 2019, is prepared by Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC)'s Health Research Institute and it projects [...]
NOTE: The answer to this question requires compliance with both the HIPAA Nondiscrimination Requirements and the IRS Section 125 Nondiscrimination Rules. IRS Nondiscrimination Rules apply when employees make pre-tax paycheck contributions for employee benefits using a Section 125 Premium Only Plan (POP). If you are a client of Benefits [...]
Experts estimate that 50 to 70 percent of the small businesses in California that offer employee medical insurance will renew their plans in December 2016. Many California small business medical insurance companies have begun to release their renewal rates for December 2016 and for many employers the renewal rates look [...]
Yesterday I had an opportunity to get an advance look at the new Kaiser Permanente (KP) medical facility in Santa Monica and at the same time get a glimpse of the future of medical care. To say that this facility is revolutionary would be an understatement. While the Kaiser facility occupies [...]
If you didn't sign up for individual health insurance in California during the open enrollment period, you're not stuck. A little known state program, Major Risk Medical Insurance Plan (MRMIP), may be your saving grace. While no insurance company will offer you coverage outside of the open enrollment period unless [...]
Like the W-2 forms that employers give to employees and the IRS that report wages; beginning in 2016 employers with 50 or more employees must give employees and the IRS a completed 1095-C form. The 1095-C reports on an employee's medical insurance coverage.