Benefits Buzz
New SBCs Required in 2021
Annual Medicare Part D reporting is required for all employers who provide health benefits with prescription drug coverage. The reporting is an online filing to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and it lets CMS know if the prescription drug coverage available on the employer’s health plan is “creditable.”
Consumer-Driven Health Plans (CHDPs) have been steadily gaining in popularity for several years now. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) 2018 Annual Benefits Report, 40% of the employers surveyed now offer a CDHP to their employees. SHRM defines a CDHP as a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) or a Health Savings Account (HSA) paired with any underlying medical plan.
A stand-out strategy for small businesses: Worksite benefits enable small companies to do more with less
The competition for talent is fierce for small businesses. With the rising cost of health care eating up larger portions of their benefits budgets, small business owners working to attract and retain key talent are looking for ways to do more with less. For these employers, worksite benefits offer a strategic opportunity to not only compete for top talent but keep key employees once they're on board.
The fourth quarter is finally over, and you made it through! Now you’re probably planning to sit back, relax, and enjoy a well-earned break. Not so fast!
Open enrollment season can be unbelievably stressful and exhausting. With all the time you spent setting up enrollment meetings, chasing down employee applications and entering new benefit elections, you probably didn’t have a spare moment to think about benefits compliance. Unfortunately, compliance obligations don’t go away just because it’s your busiest time of the year.
Benefit needs and strategies are constantly evolving. But, one thing hasn't changed. Employers value the expert guidance they get from their benefits brokers.
A new employee benefit trends report from MetLife examines the changing expectations of employers – and finds that the list goes way beyond cost savings.