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Sexual Harassment Prevention Training Is Now Required With recent changes to the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), the California legislature has made it easier for employees to win sexual harassment claims. For example, employees can qualify their sexually hostile environment claims with just one incident of harassment.  In many cases, employers won’t be allowed […]

So if you are within 12 months of turning 65, get ready for the onslaught of mailers and phone calls about Medicare.  You will end up getting about 800 pounds of stuff in the mail, agents calling your phone, and friends giving you advice about Medicare that probably should keep quiet.  Here are the basics;

You would think that with the sky high price of Employee Benefits, especially Group Health Insurance, that employers would be shying away from offering it to their employees.  Not at all the case.  In fact, to attract and retain employees, many #employers are increasing their Benefits offering to compete.  A fantastic way to help with

Currently employers with over 50 employees are mandated to provide Group Health Insurance coverage for their full timer workers.  If they don’t, the #ACA penalties can be very stiff, to the tune of $2000 to $3000 an employee per year.  #Employers not in compliance have been getting IRS 226-J letters, advising them of their misdeeds

The Employee Benefits and Group Health industry will be making some major changes soon.  President Trump is bringing back Short Term Health Plans and Association Plans, to help ease the skyrocketing cost of Group Health Insurance for employers.  There is a down side to this.  Short Term plans, many times, can be very light on

A giant sting operation ended with 601 people indicted on multiple charges including fraud, false billings, opioid  and dangerous narcotic distribution.  Of the people arrested…..165 were doctors, nurses and other licensed medical “professionals”.  This occurred across 58 Federal Districts in the US.  I’m sure this is just the tip of the iceberg.  These were just

The reaction from employers to High Deductible Employee Benefit plans is usually a scowl or unhappy face.  Their employees are used to having a cadillac plan or something that has a super low deductible.  Anything less than that is looked as a “take away”.  The real story is that in most cases, you can enhance

When you evaluate either your current Employee Benefits broker, or considering hiring one, there are a few things to consider.  The “size” comment was an attempt at a joke, but seriously, size may very well make all the difference in the world, and not in the way you think.  Smaller agencies are usually more responsive

#AHPs are one of the latest twists in the ever changing Group Health Insurance landscape for #employers.  AHPs will be coming as soon as September and the offerings are not set in stone.  The Association Health Plans can have various ways of setting prices on industries, ages, even gender.  One of the selling points to

Yesterday, President Trump finalized the regulations allowing #SmallBusiness to have more options for their Group Health offerings to #employees.  Association Health Plans, or #AHP, are now less restrictive because of Trump legislation.  AHPs allow certain employers to band together to obtain Group Health Insurance through an “association” affiliation.  The employer must be in the same

Depending on what type of company you run and who you are trying to attract and retain as employees, will determine if you, as an #employer, should be offering #GroupBenefits and Group Health Insurance for your people.  Employee Benefits are usually the second most costly line item for employers, right underneath wages.  Depending on your

Late in 2017 there was proposed legislation in the Senate to allow people between the ages of 55 and 64 to “buy into” the Medicare program.  This would allow people to access the #Medicare hospital, medical services and prescription drug benefits.  On the surface it sounds interesting, until someone asks how we are going to

OK, maybe we can’t scrap the #ACA altogether, and I’m not sure we should, frankly, but there is a piece of legislation inside the #FarmBill2018 that may provide some relief to the Agriculture Industry.  Inside the Farm Bill is the potential for up to $65 Million in loans for AHPs or Association Health Plans.  An

A recent study done by AHIP, America’s Health Insurance Plans, shows that about 50% of the monthly premium costs associated with each of the Health Insurance plans in America, go to Doctors and Prescription Drugs.  22% goes to doctors and physicians, another 23% goes to Prescription Drug costs.  Recently the spotlight by President Trump has

I get this question from more and more these days, about #Medicare.  What happens if I have an employee that is over 65, is eligible for Medicare and wants to continue with their HSA.  Lets break this down a couple of ways.  First off, someone can continue to participate in the company’s health plan over