After Shutdown: Administration Gives $445,000,000 to Corporation for Public Broadcasting | CNS News
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label News. Show all posts
Friday, October 4, 2013
After Shutdown: Administration Gives $445,000,000 to Corporation for Public Broadcasting | CNS News
After Shutdown: Administration Gives $445,000,000 to Corporation for Public Broadcasting | CNS News
Monday, September 30, 2013
Obama's budget calls for big changes to 401(k)s, IRAs | BenefitsPro
September 27, 2013
Set aside for a moment the fight in Washington, D.C., over stopgap spending legislation. In his budget blueprint for 2014, President Obama has proposed a number of tax and other reforms that would mean big changes in how retirement is financed.
What Congress does over the next couple of days could either avoid or trigger a government shutdown. Either way, at some point after the crisis is resolved, the House and Senate are likely take up the following proposals, all of which would have lasting effects on anyone saving for retirement.
Contributions would be made to an IRA on a payroll-deduction basis. If an employer already offers a plan, it wouldn’t have to comply with this regulation, but if its current plan excludes certain segments of its employees from participating in the plan, the employer would have to begin to offer the automatic IRA to those excluded employees, according to an assessment by KPMG.
Obama included this provision in the 2014 budget because he wanted to turn the tide on a rising retirement crisis in the United States. According to a Treasury report, the number of U.S. workers participating in an employer-sponsored retirement plan has remained stagnant for decades at no more than about half the total workforce.
Read More: Obama's budget calls for big changes to 401(k)s, IRAs | BenefitsPro
Set aside for a moment the fight in Washington, D.C., over stopgap spending legislation. In his budget blueprint for 2014, President Obama has proposed a number of tax and other reforms that would mean big changes in how retirement is financed.
What Congress does over the next couple of days could either avoid or trigger a government shutdown. Either way, at some point after the crisis is resolved, the House and Senate are likely take up the following proposals, all of which would have lasting effects on anyone saving for retirement.
Automatic enrollment in IRAs
The president’s 2014 budget would require employers in business for at least two years that have more than 10 employees to offer an automatic IRA option to employees.Contributions would be made to an IRA on a payroll-deduction basis. If an employer already offers a plan, it wouldn’t have to comply with this regulation, but if its current plan excludes certain segments of its employees from participating in the plan, the employer would have to begin to offer the automatic IRA to those excluded employees, according to an assessment by KPMG.
Obama included this provision in the 2014 budget because he wanted to turn the tide on a rising retirement crisis in the United States. According to a Treasury report, the number of U.S. workers participating in an employer-sponsored retirement plan has remained stagnant for decades at no more than about half the total workforce.
Read More: Obama's budget calls for big changes to 401(k)s, IRAs | BenefitsPro
Thursday, September 26, 2013
HCAN: Anti-Obamacare states cannot sabotage Navigators | LifeHealthPro
September 26, 2013
The efforts of governors and state legislators to block consumers who want to use PPACA Navigators to help them sign up for health care could have “profound effects,” a consumer advocacy group contends in a report released today.
“This is Navigator suppression, and it perpetuates the systematic denial of affordable health care to huge numbers of the most vulnerable individuals in our society, especially those in minority and lower-income populations,” said Ethan Rome, executive director for Health Care for America Now (HCAN).
The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA), however, said they could understand the decision of states to act.
"While the thousands of Navigators hired will help consumers enroll through a state or federally-facilitated marketplace, consumers will require assistance that goes far beyond registering for a plan," said NAIFA President-Elect John Nichols said.
According to Nichols, agents and brokers do much more than sell insurance. They explain critical differences in plan options and coverage, which may involve substantial research and fact-finding about the client’s needs. They advocate on behalf of their clients, helping people when they have trouble getting procedures approved or claims processed.
"They also review coverage on a periodic basis, suggesting changes when appropriate and counseling on ways to reduce costs," Nichols said. "When purchasing a plan from a marketplace, the companies that sell health insurance should immediately assign consumers an agent. The healthcare system is complex, and coverage does not begin and end with enrollment. Consumers benefit from the expertise that brokers and agents provide in servicing the plan throughout the year. They need to be involved, or customer service surely will be a casualty of healthcare reform.”
HCAN officials said Jay Angoff, a partner at Mehri & Skalet in Washington, is considering filing lawsuits that would stop the recalcitrant states from interfering with the Navigators and acting to stop the states from delaying the work of the Navigators.
Angoff is the former insurance commissioner of Missouri, and the first head of the Health and Human Services Department’s Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (OCIIO). OCIIO is the office responsible for implementing the insurance reform provisions. He did not return phone call seeking comment.
Those participating in today's conference call said it is unlikely HHS would file its own lawsuits to stop the interference because it is so busy implementing the many pieces of the law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., ranking minority member of the House Subcommittee on Energy Policy, Healthcare and Entitlements of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, discounted the utility of filing lawsuits. Speier said on the conference call that courts would likely not find the suits “ripe for litigation” because the provisions of the law involved have not yet taken effect.
Speier said the feedback she is getting from her district is that when the exchanges are launched Oct. 1, enrollment will probably be slow “as we start out and then gain as times on.”
Speier predicted that the exchanges “will probably see a takeup rate that is quite high.” She said that in her polling of young people, she "was surprised at how important this is to the 20-somehtings; I was surprised at how readily this will be embraced.”
Sabrina Corlette, a health policy expert at Georgetown University, called the state laws "unprecedented." She said they were unnecessary given Medicare's positive history with counselors similar to the Navigators. "It's not to say there aren't legitimate concerns about fraud, or con artists taking advantage of Obamacare," she said. "It's just that these state laws are really barking up the wrong tree … There is no credible evidence whatsoever that Navigators will be a source of fraud."
Corlette said the criminal background check some of the state laws are requiring, as well as additional training are imposing an additional hurdle to the Navigators’ starting their work.
“They are already required to undergo training, training that is quite extensive and includes the providing of a lot of educational material. This involves piling on information they already have.
“All it does is make it more difficult for people to have access to important information on health care options,” she said.
As to background checks, Corlette said the organizations to which the Navigators are associated “had to be vetted through an extensive process.” And, she said, “some of the checks are being required incredibly late in the game, and will not be complied with in time to allow these people to start doing their job on time.”
Read More...HCAN: Anti-Obamacare states cannot sabotage Navigators | LifeHealthPro
The efforts of governors and state legislators to block consumers who want to use PPACA Navigators to help them sign up for health care could have “profound effects,” a consumer advocacy group contends in a report released today.
“This is Navigator suppression, and it perpetuates the systematic denial of affordable health care to huge numbers of the most vulnerable individuals in our society, especially those in minority and lower-income populations,” said Ethan Rome, executive director for Health Care for America Now (HCAN).
The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA), however, said they could understand the decision of states to act.
"While the thousands of Navigators hired will help consumers enroll through a state or federally-facilitated marketplace, consumers will require assistance that goes far beyond registering for a plan," said NAIFA President-Elect John Nichols said.
According to Nichols, agents and brokers do much more than sell insurance. They explain critical differences in plan options and coverage, which may involve substantial research and fact-finding about the client’s needs. They advocate on behalf of their clients, helping people when they have trouble getting procedures approved or claims processed.
"They also review coverage on a periodic basis, suggesting changes when appropriate and counseling on ways to reduce costs," Nichols said. "When purchasing a plan from a marketplace, the companies that sell health insurance should immediately assign consumers an agent. The healthcare system is complex, and coverage does not begin and end with enrollment. Consumers benefit from the expertise that brokers and agents provide in servicing the plan throughout the year. They need to be involved, or customer service surely will be a casualty of healthcare reform.”
HCAN officials said Jay Angoff, a partner at Mehri & Skalet in Washington, is considering filing lawsuits that would stop the recalcitrant states from interfering with the Navigators and acting to stop the states from delaying the work of the Navigators.
Angoff is the former insurance commissioner of Missouri, and the first head of the Health and Human Services Department’s Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (OCIIO). OCIIO is the office responsible for implementing the insurance reform provisions. He did not return phone call seeking comment.
Those participating in today's conference call said it is unlikely HHS would file its own lawsuits to stop the interference because it is so busy implementing the many pieces of the law, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
Rep. Jackie Speier, D-Calif., ranking minority member of the House Subcommittee on Energy Policy, Healthcare and Entitlements of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, discounted the utility of filing lawsuits. Speier said on the conference call that courts would likely not find the suits “ripe for litigation” because the provisions of the law involved have not yet taken effect.
Speier said the feedback she is getting from her district is that when the exchanges are launched Oct. 1, enrollment will probably be slow “as we start out and then gain as times on.”
Speier predicted that the exchanges “will probably see a takeup rate that is quite high.” She said that in her polling of young people, she "was surprised at how important this is to the 20-somehtings; I was surprised at how readily this will be embraced.”
Sabrina Corlette, a health policy expert at Georgetown University, called the state laws "unprecedented." She said they were unnecessary given Medicare's positive history with counselors similar to the Navigators. "It's not to say there aren't legitimate concerns about fraud, or con artists taking advantage of Obamacare," she said. "It's just that these state laws are really barking up the wrong tree … There is no credible evidence whatsoever that Navigators will be a source of fraud."
Corlette said the criminal background check some of the state laws are requiring, as well as additional training are imposing an additional hurdle to the Navigators’ starting their work.
“They are already required to undergo training, training that is quite extensive and includes the providing of a lot of educational material. This involves piling on information they already have.
“All it does is make it more difficult for people to have access to important information on health care options,” she said.
As to background checks, Corlette said the organizations to which the Navigators are associated “had to be vetted through an extensive process.” And, she said, “some of the checks are being required incredibly late in the game, and will not be complied with in time to allow these people to start doing their job on time.”
Read More...HCAN: Anti-Obamacare states cannot sabotage Navigators | LifeHealthPro
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Louisiana official blasts HHS PPACA delays | LifeHealthPro
September 18, 2013
Problems with getting the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to answer questions about federal health law details have jacked up implementation costs, a state official testified today.
The official, Kathy Kliebert, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, spoke at a hearing on state implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) that was organized by the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform health care subcommittee.
Getting a response from HHS on important questions can take three to four months, Kliebert said.
"We cannot afford to wait months for these answers," Kliebert said.
Kliebert cited efforts to get HHS officials to help state Medicaid programs adopt a new income eligibility testing standard -- a "Modified Adjusted Gross Income" standard -- as an example of a result of the delays.
Most states have to revamp their Medicaid eligibility systems to shift to the MAGI standard.
Federal officials promised in March that HHS would develop a "MAGI in a box" solution that would be free to the states.
Instead, Kliebert said, HHS officials said in June, during a conference call, that the states would have to develop their own MAGI implementation systems instead.
That shift is forcing Louisiana to spend about $750,000 on 5,437 in additional contractor work, Kliebert said.
Kliebert also questioned how well HHS has trained the call center workers supporting exchanges in states like Louisiana that are letting HHS run their public exchange programs.
A call center worker told one Louisiana man that many states are expanding Medicaid eligibility, and that the man should call the Louisiana Medicaid program to see if it was one of those states, even though Louisiana is one of the states that has definitely rejected Medicaid expansion, Kliebert said.
Louisiana official blasts HHS PPACA delays | LifeHealthPro
Problems with getting the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to answer questions about federal health law details have jacked up implementation costs, a state official testified today.
The official, Kathy Kliebert, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, spoke at a hearing on state implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) that was organized by the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform health care subcommittee.
Getting a response from HHS on important questions can take three to four months, Kliebert said.
"We cannot afford to wait months for these answers," Kliebert said.
Kliebert cited efforts to get HHS officials to help state Medicaid programs adopt a new income eligibility testing standard -- a "Modified Adjusted Gross Income" standard -- as an example of a result of the delays.
Most states have to revamp their Medicaid eligibility systems to shift to the MAGI standard.
Federal officials promised in March that HHS would develop a "MAGI in a box" solution that would be free to the states.
Instead, Kliebert said, HHS officials said in June, during a conference call, that the states would have to develop their own MAGI implementation systems instead.
That shift is forcing Louisiana to spend about $750,000 on 5,437 in additional contractor work, Kliebert said.
Kliebert also questioned how well HHS has trained the call center workers supporting exchanges in states like Louisiana that are letting HHS run their public exchange programs.
A call center worker told one Louisiana man that many states are expanding Medicaid eligibility, and that the man should call the Louisiana Medicaid program to see if it was one of those states, even though Louisiana is one of the states that has definitely rejected Medicaid expansion, Kliebert said.
Louisiana official blasts HHS PPACA delays | LifeHealthPro
Friday, September 13, 2013
$100-a-day penalties: ACA non-compliance can be expensive - Articles - Employee Benefit News
September 13, 2013
While a lot of employers are focused on the penalties associated with not offering appropriate coverage (the $2,000 penalty) or not offering affordable coverage (the $3,000 penalty), what can get overlooked is the myriad of daily penalties that come with non-compliance. Take the Oct. 1 exchange notice requirement as an example. While the regulations do not identify a specific penalty for failing to comply with the notice requirement, the Affordable Care Act has a $100-a-day general non-compliance penalty. Read More...
$100-a-day penalties: ACA non-compliance can be expensive - Articles - Employee Benefit News
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Florida bans navigators from county health offices | LifeHealthPro
September 12, 2013
MIAMI (AP) — The Florida Department of Health has issued a memo telling county health departments to keep Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) navigators out of their offices.
Local health departments can accept public exchange brochures and other exchange outreach material, but they can distribute the materials only if consumers ask for information.
Agency officials said they sent the memo earlier this week to provide clarity for local departments about the exchange navigators because the navigators aren't acting on behalf of the state.
PPACA calls for the new public exchange system to open Oct. 1.
Florida bans navigators from county health offices | LifeHealthPro
MIAMI (AP) — The Florida Department of Health has issued a memo telling county health departments to keep Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) navigators out of their offices.
Local health departments can accept public exchange brochures and other exchange outreach material, but they can distribute the materials only if consumers ask for information.
Agency officials said they sent the memo earlier this week to provide clarity for local departments about the exchange navigators because the navigators aren't acting on behalf of the state.
PPACA calls for the new public exchange system to open Oct. 1.
Florida bans navigators from county health offices | LifeHealthPro
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Al-Assad Calls Out Obama: ‘You’re Weak!’
Uh-Oh, he went there.
In an interview with a French publication, Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad called out President Obama, calling him weak in the face of pressure within his country.“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
____________
Syrian President Bashar Assad called President Barack Obama “weak” in a new interview with a French publication on Monday, saying he is facing pressure from within the country.
Uh-Oh, he went there. In an interview with a French publication, Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad called out President Obama, calling him weak in the face of pressure within his country.
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
____________
Syrian President Bashar Assad called President Barack Obama “weak” in a new interview with a French publication on Monday, saying he is facing pressure from within the country.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
____________
Syrian President Bashar Assad called President Barack Obama “weak” in a new interview with a French publication on Monday, saying he is facing pressure from within the country.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
In an interview with a French publication, Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad called out President Obama, calling him weak in the face of pressure within his country.
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
In an interview with a French publication, Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad called out President Obama, calling him weak in the face of pressure within his country.
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
In an interview with a French publication, Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad called out President Obama, calling him weak in the face of pressure within his country.
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
In an interview with a French publication, Syrian Dictator Bashar Al-Assad called out President Obama, calling him weak in the face of pressure within his country.
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
Al-Assad Calls Out Obama: ‘You’re Weak!’
“If Obama was strong, he would have said publicly: ‘We have no evidence of the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian state.’ He would have said publicly: ‘The only way to proceed is through UN investigations. We therefore refer everything to the Security Council.’ But Obama is weak because he is facing pressure from within the United States,”
As Obama delays, Al-Assad gets in his pot shot…but does he have a point? Is Obama weak? Let us know.
- See more at: http://americanmilitarynews.com/2013/09/al-assad-calls-out-obama-youre-weak/#sthash.yMx9k5YT.5nd4JoAh.dpuf
Thursday, June 27, 2013
DOMA ruling complicates benefits administration - Articles - Employee Benefit News
The Supreme Court’s decision striking down the federal Defense of Marriage Act is being hailed as a huge victory for same-sex couples, but the ruling makes benefits administration for employers even more complicated than before.
“It’s not even crystal clear that anybody knows what the right legal answer is with respect to those people living in the 38 states that don’t recognize same-sex marriage,” says Todd Solomon, a partner in the employee benefits practice of McDermott, Will & Emery, and author of Domestic Partner Benefits: An Employer’s Guide. “It’s really easy in the other 12 states [that do recognize same-sex marriage] — that’s what we know — but we’ve got a huge, open $64,000 question with respect to the rest of the people. And that’s a big problem for employers. I think they’re going to be very puzzled and they’re going to want guidance from the IRS.”The court decision notes there are over 1,000 federal laws containing provisions specifically applicable to spouses that will be affected by its ruling. At this point, the ruling makes it harder for multistate employers to administer benefits, believes Leslye Laderman, a principal in the Knowledge Resource Center with Buck Consultants. Read More...DOMA ruling complicates benefits administration - Articles - Employee Benefit News
“It’s not even crystal clear that anybody knows what the right legal answer is with respect to those people living in the 38 states that don’t recognize same-sex marriage,” says Todd Solomon, a partner in the employee benefits practice of McDermott, Will & Emery, and author of Domestic Partner Benefits: An Employer’s Guide. “It’s really easy in the other 12 states [that do recognize same-sex marriage] — that’s what we know — but we’ve got a huge, open $64,000 question with respect to the rest of the people. And that’s a big problem for employers. I think they’re going to be very puzzled and they’re going to want guidance from the IRS.”The court decision notes there are over 1,000 federal laws containing provisions specifically applicable to spouses that will be affected by its ruling. At this point, the ruling makes it harder for multistate employers to administer benefits, believes Leslye Laderman, a principal in the Knowledge Resource Center with Buck Consultants. Read More...DOMA ruling complicates benefits administration - Articles - Employee Benefit News
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