Word on Benefits

Feeling Tense? Blame the Stock Market

Anne Patterson

03 Sep 2015

As humans, we tend to like order. We like lists, we like symmetry, we like calm. So when volatility in the stock market brings chaos to that order, we react. There is a term for this reaction—behavioral finance—and about 40 years of […]

Top 5 Employee Benefit Trends to Watch in Canada

Julie Stich, CEBS

02 Sep 201502 Sep 2015

Offering group benefits and retirement plans to employees takes financial, administrative and time commitment from employers. To get the most bang for their buck, employers need to make sure their benefit plans work efficiently and are used effectively. Here are five benefit […]

Employee Benefits Health Care Regulatory

The Haze of Medical Marijuana and Benefits

Chris Vogel, CEBS

01 Sep 201518 Sep 2015

From an employee benefits perspective, medical marijuana, in a way, is in the same place same-sex marriage was not so long ago—Laws in a number of states said one thing and federal law said something altogether different. The federal government still considers […]

Affordable Care Act (ACA) Cadillac Tax Employee Benefits Health Care Regulatory

More Hints on the Implementation of the Cadillac Tax

Kelli Kolsrud, CEBS

28 Aug 201517 Dec 2015

The IRS is continuing its “think out loud” approach to rule making for the Cadillac tax, and you’re invited to talk back. In a recent notice (IRS Notice 2015-52), the agency revealed a few more hints about how it plans to implement […]

Disease Management Employee Benefits Wellness

24-Hour Cheat Sheet to Ace Your Employer Health Risk Assessment (HRA)

Neil Mrkvicka

25 Aug 201506 Nov 2017

The thought of facing a health risk assessment is unnerving for many. “What if I eat the wrong thing and throw my numbers off? What if my health care costs rise based on results? What if they uncover something I just don’t […]

Affordable Care Act (ACA) Employee Benefits Health Care Regulatory

Tick . . . Tock: Ready to Report Social Security Numbers for ACA?

Lois Gleason, CEBS

18 Aug 201518 Sep 2015

Whose Social Security numbers must we report under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and what if we don’t have all the numbers we need? Beginning in 2016, the ACA requires most employers and plan sponsors to send annual reports to employees and the […]

Canada Employee Benefits Multiemployer

Insights Into Trustee Selection and Orientation in Canada

Justin Held, CEBS

14 Aug 201514 Aug 2015

What makes a good trustee? What’s the toughest part about being a trustee? What’s the motivation for becoming a trustee? These are questions members have been wanting the answers for, so we deployed a survey earlier this summer to multi-employer funds across […]

Affordable Care Act (ACA) Employee Benefits Health Care Regulatory

Penalties Doubled for Faulty ACA Reporting

Jenny Gartman, CEBS

13 Aug 201506 Jan 2016

The penalties for noncompliant ACA information reporting sharply increased due to the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015. The Act increased the IRS general information reporting penalty provisions under Internal Revenue Code Section 6721 (failure to file correct information returns) and Section […]

Affordable Care Act (ACA) Cadillac Tax Employee Benefits Health Care

Six Things You Need to Know Now About the ACA Cadillac Tax

Julie Stich, CEBS

11 Aug 201517 Dec 2015

Possibly one of the most closely watched and anxiously anticipated provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is the Cadillac tax. The tax implementation date of 2018 seemed like a distant future when ACA was signed into law in March 2010, but as […]

CEBS (Certified Employee Benefit Specialist) Education Employee Benefits

Employee Benefit Symposium #15Symp—Ready to Go!

Rachel Olsen

07 Aug 201507 Aug 2015

Just two weeks until I’ll be heading to Vancouver for my first Employee Benefits Symposium. Bags packed. Check. Passport ready. Check. Reservations made. Check. Key sessions I don’t want to miss highlighted. Check. I don’t know about you, but I love the […]