ABD has partnered with the Worldwide Broker Network (WBN) to develop an exchange/mindshare program for young insurance professionals. The program is a platform that aims to enable employees in the various WBN member firms to work together in an environment designed to support development and exchange between WBN member firms. Last month, I had the […]
How do you know if your broker knows what they’re doing? How do you know what you don’t even know? I know, last week I promised you I’d walk you through my thoughts on how to know if your broker knows what they’re doing and now, I return, only to propose a different question, but […]
I recently attended the First Republic NextGen Conference in Monterey and spoke to the group about managing the insurance purchasing process. The conference was made up of the next generation of venture capital and private equity finance professionals who may often be involved in the insurance and benefits purchasing decisions for their firm but aren’t […]
Question: Do employers with fully insured medical, dental and vision plans need a HIPAA notice of privacy practices? Compliance Team Response: HIPAA Privacy Notice Generally Not Required for Fully Insured Plans As a starting point, all employer-sponsored group health plans—including fully insured plans—are HIPAA covered entities. For fully insured plans, although the group health plan is […]
With the Medicare open enrollment period beginning next Monday (October 15) comes the annual reminder that the Part D Notice of Creditable Coverage (the “Notice”) is due to employees by the same date. The purpose of the Notice is to inform employees whether their employer-sponsored group health plan’s prescription drug coverage is at least as […]
Question: When should employers appeal the notice of an employee’s subsidized enrollment in the Covered California state exchange? Compliance Team Response: What Are the Notices? These notices are technically referred to as Section 1411 Certifications in the ACA. However, they’re more commonly referred to as Employer Exchange Notices or Covered California Employer Notices. The notice informs […]
This article was written by Chris Hann and previously featured in Leader’s Edge Magazine. You are on the board of Peninsula Family Service, a Bay Area nonprofit that serves vulnerable populations. What is it about PFS that appeals to you? I It’s the opportunity to serve the neediest in our own community, where households making $117,000 qualify […]
Welcome to Compliance Friday Answers to the Service Team (FAST)! Each Friday we publish our response to a question that the ABD Compliance Team received from a client or member of the EB Service Team. These represent the most frequently asked (or interesting) questions we see. We post all of our FAST responses on the […]
Question: How should an employer correct a failure to timely provide the COBRA election notice to qualified beneficiaries? Compliance Team Response: Background: Why Providing the COBRA Election Notice Matters Employers that discover a failure to timely provide COBRA election notices will always want to correct that failure for two primary reasons: IRC §4980B Excise Tax: […]
Question: What are the general rules that apply when an employer receives an MLR rebate? If it’s a small amount, can the employer simply keep the MLR rebate in its general assets? Compliance Team Response: One of the core ERISA fiduciary duties imposed upon employers is the “exclusive benefit rule.” This rule requires employers to […]
ABD Insights Blog