When Snoring Can Literally Kill You
New studies show that snoring and obstructive sleep apnea are linked to heart attacks, strokes and premature death.
New Initiative to Educate Consumers About COBRA and COBRA Alternatives
eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH), parent company of eHealthInsurance, has launched an educational initiative designed to help consumers and HR professionals make informed decisions about COBRA coverage and COBRA alternatives.
Insurance For College Students May Not Be A Bargain
More than two million young Americans are going away to college and many health insurance policies may not be as worthwhile as one purchased through an agent or broker.
Consolidation In HSA Sector Starting
In a sign that consolidation in the Health Savings Accounts area is beginning, two banks have outsourced their back office activities.
Combining Health Plan Coverage with Bilingual Support Services
UnitedHealthcare is launching a new health benefits program called PlanBien(SM) that combines health benefit plans with services designed to help enhance the health and well-being of Spanish-speaking Hispanics and their families and dependents.
HSA Enrollments Continue To Rise, New Trends Surfacing
With insurance coverage and account custodian openings increasing, three new Health Savings Account (HSAs) trends have surfaced in the latest round of research conducted by Information Strategies, Inc. (ISI).
A Nurse Practitioner's Guide to Smart Health Choices
Many companies are utilizing nurse practioners in their wellness programs.
Often more readily available as well as less costly than physicians, nurse practioners have developed a niche in the wellness area that is growing.
Tips for Older Adults to Become More Active
While advice on how to accomplish the lifestyle change of a new fitness or physical activity regime is widespread, little of it is targeted to adults ages 50-plus.
HSA Users: Important Things to Remember
When thinking about starting or using a Health Savings Account (HSA), there are several important things to remember and consider.
Taboo Health Topics Are Popular on the Web
When it comes to getting health information, a growing number of consumers are turning to the Internet to connect with others.
Building an HSA Balance
One of the biggest concerns people often have about switching to a health savings account (HSA) is being able to cover the high deductible before the insurance plan starts paying for expenses.
Using an HSA for Retirement
Many individuals are now using health savings accounts (HSAs) as a way to supplement their traditional retirement accounts, such as 401ks.
Dramatic Events On Tax Day Show Strength, Vulnerability of HSAs
While the House of Representatives was passing a bill that could slow down adoption of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), a man blamed by one Republican congressman for providing House Democrats with the justification defended himself and his company to his peers.
Customer Demand Pushing Banks To Offer HSAs, Survey Says
The latest survey published by a leading information group reports client demand are pushing bankers to offer custodial accounts as insurers adopt better HSA offerings.
Secrets to Success in Wellness Programs
Wise executives recognize that while employees are most definitely human beings, they also are machines of production that require maintenance.
Healthline Helps Seniors Navigate Medicare Part D
A provider of intelligent health information services announced new content and search capabilities to help Medicare beneficiaries and their caregivers research and apply for a new Medicare prescription drug plan.
October 2007
Care For People With Diabetes in the UK Is Improving, Says Report From The IC
The care of people with diabetes is improving, with more people having the key tests and measurements they need to help keep their diabetes under control, says a report from The Information Centre for health and social care (The IC).
Survey Shows Consumer Driven Health Plan Enrollees Taking More Control Of Healthcare
Participants enrolled in consumer directed health plan (CDHP) offerings are more engaged in wellness programs and are more likely to plan and save for healthcare expenses than those in traditional healthcare coverage, according to new survey findings released by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA).
The Dry Eye Remedy: Complete Guide to Restoring the Health and Beauty of Eyes
Her eyes are tired, irritated. She rubs them. The rubbing irritates her eyes even more. She gets herself some drops from the drugstore and forgets all about it. Then one day, she looks at herself in the mirror and sees lines, wrinkles, bags, redness that was never there before.
Health Spending By State Of Residence Shows Regional Differences
There are significant state and regional differences in what Americans spend for healthcare according to a recent study by The Centers For Medicare and Medicaid examined the trends in healthcare spending by state.
Two HSAs Often Better Than One, CDMR Finds
Two separate HSAs from different banks instead of one single all-purpose HSA account with the same bank is a convenient way to be both a saver and spender.
Consumer Reports Tests Sugar Substitutes
Consumer Reports (CR) tested 13 sugar substitutes to see if these calorie savers measured up. Most of the sweeteners tasted fine in lemonade, but of those used for baking, results were mixed.
House Bills Do Not Affect HSAs, Medical HSAs May Be In Danger
Maybe no news is good news for Health Savings Accounts.
The legislation reforming Medicare Advantage on Capitol Hill has only one provision that affects Health Savings Accounts in any of the leading plans.
Wellness Programs Can Help Reduce Total Healthcare Benefit Costs
The importance of wellness in reducing overall healthcare costs is much in the news. However, recent studies show that less than one in three firms embrace the concept, despite evidence that wellness programs positively impact healthcare utilization rates, improve employee attendance and reduce turnover.
Mosaic Health Solutions Takes Personalized Health Care Tracking to the Next Level By merging ordinary technology such as cell phones and personal computers with sophisticated web-based applications, Mosaic Health Solutions has created a new online health tracking system that allows users to more effectively and efficiently manage their personal health.
IRS Clears Another Step Towards Electronic Management Of Patient Records In another step towards electronic management of patient records and interchange between healthcare providers, the IRS has ruled that hospitals can subsidize physicians who want to create an electronic patient record management system.
HIPAA Privacy Rule Assistance The Privacy Rule requires health plans, most health care providers and health care clearinghouses to comply with its standards. This rule is enforced by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Retirement Planning: Healthcare Considerations Available Free For those considering retirement, before or after age 65, there are a number of important healthcare considerations. What happens with your employer health benefits when you retire? If you retire early, will you have health insurance to cover you until age 65 when Medicare takes over?
HSAs: A New Direction for Retirement Savings Looking for another way to benefit from tax breaks on saving for retirement? Recent changes to HSAs are now making them an even better way to save for later in life.
HSA Advocates Blast Sex-Bias Conclusions Proponents of health savings accounts and their mandatory high-deductible health insurance plans have come out swinging against a study concluding that the plans cost women about $1,000 more per year than men.
Universal Healthcare Bill Introduced In Senate, House In a clear challenge to Health Savings Accounts and private insurance measures, a bill has been introduced in the Senate and House to extend healthcare coverage to all Americans from birth to death.
April 2007
Nation's Employees Value Healthcare Benefits As Major Perk Despite rising costs, a vast majority of U.S. workers say they are very satisfied with their employer-provided health care benefits. Furthermore, most workers consider the health plan to be their most important benefit and they have little interest in purchasing coverage on their own.
WellPoint to Measure the Health of its Members WellPoint, Inc. (NYSE: WLP) today unveiled its Member Health Index (MHI), a comprehensive initiative designed to measure the improvement in the health of its 34 million members.
Americans Differ In Outlook, Protocol For Buying, Taking Drugs More than a quarter of Americans say they have left a drug prescription unfilled because they felt it was unneeded and a fifth have obtained a second opinion because they felt their doctors' recommendations were too aggressive.
Cell Phones Do Not Affect Hospital Medical Devices Calls made on cell phones do not affect hospital medical devices, U.S. researchers said last week, but store anti-theft alarms might make implanted heart devices misfire.
Millions Pass Up Health Savings Despite tax benefits, many employees don't use spending accounts to stash cash for medical costs
Bush Administration Moves Ahead With HSAs Democrats have vowed to repeal laws enacted to make health savings accounts better investment vehicles for consumers, but in lieu of a unified front, the Bush administration is moving ahead with plans to expand the role of HSAs to benefit consumers.
HSAs Will Grow Significantly In 2007 Despite Congressional Doubts Amid growing Congressional pressure to make some changes in the Health Savings Account (HSAs) regulations, a new forecast on their expanding usage and popularity may give some political leaders pause.
An Outcome Driven Approach to Healthcare Creenaght Health Plans is partnering with employers to offer an outcome driven plan that actually rewards people for going to the doctor when they should, and provides incentives to make people want to stay healthy.
Shopping Tips for HSAs Here are some things to consider when searching for the right HSA. There are a number of HSA providers and many have different costs and fees associated with their programs.
Maximize Your HSA Andrew Housser, co-CEO of Bills.com, an online consumer financial portal, recently offered consumers tips on how to maximize Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and corresponding medical plans.
WFC Launches New Health Cooperative for Farmers Farmers and other agriculture workers are now beginning to adopt HSAs. In an effort to meet this need and to strengthen Wisconsin’s agriculture industry, the Wisconsin Federation of Cooperatives (WFC) is leading the creation of a new statewide, health insurance purchasing cooperative.
Group Seeks To Keep Eye On PPO Health Plans A continued focus in the CDH environment is on accountability in healthcare and making sure consumers are getting the best possible services for the money they pay.
Rollover Guidance From HRAs, FSAs Issued The U.S. Treasury and Internal Revenue Service have issued guidance regarding how employers can rollover unspent funds in their employees' health Flexible Spending Arrangements (health FSAs) and Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), as permitted by the Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 (Public Law No. 109-432).
California’s Small Businesses Get a Little Known Tax Break The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 extended a little known tax break through 2007 for California ’s small businesses, their employees and the self-employed that participate in consumer directed healthcare through a Medical Savings Account (MSA).
Possible Tax-Code Change to Promote Consumer Driven Healthcare With health-care costs emerging as one of voters' biggest domestic concerns, President Bush is considering promoting a tax-code change making it easier for people to buy health insurance for themselves in the open market, rather than relying on employers.
Five Reasons Why the Self-Employed Should Look at HSAs in 2007 HSA Qualified Health Plans work by coupling a Qualified High Deductible Health Plan (Q-HDHP) with a Tax Advantaged Health Savings Account. The funds deposited to the HSA can be utilized to pay for Qualified Medical Expenses on a tax-free basis and balances roll over from year to year.
January 2007
New Company Offers Prevention-Based Healthcare Programs For Hospitals, Employers and Consumers Launched today, U.S. Preventive Medicine is creating preventive programs and services designed to give Americans more good years, by detecting health risks early and then preventing them from becoming life-threatening diseases or mitigating their severity. These programs include preventive diagnostics, health risk assessments, counseling and intervention.
Gov. Schwarzenegger Proposes Comprehensive Plan to Help All Californians With 6.5 million Californians uninsured for all or part of the year - more than any other state in the nation - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger today shared his comprehensive plans to reform California's broken health care system by addressing the hidden costs that result in billions of dollars in higher premiums and taxes.
Cigna Unveils HSA for Small Firms U.S. insurer Cigna HealthCare said it has expanded its health savings account product to employers with fewer than 50 workers.
Flash Report: HSA Custodial Accounts Reach 3.6 Million, $5.1 Billion Deposits Early returns from the nation’s account custodians put the number of accounts at 3.6 million as of January 4, according to Information Strategies, Inc. (ISI). “Preliminary estimates put the monies under management at $5.1 Billion,” said JoAnn Laing, ISI’s President & CEO.
'Consumer Control' and the Electronic Medical Record "Consumer control" is a prominent theme in current discussion of strategies to control inflation in the cost of health care. Can providers support consumers empowered to influence decisions about their care?
National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information Web Site Launched Long-Term care issues are becoming a huge concern as the Baby Boomer generation approaches retirement. However, this type of care can be very confusing to understand, particularly in terms how to determine if care is needed, what type of care, and even more so, how to pay for it.
Wal-Mart to Double HSA Contribution to Employees Confirming a trend first surfaced by Information Strategies, Inc. in the summer, many employers are increasing their contributions to HSAs. One major employer, Wal-Mart, has gone a step further and doubled its contribution in 2007.
New Model Created to Give Consumers More Power Over Their Personal Health Records Consumers will have greater access to the information they need to optimize their health and health care thanks to a new personal health record (PHR) model being developed by health insurance plans, America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA).
Final HIPAA Nondiscrimination Provisions Announced The Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), the Internal Revenue Service, and the Department of Health and Human Services have published final rules that provide guidance in complying with the nondiscrimination provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
Some Myths Of CDH and ‘High’ Deductibles Comparisons Exploded There have been growing reports that are attempting to equate Consumer Directed Health (CDH) plans with unfunded high deductibles in an effort to reduce participation in these types of plans or show why consumers want to think twice before signing up.
More Banks Now Offering Health Savings Accounts, Along With Additional Benefits The number of banks that offer health savings accounts has more than tripled since the end of 2005, the Wall Street Journal reports. Market-research firm Information Strategies found that nearly 1,100 banks now offer HSAs, which allow consumers to set aside money tax-free for medical expenses when combined with a high deductible health insurance plan.
Healthcare Premium Costs Continue To Rise With Smaller Companies Being Hit Harder Employers of all sizes continue to see rising costs for group medical coverage on account renewals, though the increases for the largest accounts tend to be lower than for small and medium accounts, according to the fall Employee Benefits Market Survey by The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers.
HSAs Help Agents Sell Other Products The changing role of life insurance in America, from a safeguard against catastrophe to an integral role in retirement and estate planning is being augmented by the rise of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).
Maximum Contributions For HSA Custodial Accounts Confirmed Its official!
The IRS confirmed expert estimates on the maximum contributions to Health Savings Accounts for 2007.
While hitting the limits expected, the new numbers show the steady increase in maximum contributions.
Blues Association Finds Broad Appeal for Health Savings Accounts High-deductible health plans (HDHPs) that are compatible with health savings accounts (HSAs) are no less likely to attract older enrollees than are more traditional forms of health coverage, according to a study released last month by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA).
Labor Department Issues New Guidance on HSAs: Guidance Should Enhance Employer Adoption of HSAs On Friday, October 27, the U.S. Department of Labor issued additional guidance concerning Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). The new guidance addresses specific actions by employers, such as paying for employees' HSA account fees, when establishing and contributing to HSA accounts for their employees.
Tax Laws in a Few States Still Don't Jibe with Federal HSA Rules On Jan. 1, 2004 tax laws in 17 states included "structural impediments" that made it difficult to pair a high-deductible health plan (HDHP) with an HSA. That list has since been whittled down to just four.
Web Health Info Seekers Tend Not To Check Sources Only 25% of Americans who search the Internet for health advice regularly check the source and date of the information they find to assess its quality.
New E-Learning Program on HSA Fundamentals Available WorldatWork and National Business Group on Health have teamed to create an e-learning program entitled "HSA Fundamentals - Key Components and Operational Requirements of Health Savings Accounts."
Open Enrollment Offers Opportunity to Save It's that time of year again. The annual open-enrollment exercise that will start soon at companies across America provides an opportunity to tweak your workplace health and retirement benefits to stretch your dollars further.
HSAs and Retiree Health Care Leading global employee research and consulting firm ISR has announced the findings of an employee opinion study revealing that U.S. healthcare companies are facing the need to drastically improve leadership and employee supervision.
U.S. Healthcare Companies Need to Drastically Improve Leadership Leading global employee research and consulting firm ISR has announced the findings of an employee opinion study revealing that U.S. healthcare companies are facing the need to drastically improve leadership and employee supervision.
MetLife Offers Rules of Thumb for Selecting Benefits MetLife's 2006 Study of Open Enrollment Benefits Trends shows that a majority of workers look forward to their company's Fall benefits open enrollment period.
Hispanics Make Excellent Targets For HSAs Perhaps the first comprehensive syndicated research report to examine the perceptions, expectations and behaviors of the U.S. Hispanic community in the areas of nutrition, lifestyle and healthcare has been released by MarketTools.
Kaiser Family Foundation Study Results Announced The Kaiser Family Foundation survey of employers is designed to provide a detailed look at trends in employer-sponsored health coverage, including changes in premiums, employee contributions, cost-sharing policies, and other relevant information.
Sanare HSA Solutions for Account Holders Sanare, a consumer health care technology company in Ann Arbor, MI provides a suite of internet, web applications for HSA account holders.
Walmart Announces New Generic Prescription Prices On Thursday, Walmart Stores, Inc. announced a new pilot program where they will offer nearly 300 generic prescription drugs at an 80% discount from current average prices.
Moderating Healthcare Premium Rate Increases Shown Three studies by Hewitt, Towers Perrin, and Information Strategies Inc. indicate that healthcare premium cost increases may be moderating for employers.
HSAs Growth To Continue No Matter Who Controls Congress, Administration Continued Presidential support of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), and indications by a key House Democratic health advisor bode well for the growth and development of consumer-directed healthcare—no matter who controls Congress after the fall elections.
2007 Contribution Limits Predicted By Former White House Aide With the release of the August 2006 inflation figures, the inflation-adsjusted amounts for health savings accounts (HSAs) for 2007 are now known, says Roy Ramthun, President of HSA Consulting Services.
Employer Support is the Key in Consumer-Directed Health Plans An Annual Buying Trends Study found that while most believe consumer-driven health plans (CDHP) will be an adopted solution, the survey of 20,000 insurance agents and brokers highlighted beliefs that CDHP will work significantly better if consumers are provided with the tools and incentives to encourage their successful use of the plan.
New Website To Track Medical Insurance Fraud Launched Washington Research Associates, Inc., a Washington DC-based investigative firm, has launched its new E-MedicalTrace.com website, which helps insurance companies and attorneys detect insurance fraud and misrepresentation.
HSAs Growing Apace To Reach 3.6 Million Accounts By January, 2007 Defying critics and demonstrating resilient expansion, Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) continued their strong growth trajectory with indications that this fall’s sign-ups will significantly exceed estimates.
Kaiser Permanente Announces HSA Expansion Kaiser Permanente has announced the launch of Custom Care HealthInvestor (HSA), in its California regions beginning January 1, 2007.
CDH Policies Growing In Popularity, GAO Study Confirms Echoing studies done by this newsletter, high deductible insurance (CDH) policies are becoming more common as the burden and control of healthcare resources shift to the users.
New AFLAC Study Confirms Concerns Of Small Firms Confirming studies conducted by Information Strategies, Inc. (ISI), AFLAC insurance’s latest study highlights the concerns small firms have about their ability to provide affordable healthcare insurance to employees.
View a new consumer education tool for HSAs Multi-media video and personalized consumer learning tools help to forecast health plan coverage options over multiple years, based on personal health risks.
CDH Plan Offers Medical Consultations From Physicians Via Phone American-Community Mutual Insurance Co. aims to make health care more affordable and accessible as the first health insurer to offer 24/7 TelaDoc medical consultations to its policyholders.
April 2006
CDH Partnership Offers Combined HSA Services For Brokers, Carriers, TPAs UMB Healthcare Services, a division of UMB Financial Corporation, has partnered with ConnectYourCare, a leading consumer-directed healthcare (CDH) company, to provide custodial, investment and health payment card services for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs).
Intuit, United Healthcare Subsidiary Launch Information Management Initiative Intuit Inc, and Ingenix, with an initial group of leading national health care companies and a leading human resources outsourcing and consulting services company, launched an initiative to develop and distribute products and services that will simplify the way millions of American consumers manage their health care.
Details Of President’s HSA Proposals Favors Individuals, Small Business, Nationwide Insurance President Bush is proposing changes in HSA legislation that will make it easier for small businesses to join in healthcare alliances and for individuals to pay for more of their healthcare with pre-dollars from their account while at the same time creating a nationwide HSA program.
600+ Banks Offering HSAs, Accounts Soaring More than 600 banks and other financial institutions were offering Health Savings Account custodial opportunities to individuals and companies as of January 1, 2006.
HSAs Funding Used To Induce Farmers To Sell To Cargill In another sign of the growing popularity and usage of HSAs, a major grain distributing company is using a payment system for farmers to secure a steady crop supply in the face of increasing competition.
White House Backing HSA Flexibility Bill A bill to allow customized "flex HSA" designs will be supported by President Bush in his State-of-the-Union address, according to Consumer Directed Market Report, a major boost to the bill's visibility.
December 2005
Historic Medicaid HSA Program Nears Passage Provisions of the House budget bill that will for the first time allow states to design their own Medicaid plans, including Medicaid HSAs, were approved by a House-Senate conference committee, and then okayed by the full House and sent to the Senate.
New
Comparable Funding Rules For HSAs Announced By The IRS A group
of attorneys for Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP have published an
advisory on the new Treasury Department rules for employer contributions
and what must be done to consider them comparable.
August
2005
HSA
Bank Launches New Education Seminar Program HSA Bank
is launching a month-long, nationwide education initiative to inform individuals
and businesses of the merits of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).
California
Insurance Commissioner Challenges CDHC, Rebuttal Data Offered In perhaps
the most stinging attack on HSAs by any government official, California's
insurance commissioner issued a report today criticizing health savings accounts
and other "consumer-driven" insurance plans as part of the problem
of spiraling costs — not the solution.
CDH
Insurance Programs Now Pricing Value For Small Firms This fall
promises to be open season on healthcare accounts. The hoped-for effect of Consumer
Directed Healthcare programs such as HSAs is happening as there is strong evidence
that they are having a significant impact on pricing.
As
Insurance Rates Tumble, HSA Accounts Are Soaring With
HSAFinder and other organizations putting the current total at more than 685,000
accounts, the number of HSA accounts should soar past one million by the end
of this year.
The Wall Street Journal says HSAFinder.com can help consumers answer basic questions about what they can and cannot do with an HSA.
Coming Trend: Workers Getting More Job Options, Benefits Hierarchy May Change In the recent past, companies have enjoyed an economy where more workers were pursuing jobs than there were positions. According to a nationally known futurist and Department of Labor (DOL) statistics, that happy labor situation is ending.
