Benefits quarterly
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Prescription drug costs are increasing at a rate of 15% to 17% a year and a look into the future does not bring much better news. Employers can expect to see more numbers like these as doctors more aggressively treat diseases using drug therapy, the population continues to age and pharmaceutical companies continue to spend billions of dollars on direct-to-consumer advertising aimed at consumers who are desensitized to the true costs of their prescriptions. ⋯ However, this article provides employers with a prudent approach to managing both the supply and demand sides of the prescription drug equation in order to reduce their level of increase. Supply-side management focuses on negotiations with vendors, while the demand side focuses on managing employee utilization.
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The authors provide an overview of the Medicare program in terms of how the current program operates, the current issues it faces that may shape possible options for reform, and the implications of these features and issues for employment-based health plans. Current issues include adoption of a premium support model, changes in the eligibility age for Medicare benefits, Medigap insurance, benefits covered and customer service.
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Section 404(c) regulation sets forth the conditions that plan fiduciaries must meet to be relieved of liability for the consequences of employees' control over their accounts. After reviewing applicable laws and regulations, the author concludes that employers desiring to provide employees with education and/or advice services through a third party should be able to do so while still obtaining reliance on the protections of Section 404(c) and without taking on significant additional fiduciary responsibilities.
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This article is an update of a previous analysis of retirement planning software. In this updated analysis, the author uses data from the 1995 Survey of Consumer Finances along with statistical analysis of retirement software to examine whether consumers who follow the software retirement saving parameters are saving enough for retirement.