NAHU Members Want Their Voice Heard

Congress needs to know the pivotal role benefits professionals play in keeping health care costs down, says Dave Petno of Ohio's Accelerated Benefits. In town for NAHU's annual Capitol Conference, Dave took a few minutes to speak with EBA before heading to Capitol Hill to meet with his Congressmen. Watch as he shares his thoughts on the value of being a "cost-control broker" and how aspects of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act would have benefited from a benefits professional's perspective.

OMB Director Talks Budget Numbers ... Sort of.

President Barack Obama began his address to the nation last night by stating fours areas that are important to him — health care, energy, education and cutting down the deficit.

In a phone conference with reporters today, OMB Director Peter Orszag talked about the money in the President's FY 2010 budget proposal required to accomplish those initiatives. Here are some of his comments relating to financing health care:

"With regard to health care, exactly as under our budget submission, both the House and Senate include deficit-neutral reserve funds to kick-start the health reform process ... The way the budget resolution implements the proposals that the President put forward and the concept that the President put forward is through a deficit-neutral reserve fund."

One reporter asked Orszag to address criticism that when President Clinton made tough choices it was to raise taxes in order to reduce the deficit, while President Obama is making choices to expand the role of government in energy and health care:

"We are, in terms of health care, approaching this in a somewhat different way than was the case in the early 1990s. But I don't think it's accurate to say,just pursuant to what we were just discussing with regard to the deficit-neutral health reserve fund, it's not accurate to say it's a massive expansion of government.

And then the final point I would make is ... if you've asked corporate leaders over the past decade or two what the key to our long-term productivity is ... they have answered consistently: a more efficient health care system; a more efficient energy base and reduced dependence on foreign oil; and improved education, along with ... raising national savings, which involves reducing the deficit."

Do you follow Orszag's logic? Share your thoughts below.

Wellness Programs Vital To Health Care Reform

After the stimulus package passed with $1 billion allotted to prevention and wellness efforts, there was some chatter on blogs and op-ed pages about the likelihood that these funds will help end the recession. "Disease prevention is important, however, it is uncertain how it will help to stimulate the economy," said National Review's Rich Lowry on the conservative news magazine's blog.

At the Senate HELP committee's hearing on insurance market reform today, it was clear that these efforts remain important to legislators and industry leaders in initiating health care reform.

"We see a tremendous level of enthusiasm among the employer community to implement well thought out, appropriate programs. And I can tell you from our own experience with 36,000 employees, our medical cost went up 3% last year, and the reason it went up only 3% was because our employees engage in wellness and fitness ..."

— Ronald Williams, Aetna CEO

"I've been trying to get my head around how insurance is utilized more effectively in ... prevention and wellness. I saw a picture ... of a sink that was overflowing with water and yet people on the floor were mopping it up ... It seems to me insurance is paying for mopping up the floor, but not paying much to think about shutting off the sink ... What is the role of insurance engaging people in healthful lifestyles, for businesses to be involved?"

— Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA)

What do you think about the role of wellness and prevention programs in health care reform? Will they help, or just add to our deficit? Share your thoughts below.

Check Out Our April Issue

We've just wrapped the April issue of EBA. Watch as we give a sneak peak on what you'll be seeing in your mailbox soon.

401(k)s Still A Top Retirement Resource

Employers and employees are "still strongly committed" to matching and contributing to 401(k) retirement programs despite the economic hit they've taken, says WorldatWork's Cara Welch. So say the results of a December 2008 survey conducted by the non-profit and the American Benefits Council. Here, Welch, WaW's director of public policy, expands on those results.

Suspending Match Considered Extreme Move

The 401(k) market is standing strong in the face of the economic turmoil, a December 2008 survey from the American Benefits Council and WorldatWork reveals. Nearly three-quarters of respondents reported no change in their matching contributions.

That’s the good news, but for those companies thinking of reducing or dropping 401(k) matching all together (11%), employers should beware of the impression this could send to employees if ABC’s Lynn Dudley’s comments at a press conference today are any indication.

“By and large, employers are consistently making this match. The economic downturn hasn’t caused them to drop off their match,” says Dudley, senior vice president of policy. “Where that has occurred, it has been a response to a particularly devastating circumstance for an industry or company, and maybe some of the challenges that they’re experiencing in the defined benefit/pension area as well.”

Dudley says dropping the match doesn’t mean employers won’t bring it back eventually. In fact, that’s been the experience she’s seen so far.

Still, just because the match comes back doesn't mean employee confidence in the company will.

How do you think employers reducing or dropping the 401(k) match is impacting employee morale? Have you seen your customers experience any consequences from doing so? Share your thoughts below.

We're Looking For A Few Good Blogs!

Know of any good benefits blogs? We're looking for benefits-related blogs for an upcoming article and we'd like to know, where do you go for your benefits news? Have a blog yourself? Send us the link. Our blog wants to meet your blog.

If you'd rather e-mail, send the link to elizabeth.galentine@sourcemedia.com.

Will A Public Plan Lead To Lost Coverage?

During the Senate Finance Committee hearing on FY 2010 health care budget proposals yesterday, ranking member Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) questioned the President's campaign promise that under his reforms, "If you've got a health care plan that you like, you can keep it."

Citing The Lewin Group, Grassley was concerned that a public plan offering government rates competing with private insurers could lead to 118 million people losing their current coverage. Peter Orszag, director of the Office of Management and Budget, offered this response:

"We're trying at this point in the process to keep everything on the table ... There are obviously different ways of designing a public plan that would have different effects, and one of the things that we would look forward to working with you on is, if there is a public plan, how to minimize some of the concerns that you identified."

What's your opinion, are you concerned? Share your thoughts below.

'Now Is Really The Time To Do This'

As one of 150 attendees at yesterday's White House Forum on Health Care, Becky Patton of the American Nurses Association was one of the few to participate first hand in the opening round of health care reform. Here, she shares what was discussed and why "the attitude is significantly different" from past reform attempts.

Engaging EAPs

What is the definition of employee assistance? What's the value proposition for employers to provide employee assistance programs? What should these programs look like, and how should EAPs' effectiveness be measured?

These are all questions addressed in the National Business Group on Health's Employer's Guide to Employee Assistance Programs. We spoke with Paul Heck, manager of global employee assistance and worklife services at DuPont, about his role as one of 27 committee members who developed the guidebook.

Senators Unsure About CE

The topic was underinsurance, but during Q&A at last Tuesday's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee hearing at least two senators expressed their doubts about funding comparative effectiveness research.

"I agree ... only in terms of looking at clinical effectiveness, and not for making treatment and coverage decisions based on costs. There's too much variability from patient to patient that directly effects the treatment outcomes, and therefore such decisions should be left up to the physician and patient."

—Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT)

"The thing that worries me about comparative effectiveness as a physician that's practiced 26 years is the art of medicine is totally ignored. Totally ignored in comparative effectiveness."

—Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK)

What do you think about CE? Share your thoughts below.