On January 3, 2012, the IRS issued additional interim guidance on the W-2 reporting requirement that is part of health care reform. In this guidance, the IRS confirms that employers filing fewer than 250 W-2s are not required to report the value of health benefits. This guidance extends that relief until further guidance is issued. Additionally, the [...]
Generic for Lipitor Now Available
December 10, 2011 By Leave a Comment
On November 30, 2011 Ranbaxy Laboratories launched the generic equivalent for Lipitor, atorvastatin. Ranbaxy will be the sole manufacturer of this generic drug for the next 180 days. Other manufacturers of the drug will be available in May 2012. The savings at the beginning will be minimal, but once May 2012 roles around we should [...]
November is Diabetes Awareness Month
October 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment
November is Diabetes Awareness Month. This is a cause that we personally have a stake in because my father in law had diabetes. Our family participates in the Louisville ADA walk each year. I’m also proud to say that my wife’s family is the number one fund-raising family and friends team. They’ve been number one [...]
Small Business Tax Credit
October 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment
With businesses winding down for the 2011 calender year, this tax credit calculation tool will come in handy to the many small business customers that health insurance companies have. This link is from United Health Care and goes over the small business tax credit. Certain small businesses that offer health benefits are now eligible for [...]
Health Insurance Rate Reviews
September 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Here is a recent article about the rate review process that was started on September 1st of this year. HHS released a statement stating how this rate review process has helped keep premiums down. However, an industry trade group, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) states that the rate reviews focus too much on rate increases [...]
Immunizations
August 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment
At the end of this post you will find a newsletter that United Health Care has put together about Immunizations. I found this very helpful because there is an awful lot of information out there about vaccinations, and how some are harmful while others aren’t. Hopefully this will shed some light on this subject. Immunization [...]
Brand Name Drugs vs. Generic Drugs
June 10, 2011 By Leave a Comment
One of the driving factors for the increase of medical insurance premiums is the cost of prescription drugs. There is a prescription for everything. Twenty years ago, we weren’t walking into our doctor’s office asking for a prescription by name. Today we know the names of the prescription we want to take, and we ask [...]
June is Men’s Health Awareness Month
May 26, 2011 By Leave a Comment
June is Men’s Health Awareness Month. This is a newsletter that United Health Care designed to be given to the man or men in your life. Men are notorious for ignoring their preventative health. This newsletter gives some information on when to get specific tests, and what tests you should be getting. Also, with the [...]
Family Health Care Costs Rise Again
May 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment
An independent actuarial and healthcare consulting firm Milliman Inc., is reporting that American families who obtain their health insurance through their employer are experiencing a 7.3% increase in their health insurance in 2011. This is $19,393 per family in 2011. The study is also showing that employers are paying less of the premium for their [...]
Small Business Tax Credit
February 2, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Small Group Tax Credit With April 15th right around the corner, here’s some information about the Small Business Tax Credit that is available to employers that have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees. This tax credit is available to employers that maintained a “qualifying arrangement” under which the employer pays a certain percentage of the [...]
