DID YOU KNOW
While insured small group plans and individual health insurance policies will be subject to new deductible and out-of-pocket limit caps in 2014, proposed legislation indicates that the government does not intend to impose these regulations on self-insured group health plans or insured large group health plans. In addition, remaining grandfathered group health plans will also be exempt from these new requirements.
Happy New Year!!!
GROUP EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
Health Care Reform: Proposed Rules on Workplace Wellness Programs
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) includes provisions to encourage appropriately designed, consumer-protective wellness programs in group health coverage.
On Nov. 26, proposed regulations were released regarding the ACA?s nondiscrimination requirements for wellness programs.? The proposed regulations would increase the maximum reward under a health-contingent wellness program from 20 percent to 30 percent of the cost of coverage, and would further increase the maximum reward to 50 percent for wellness programs designed to prevent or reduce tobacco use.
Health-contingent wellness programs require individuals to satisfy a standard related to a health factor in order to obtain a reward. This includes wellness programs that require an individual to attain or maintain a certain health outcome in order to obtain a reward (such as not smoking, attaining certain results on biometric screenings or meeting exercise targets). This type of wellness program must meet the following five nondiscrimination standards:
??? Frequency of opportunity to qualify
??? Size of reward
??? Uniform availability and reasonable alternative
??? Reasonable design
??? Notice of other means of qualifying for the reward
These regulations would apply to both grandfathered and non-grandfathered group health plans and group health insurance coverage for plan years beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2014.
Definitive guidance will not be available until the regulations are in final form. Comments on the proposed regulations are due by Jan. 25, 2013.
Proposed Reinsurance Fees Will Cost Group Health Plans
On Dec. 7, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued proposed regulations on some of the fees that will affect insurers and health plans. The regulations on transitioned reinsurance fees provide:
??? For self-insured group health plans, the plan sponsor is liable for paying the reinsurance fees, although a TPA or ASO contractor may be used to make the payment
??? The amount of the fee is proposed to be $63 per covered life per year
??? The rate will be announced each year by HHS
BARKLEY SPONSORS RISK MANAGEMENT SEMINARS
You asked and we listened. We are pleased to announce that in order to accomodate our clients? needs, we have increased the number of our Academy of Risk Managements from quarterly to six seminars this upcoming year.
Our Barkley Academy of Risk Management for 2013 schedule is as follows:
1.? Thursday, February 28, 2013 ? Employment Law Update
2.? Thursday, April 25, 2013 ? Health Care Reform
3.? Thursday, June 27, 2013 ? Fleet Management
4.? Thursday, August 22, 2013 ? Health Care Reform
5.??Thursday, October 31, 2013 ? Employment Practices Liability
6.? Thurday, December 5, 2013 ? Workers? Compensation
Stay tuned for more information.
MANAGING RISK
MOBILE DEVICES POSE DATA BREACH THREATS
The widespread use of smartphones and tablets in the workplace is exposing more and more businesses to liability for sensitive data being compromised if these devices are lost, stolen, or hacked. How can your company protect itself against this threat ? and how much authority do you have over an employee?s personal device if it?s also used for work-related activities?
What?s more, because these gizmos are small and portable, it?s easy to misplace them. (The federal Transportation Safety Administration recently leased a warehouse just to store those misplaced or left behind at airports.)
Another emerging risk linked to these devices is a ?bring your own? policy that many companies have adopted as a way to save costs by having employees spend their own money on smartphones and tablets that are constantly evolving and updated. This approach raises questions about separating company data from personal information on the device. For example, when an employee leaves, does a business have the authority to wipe the information from his or her smartphone? According to some authorities, if an employee connects a personal device to a company network, the company has inherited responsibility for the data stored on it.
To deal with this risk, you need to provide every employee who uses these devices with training, updated annually, on how to respond in case of loss or theft. To minimize potential liability for lawsuits by customers and clients, make sure that the individual responsible for the mishap informs management immediately. The compromised information might include everything from sensitive data (financial or medical) contacts, photos, call history, personal notes ? you name it.
You can also use insurance to protect yourself against losses from data breaches. A policy will provide Liability coverage that deals with legal costs and third-party expertise (such as forensics firms to analyze a breach and call centers to provide information and public relations. Coverage might also include services such as access to tools to estimate costs, a checklist for your planned response to a data breach, and access to experts who can answer questions and review your company?s policies and procedures.
SOCIAL MEDIA AS A HIRING TOOL ? EMPLOYER BEWARE!
The spread of social media has revolutionized not only the way we connect with friends and family, but also how we conduct business. However, this asset can quickly turn into a liability if misused ? for example, in recruiting your company?s most valuable asset ? its employees.
Many employers begin the hiring process by using social-media outlets to screen applicants. LinkedIn and Facebook can provide a wealth of information about applicants? education, their friends, and their personal behavior. Some companies reject candidates based on the content of their social-media pages. This might include anything from inappropriate photos or comments, discriminatory or slanderous statements, and references to alcohol and substance abuse, to sharing confidential information about their previous employers(s), displaying poor communication skills, or exaggerating their qualifications.
Although all of these indicators raise red flags, you could be risking a costly and annoying discrimination lawsuit if you access social-media sites which contain protected class information that?s not privileged in the normal hiring process.
To minimize this risk, it makes sense to:
-? When hiring, use outside third parties such as background-verification companies and/or recruiters who document content from social-media sites in selecting candidates.
-? Develop and enforce a comprehensive social-media usage policy.
-? Purchase an Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) policy
For more information, please feel free to get in touch with one of our Risk Advisors.
INSIDE BARKLEY EDITION
Giving Back in 2012
Barkley CARES Program
At Barkley Insurance & Risk Management, we have a program called the ?Barkley CARES Program.?? This program was designed for employees to volunteer, participate and make a difference within our local community by dedicating our time as a team to local non-profits. This quarter we chose Food Share, Ventura County.
In December 2012, the employees of Barkley Insurance & Risk Management spent the afternoon volunteering at Food Share ? Ventura County?s Food Bank.? Thank you to everyone who participated!? It?s terrific to know that our employees REMARKABLE efforts made a difference in someone?s life.? The food we sorted that day was later distributed to those in need.? It was a very rewarding experience for all who participated.
Charitable Contributions
Each year, Barkley Insurance & Risk Management chooses a non-profit organization to sponsor.? Unfortunately, one of our Barkley employees recently lost their 20 year old step-son to cancer.? We were advised that the key players in their personal war against cancer was the medical staff of both ?Children?s Hospital of Los Angeles? and ?The Ronald McDonald House?.? Therefore the Barkley Team unanimously selected to sponsor both of these non-profits.?
Who?s New at Barkley
Jeff Bryant, AAI
Jeff?s risk management and insurance career began in 1990.? Jeff has over 22 years of progressive experience within the Commercial Property & Casualty insurance industry.? In 1995, Jeff became an Accredited Advisor of Insurance (AAI).? Jeff has extensive commercial insurance knowledge and has held insurance licenses in the states of CA, UT, AZ and NV.? He has managed all aspects related to the sales and business management process, including risk management, market acquisition, accounting, client servicing, human resources, promotion and advertising.
Jeff Bryant attended Sacramento Community College and he is currently striving to complete his Associate Risk Management Designation (ARM).? Jeff was born in the suburbs of Chicago and raised in Illinois and California.? Jeff is married to Ashley and they have a 7 year old son named Evan.? Jeff also has a 21 year old son named Christian who is attending school at the University of Richmond, VA.?? Jeff has also spent much of his time in Northern California.?? In his spare time, Jeff is a professional musician having recorded many albums and plays regularly throughout the Western U.S.??
Dan Harnish
Dan joins Barkley Insurance & Risk Management as our new Risk Advisor.? Specifically he will focus on the Property & Casualty and the Risk Management sectors.? Dan brings fourteen years of sales and business development experience to Barkley.? Dan comes from a family with strong insurance ties.? Both his father and father-in-law ran successful commercial insurance agencies until they retired a few years ago.
Dan Harnish graduated from U.C. Berkeley in 1996 with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies. Dan grew up in the Bay Area.? Dan has lived in Ventura since 2001.? He is married to his wife, Kasey.? They have nine month old twins named Dax (he) and Drue (she).? In Dan?s free time, he enjoys traveling, surfing and fishing.
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Source: http://insuranceandriskmanagement.com/2013/01/the-barkley-buzz-january-2013
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