As we ease into October cooler weather, falling leaves and pumpkins, Medicare clients anxiously await the federal government’s decision on Social Security increase, Medicare Part B premium and any additional changes related to these two. How about we dust off the crystal ball and take a look.
The Affordable Care Act(ACA) is the law that has set the guidelines for individual and group health insurance benefits since 2010. One of the aspects of the law was that if an individual or group was enrolled in a health insurance plan prior to January 1, 2014, that plan could be kept – as long as there were NO changes to the plan design.
Often, I receive inquiries from individuals wanting to purchase Short Term Disability on an individual basis. Typically, carriers will not offer short term disability individually as it is not cost effective. Standard short-term disability benefits start either first day for injury or illness or often first day injury and seventh day illness. Can you guess who is traditionally most interested in this benefit? (more…)
As the new year started, I watched the AFLAC duck attempt yoga on a tv commercial. AFLAC has done a great job at marketing with the duck. But I wondered, do people REALLY know how supplemental benefits work. The next couple months I will do a series of articles on the different carriers, defining the types of benefits available on a voluntary basis, how the plans are implemented and how benefits are paid. This first month, will focus on supplemental benefit basics.
It is closing in on Open Enrollment for employers as many offer their benefits as of January 1 of each year. With new regulations in place because of health care reform as well as ever increasing costs, employees can use all the help they can get. Following are just a few tips to think about when going through Open Enrollment materials. (more…)
Last month I wrote about the Stop Gap Measure that the State of Iowa had submitted to the federal government as a one year emergency plan to provide health insurance at a reasonable premium for individuals who do not have access to coverage through an employer. On October 20, the State of Iowa withdrew their request as there was not time to continue the conversation with CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) the department of the government that was overseeing the request. (more…)
Small businesses make up about 90% the workforce today. Are the employees happy? An AFLAC Happiness Report for 2017 found that 94% of small business employees are happy in their current jobs all, most or some of the time. This is positive news but even more surprising, more than 75% are either extremely or very satisfied working for a small business.
I bet with almost certainty most people can agree their home, contents and car are covered by insurance. It might be a question if the deductible is $500 or $1,000, but it would be easy to find. What about the ability to pay for all the things? Can YOU say your ability to earn an income is covered?