Human Capital Management Blog

On September 28, 2017, the IRS released the new forms 1095-C and 1094-C to be used for mandatory 2017 reporting.  The 1095-C and 1094-C are used by Applicable Large Employer groups under the Affordable Care Act to fulfill IRS Code Section 6055 and 6056 reporting requirements. In laymans terms, they communicate: To whom did you offer health benefits? Was it affordable? Did it provide minimum value? Unless you're a new ALE in 2017, this should be old-hat by now. Here's what you need to know for 2017.

Chronic health conditions in the workforce have increased 25% in the last decade. With 86% of the nation’s health care costs going to treatment of chronic conditions (diabetes, cancer, COPD), that’s an expensive figure for employers. Increased chronic health conditions may have a more immediate cost impact to self-insured employers, but everyone is subject to the increased absenteeism, employee fatigue, and productivity loss associated with poor health. Improving workforce health is only accomplished through smarter decisions at the employee level. Here are 3 ways employers can combat chronic conditions by helping employees to make smarter personal health choices.

Founder-enthusiasm can fuel a business, but sooner or later you need greater incentives than high-fives and no-shave Fridays to attract the talent you need to grow. But with the rising costs of healthcare, it’s getting harder to offer attractive benefits, especially when you’re just emerging from a startup phase. While employer-sponsored health insurance still ranks in the top 3 most important employee benefits, more employers are looking to affordable ways of enhancing their benefits packages. Here are 10 low cost benefits to consider when looking to gain an edge in the competition for top talent.

The House of Representatives passed the American Health Care Act (AHCA) on May 4. So what? Taking a “we’ll make some changes, then the Senate makes some changes” approach to repealing and replacing Obamacare, the Senate assures that the bill is far from earning the simple majority required to pass in the Senate and land on President Trump’s desk. To the contrary, many in the Senate called the bill “dead on arrival.” What are employers to take away from it all? We are a far cry from repeal and replace. For at least another year we can expect the Employer Shared Responsibility Mandate to remain intact, to include annual 1095-C reporting for employees and the IRS.

In the employer market, deductibles have increased 67% since 2010. As more employers steer plan participants toward High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs), Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) can often sweeten the transition. HSAs are a benefit available only to members participating in a HDHP. Both employers and employees can make pre-tax contributions into the account, and store up pre-tax cash to pay down deductibles when they incur claims. To boot, employees can take their HSA with them once they leave the employer. Employee's contribute pre-tax, the accounts grow tax-free, and withdrawals for qualifying expenses are made tax-free. It has some great benefits. That being said, employers already offering a Flexible Spending Account (FSA) to employees ought to keep a few potential pitfalls in mind as they transition.

Recently had a disgruntled HR Director on the phone. Conversation went as follows… Me: “Can you describe to me your open enrollment process?” Her: “It’s all paper, it takes up too much time, it’s a mess, and I hate it every year.” For most people, November and December brings on thoughts of turkey, family, and Holiday cheer. For the rest of us with January renewals just around the corner, tis the season to be pushing paper! For the HR professional looking at ways to streamline their benefits open enrollment in the coming year and reduce the amount of labor and opportunity costs associated, here are 5 tips that have cut open enrollment timelines by 75% and returned nearly a month of productivity to HR departments.

Long gone are the days of smoking cigarettes  in the break room and a quick cocktail at lunch…..Corporate employee wellness plans are becoming wildly popular among many organizations as their overall goal is to create a corporate culture of health, while increasing productivity and employee morale. Most importantly their main goal is to prevent large unnecessary claims, therefore reducing overall health care spend.