Mar 30, 2021 | COBRA, Compliance, COVID-19, Regulatory
On April 29, 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Labor and the Treasury (the Departments) issued the “Final Rule,” which extended deadlines to elect COBRA, pay COBRA premiums, elect HIPAA special enrollments, and file benefit claims, appeals,...
Mar 8, 2021 | COVID-19, Diabetes, Heart, Hypertension, MedBen WellLiving, Preventive Care, Primary Care
Only a small percentage of the overall MedBen block has tested positive for COVID-19. In looking at these cases, we found that the average cost for a positive COVID-19 case for clients who have MedBen WellLiving was 17.1% less than a non-WellLiving client case. This...
Feb 22, 2021 | Claims Management, COVID-19, Stop-Loss
To educate employers on the financial effect of COVID-19 from a stop-loss perspective, Tokio Marine HCC Stop Loss Group (TMHCC) has gathered self-funded claims data where the primary diagnosis was COVID-19 or COVID-19-related. In 2020, TMHCC paid 958 COVID-19 claims...
Jan 24, 2021 | COVID-19, MedBen WellLiving, Preventive Care, Primary Care
An Employee Benefits News article contends that the current focus on COVID-19 hides the everyday costs of unhealthy habits: “In a typical year, lifestyle-related disease costs the global economy 43 working days per person due to poor health and premature death...
Dec 29, 2020 | Alternative Plan Design, Announcements, Cost Savings, COVID-19, Customer Service, Direct-to-Employer Contracting, Kurt Harden, MedBen Access, MedBen Rx, Rx Costs, Savings, Self-funding
On behalf of all of us at MedBen, I want to thank you for your continued business! 2020 offered unique challenges for all of us. But despite these challenges, 2020 didn’t stop us from thinking of you first. We improved customer service hold times and had a 96% first...
Dec 28, 2020 | Consumer-driven Health Plans, COVID-19, Dependent care assistance plan (DCAP), Flexible spending accounts (FSAs), IRS, Regulatory
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (also called the COVID-19 relief bill) includes temporary provisions that allow employers to provide for a carryover of unused health flexible spending arrangements (FSA) and dependent care assistance flexible spending...
