Promoting Wellness, Reviewing Diagnoses/Treatments, Saves Dollars Delaware is the only state in the nation that, for the past three years, has not raised its health care premiums for state employees. One way it keeps costs in check: using independent clinical reviews to identify problems in diagnosis and treatment.

News & Featured Articles DAILY NEWSWIRE For full links/summaries to free comp/benefits stories on the web, click here. Highlights: IBM to Increase Pension Payments for Some Retirees (Poughkeepsie Journal) Health Care Costs Pinch Employers (Los Angeles Times) Retirement Plans Shrink as Economy Falters (NPR.org) Heading Off 401(k) Fee Trouble (CFO.com) NEWLY POSTED/OF SPECIAL NOTE • Some Moms Would Take Pay Cut for Time with Kids (HR News) • Educational Assistance for Lifelong Learning (HR Magazine) • HSAs Claim Larger Share of Health Insurance Market (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • N.J. Gov. Signs Paid Leave Bill (Workplace Law Focus Area) • Survey Reveals Shift to Value-Based Health Benefit Design (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) HEALTH CARE: WELLNESS • Cost of Chronic Diseases Hurts Business: A Global Case for Wellness Programs (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Obesity Becomes Supersized Issue for Employers (HR News) • Companies Not Fully Tapping Potential of On-Site Clinics (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Tobacco-Cessation Programs: Healthier Lives—and Bottom Lines (Comp & Benefits Focus Area, includes video clip) HEALTH CARE: COST/ADMIN • Recession Could Impact Workers' Health Care Decisions (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Reform Proposals Not Altering Employer Health Care Thus Far (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Substance Use 'Screening and Brief Intervention' Now Covered by Many Plans (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • CDHPs Help To Slow Health Cost Inflation (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Promoting Generics, Managing Specialty Drugs Help Control Rx Costs (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Intel Chairman: Transforming Health Care Is Employer Imperative (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) • Tips for Auditing Dependent Eligibility (Comp & Benefits Focus Area) TIME OFF • SHRM Files Comprehensive FMLA Comments (SHRM Government Affairs) • Survey: Most Americans Want Changes To FMLA (HR News) WORK/LIFE • Benefits and Perks Keep Older Workers Working (Comp & Benefits Focus Area)

WEBCASTS Recent Webcasts: Now Available 'On Demand' Workers' Comp: Practical Overview and Recent Developments Presenter: Dr. Richard Victor (Workers Compensation Research Institute) All states require employers to provide workers' compensation benefits. While the details of these programs vary by state, there are some important commonalities. This webcast will provide definitions of key terminology with which all HR professionals should be familiar; an overview of reforms in California, Florida and elsewhere; and recent trends in workers' compensation costs. View this webcast A Guide to Wage and Hour Compliance in 2008 Presenters: Tammy D. McCutchen and Lisa Schreter (Littler Mendelson) and Shanti Atkins (Employment Law Training Inc.) Wage and hour class actions have emerged as one of the most significant employment law trends of this decade, outnumbering all other employment class actions combined. And with more than 80 percent of employers out of compliance with federal and state laws, this trend will continue. This webcast explores the most significant wage and hour risks faced by employers today, including meal and rest periods, off-clock work, continuous workday issues, and employee misclassification. View this webcast New Challenges in Combating Absenteeism Presenter: Cornelia Gamlem, SPHR (GEMS Group) In May 2007, EEOC issued Enforcement Guidance on the Unlawful Disparate Treatment of Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities. In this session, consultant Cornelia Gamlem will provide an overview of the Enforcement Guidance, discuss SHRM's testimony to the EEOC on achieving work/family balance for workers with caregiving responsibilities, and provide practice advice on how employers can assure their employment practices treat everyone with fairness and respect. This webcast is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. View this webcast To Outsource or Insource: New Choices for Benefit Managers Presenter: Susan King (Aon Consulting) How to evaluate and realize the true value of HR outsourcing, focusing mainly on employee benefits delivery models. Key topics will include keeping pace with the explosion of benefits outsourcing options, what to keep in-house and what to farm out, and strategies to maximize administration and consulting relationships. View this webcast. Download/print slides New Proposed Cafeteria Plan Regulations: Steps to Take Now Presenter: Susan Relland (Miller & Chevalier Chartered) The IRS recently issued new proposed regulations on employee benefit "cafeteria plans" under section 125 of the tax code, and stated that employers may begin relying on the rules immediately. These rules provide new, and stricter, standards and consequences regarding what benefits may be included in a cafeteria plan, and clarify many features—including written plan document requirements, application of nondiscrimination rules and the effect of noncompliance. This webcast will provide an overview of the new regulations and outline the steps employers should be considering. View this webcast. Download/print slides. Benefits Update: Where We Are, Where We Are Going Presenter: Gary Kushner (Kushner & Co.) Employers are paying record-high rates for employee benefits and will pay still higher rates in 2008. Benefits expert Gary Kushner, president of the consulting firm Kushner & Co., examines trends in employee benefits and offers a glimpse at what to expect in the coming year. View this webcast Contain Health Care Costs Through Wellness Incentives Presenter: Michael Carter (Hay Group) An effective long-term approach to containing medical plan costs is to improve employees' health. This webcast, presented live on Sept. 11, shares strategies for developing a program with financial incentives, along with the pros and cons of different approaches, effective methods of communicating, and real examples of cost savings. View this webcast Download/print slides View all upcoming and currently viewable "on demand" Compensation & Benefits webcasts, here.

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