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<< Home > << EBA's Raw Bar
EBA's Raw Bar
Check out the latest additions to our online menu of interviews. Also, make sure to scroll through the archives for choice editions you may have missed.
Current Episodes:
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Pub Date: Jul 02, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| They can fix health care, but they can't work a phone line? |
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| Just having a little fun with the trouble Senate HELP Committee lawmakers had un-muting reporter phone lines at the end of a teleconference this morning. Listen in as Senator Chris Dodd and his colleagues discuss the 'pay or play' provisions and the public plan aspects of the committee's Affordable Health Choices Act. |
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Pub Date: Jul 02, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Keepin' it real on pay or play. |
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| The Economic Policy Institute has new research showing that not only will employer "pay or play" on health insurance (as it's currently being considered) not cost America that many jobs, but also it might actually spur job creation. Listen in as Devin Harrick of the National Center for Policy Analysis talks about "pay or play" and the other divisive issues at the heart of today's health reform debate. |
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Pub Date: Jun 26, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| More regulation not the answer for target-date funds. |
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| The key to success with target-date funds is communication between retirement advisers, plan sponsors and participants, says Great-West's Charlie Nelson. Listen in as Nelson shares how his company's new target-date funds address the concerns of critics who are skeptical about the funds after a poor performance in 2008. |
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Pub Date: Jun 25, 2009 |
| Could your firm be a good fit for the BAN? |
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| Now might be a good time to give it some thought as the group, the Benefit Advisors Network, looks to expand its presence in 21 additional markets. Listen in as long-time member John O'Connell, of C.M. Smith, talks about the group, the benefits of membership and the future of benefits advising generally. |
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Pub Date: Jun 24, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Are things turning around or are we bouncing along the bottom? |
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| That's the question many continue to ask about the economy. Research from Mercer shows that we may actually be close to a turn around point. Listen in as the firm's Steve Gross talks about what Mercer's latest employer survey shows and why it might be good news for the broader economy. |
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Pub Date: Jun 23, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Many still don't understand the basics behind HSAs and CDHPs. |
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| That's the headline from a new report from Guardian. Many survey respondents don't get the most basic tax benefits of HSAs, according to the research. Listen in as the carrier's Tim Bireley talks about the results and what his company is doing to combat the employee ignorance about these programs. |
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Pub Date: Jun 22, 2009 |
| Obama supporters unhappy with many of the president's reform proposals. |
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| Those are the results of an employer survey conducted by the American Benefits Council and D.C. law firm Miller & Chevalier in May. Miller & Chevalier's Susan Relland shares highlights, including how the concern over costs has skyrocketed and why ERISA may be at risk if one congressman gets his way. |
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Pub Date: Jun 19, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Just how big a retirement hole are American workers in? |
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| Mercer's got a great little report out detailing not only how big the whole is for pre-retirees, but also the firm offers some ideas about just what (and how long) it will take for them to get out of it. Listen in as Mercer's Eric Levy breaks it down. |
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Pub Date: Jun 18, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| COBRA election rate at 20-year low pre-subsidy, survey reveals. |
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| Spencer's Benefits Reports' 2009 COBRA survey shows the highest COBRA eligibility rates with the lowest utilization since the employee benefits research service started the survey in 1989. Managing Editor Stephen Huth discusses the results, as well as how the 65% federal subsidy could help reduce adverse selection — at least temporarily. |
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Pub Date: Jun 17, 2009 |
| What's your strategy for cracking into 401(k)s: build, buy or borrow? |
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| Diversification is the name of the game for many traditionally group-health minded benefit brokers. Reform is giving many of them a chance to broaden their business horizons. For some that means 401(k)s. But be careful, cautions Rick Canipe of Millennium Investment and Retirement Advisors. There's opportunity to grow and expand for sure, but that also means there is opportunity to screw up. |
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Pub Date: Jun 15, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| The wrong health care legislation could hurt dental benefits. |
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| That's why Delta Dental's Janis Oshensky says dental reform needs to be considered separately from medical in the health care debate, explaining that options like capping the tax exclusion for employee health benefits would disproportionately affect dental health. |
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Pub Date: Jun 12, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| You don't have to go to India to halve your surgery costs. |
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| That's the word from Ken Erickson and Richard Marra two of the brains behind Healthplace America. The company aims to help employers, brokers and other EB professionals cut surgery costs and simplify payments. Listen in as company CEO Erickson talks about the "retailization" of health care and why it's long overdue. |
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Pub Date: Jun 11, 2009 - 6:00 am |
| Brokers beware: Navigators in Kennedy reform bill are moving in on your territory. |
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Mary Clark, Vice President, Health & Welfare Services
for employee benefits firm Cammack LaRhette Consulting, says pay attention to the language in the HELP Committee bill that calls for the creation of state navigators. The job description sounds awfully familiar. Listen to Mary's take, then take a look for yourself, http://help.senate.gov/BAI09A84_xml.pdf (scroll to p. 76-79), and let us know what you think. |
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Pub Date: Jun 11, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Employers wonder whether 401(k)s can still cut it. |
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| That's according to new research from Mercer. Listen in as the firm's Amy Reynolds goes over the numbers and talks about why so many companies are questioning whether 401(k)s are up to the challenge of helping working American's prepare for and enjoy a financially secure retirement. |
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Pub Date: Jun 10, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Most controversial aspects of Senate health reform bill yet to come |
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| American Benefits Council's James Klein shares his thoughts on Sen. Edward Kennedy's health reform bill and its impact on the Council's priorities. |
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Pub Date: Jun 08, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| How low can you go? |
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| Listen in as Client First Brokerage Services's Rodger Bayne talks about how firms as small as five employees are self-funding their health benefits. While the economy is fueling some of the renewed interest in small-case self funding, it's also causing some employers to rethink group coverage altogether. Pay attention as Bayne breaks it down. |
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Pub Date: Jun 04, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Developing an eye for vision sales. |
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| Vision gets short shrift by many brokers and employers. Here are a few tips for helping bring the need for these programs into better focus. Listen in as Renaissance Life & Health's Tonya Draughon helps articulate the case advisers should be making with their clients. |
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Pub Date: Jun 02, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| A skimpy public plan should prod produces to bet on voluntary. |
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| Many in the industry say voluntary benefits are where brokers, worried about losing the golden health care goose, should be mining. AlwaysCare's Erich Sternberg breaks it down, sharing his thoughts as both an employer struggling with health care coverage costs and as insurance provider betting it all on the voluntary benefits market. |
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Pub Date: May 27, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| It's the economy, or at least economics, stupid. |
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| That was the message at an interesting Capitol Hill forum on health care today. The goal of the event, which was sponosred by Express Scripts, was to help employers better understand the linkages between behavioral economics and worker health. Listen in as Cyndy Nayer, president of the Center for Health Value Innovation and in D.C. from Florida for the event, gives us a quick recap of what was covered and why it matters. |
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Pub Date: May 22, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| How are those COBRA subsidies holding up? |
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| Three months after ARRA put the burden of an immediately effective COBRA subsidy in employers' laps, we catch up with Peter Marathas of Proskauer Rose to find out what implementation issues employers are still facing — and if he thinks the subsidy will be extended past the December 31 cutoff date. |
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Pub Date: May 21, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| $300 billion is a lot to ignore. |
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| The Galen Institute's Grace Marie Turner says the House Republican proposal to get at the $300 billion in revenue that can be had from changing the tax treatment of employee health benefits must be considered. What's more, she says lots of credible people from all across the debate agree with that idea. |
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Pub Date: May 21, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Baucus hints at reform proposal inclusions. |
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| Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, met with reporters May 21 to discuss where the Committee stands on legislation. Issues discussed include an insurance exchange, capping employer-provided benefits and those vocal single-payer advocates. |
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Pub Date: May 20, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Cut out the middleman. |
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| That's what Tom Smith says he can do when it comes to voluntary benefits enrollment. Tired of passing over 30% or more of the commission to enrollers? Use his technology and get half of that back. Listen in as the man behind hiddenpaycheck.com breaks down what he's trying to do with his latest venture -- Voluntary Benefits of America. Make sure to let us know what you think in the comment section. |
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Pub Date: May 20, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Take a closer look at the House Republican health reform proposal with EBRI's Paul Fronstin |
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| Listen in as Fronstin takes a closer look at the details (although they are limited at this point) of the proposal. |
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Pub Date: May 18, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| It's time to move beyond the public plan. |
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| While they're not sure what will happen to the broker post-reform, representatives from both sides of the public plan debate agree that it has become a distraction that could derail the potential for broad bipartisan reform. Stuart Butler, VP of domestic & economic policies for The Heritage Foundation and John Sheils, SVP with The Lewin Group shared their thoughts on the issue during a roundtable debate May 18. |
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Pub Date: May 15, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Health care industry groups promise savings, sort of. |
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| Groups representing doctors, hospitals, MRI-makers and health insurers promised this week to help whittle away at America's $2 trillion health care behemoth, sort of. Listen in as Georgetown Health Economist Warren Greenberg questions their seriousness as well as their reasoning for linking arms. Doctors and insurance companies should be adversaries, he says. |
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Pub Date: May 14, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Correcting the record when it comes to plan fees |
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| The Investment Company Institute's recent report on plan fees says a median 401(k) "all-in" fee could be about 0.72%. BrightScope's Ryan Alfred says not so fast. The sample was off, and off in a way that would produce lower median fees. It's not just that, but he's also concerned the group might be trying to use the median number as representative of the marketplace despite the fact that they expressly say it shouldn't be used that way in the actual report. Take a listen and let us know what you think. |
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Pub Date: May 13, 2009 |
| Swine flu? So what. |
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| The Nolan Group’s Ronnell Nolan shares why being evacuated from a medical tourism conference in Mexico won’t damp her enthusiasm for this growing market. In fact, post health care reform it could "even play a bigger role than I originally thought," she says. |
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Pub Date: May 11, 2009 |
| By selling $2T savings, stakeholders may stave off public plan. |
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| Of course a public plan's still on the table, but NAHU's Janet Trautwein believes the promise to reduce costs AHIP, AMTA, AMA, PhRMA, AHA and SEIU made to the White House today "will go a long way towards preventing it from becoming a reality." |
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Pub Date: May 07, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Is harshing on the duck so last year? |
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| Ron Agypt thinks so. Listen in as Aflac's broker relations chief talks about what the company's been doing to remake itself in the eyes of independent benefit brokers and advisers. The worksite behemoth now has a team of dedicated folks, nearly 100 of them, to try and make sure when brokers do work with the duck, it's a good experience for everyone. The question remains, though, is it working? Listen in, then let us know what you think. |
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Pub Date: May 06, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| There is no hidden government health care plan. |
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| That's what new Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius told the House Ways & Means Committee May 6. Sebelius addressed concerns about taxing employee benefits, the fairness of a public plan option and emphasized that there is no one-size-fits-all plan in the works. |
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Pub Date: May 05, 2009 - 5:00 am |
| Single payer supporters disrupt Senate committee. |
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| Before the Senate Finance Committee could get a word in at their health care coverage roundtable May 5, protesters let the Senators know they wanted a single pay supporter at the table. After the crowd calmed down, Senator Ron Wyden said individual choice is central to reform and that’s just what employers are lacking. |
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Pub Date: May 05, 2009 |
| H1N1 leaves many employers wrestling with leave policies. |
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| Sick workers at work have always been a drag on productivity and a driver of medical claims. But what happens if your coughing co-worker has a deadly virus? All of a sudden presenteeism is a slightly higher priority for the HR staff. Listen in as Patrick Lail, an attorney for Atlanta’s Elarbee Thompson, outlines what employers should learn from the current crisis, as well as what types of cases might crack the courtroom’s doors as a result of it. |
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