ERISA Guide for Employers and Plan Administrators

Thompson Publishing Groupealth & Welfare Handbook: Questions and Answers on ERISA Compliance discusses the ways in which employer health and welfare plans can properly comply with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's latest mandates and interpretations.

Written in question-and-answer format by benefits consultant Terry Humo, Esq., of Intermountain Administrators, the handbook offers guidance on more than 30 key issues involving ERISA and employee welfare plans, including benefits entitlement, HIPAA, plan document language, discrimination issues and employer obligations under managed care plans. The author provides answers to the most frequently asked ERISA questions from employers and plan administrators, such as:

• An employer has established differences in insured health, vision and dental benefits based on employee groups. Under what circumstances would these differences be discriminatory under ERISA, tax code or civil rights laws?
  
• An employer had an indemnity plan for 20 years. In a few weeks, a preferred provider organization will be offered instead. Is this a material change in health coverage that warrants providing an ERISA notice of the change to plan participants?
  
• An employer collects certain information on medical and drug benefit use to control costs in a managed care environment. Is this a violation of a plan participant's privacy rights?

The 350-page softbound book also provides indexes, a glossary, and lists of resources.

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