• The maximum annual HSA contribution for self-only HDHP coverage will increase from $3,100 to $3,250. The maximum annual HSA contribution for family HDHP coverage will increase from $6,250 to $6,450. Age 55 catch-up contributions will continue to be at $1,000, per §223 of the Internal Revenue Code.
• The minimum HDHP deductible will increase from $1,200 to $1,250 for self-only coverage and from $2,400 to $2,500 for family coverage.
• The annual maximum for HDHP out-of-pocket expenses (deductibles, co-payments and other amounts) will be $6,250 for self-only coverage and $12,500 for family coverage, up from $6,050 and $12,100, respectively, in 2012.

These limits are effective for calendar year 2013. For HDHPs with non-calendar plan years, the minimum deductible and out-of-pocket limits are those that are in effect on the first day of the plan year.

A recent HSA/HRA study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute showed that in 2011 more than 8 million Americans have HSAs and/or HRAs, with more than $12 billion in assets. This indicates an increase of more than 500 percent since 2006. HSAs, in particular, have a triple tax benefit (contributions, earnings and medical-related distributions are tax free) and are portable. They can be used for current medical expenses or expenses in retirement years.

• Plan year ending in FY 2013 — $1 per covered life
• Plan year ending in FY 2014 — $2 per covered life
• Subsequent year – the amount of previous year plus the percentage increase in the projected per-capita amount of National Health Expenditures
• Fees will sunset after 2019

The guidance has come in the form of a notice of proposed ruling. Key excerpts from the notice related to self-insured plans are as follows:

Applicability to Stop-Loss Insurers
The notice confirms that stop-loss insurance will not be considered health insurance for purposes of fee assessment. SIIA had previously requested this clarification in a comment letter filed last year.

Financial Liability for Fee Payment
The notice confirms that the self-insured plan sponsor is solely responsible to pay the required fee. Third party administrators working on behalf of self-insured plans shall not be subject to any financial liability associated with fee payment.

Payment of Fees from Plan Assets
The Treasury Department and IRS have consulted the Department of Labor concerning comments on the appropriate sources to pay the fee. The DOL has advised Treasury and the IRS that it is considering permissible funding sources for these fee payments by plan sponsors that are subject to ERISA’s fiduciary provisions.

Calculating the Average Number of Covered Lives
The notice proposes that self-insured plans can use any of the following three options for calculating the average number of covered lives:

Option #1: A plan sponsor may determine the average number of lives covered under the plan for the plan year by calculating the sum of the lives covered for each day of the plan and dividing that sum by the number of days in the plan year (the actual count method).

Option #2: A plan sponsor may determine the average number of lives covered under the plan for the plan year by adding the totals of lives covered on one date in each quarter, or an equal number of dates for each quarter, and dividing the total number of dates on which a count was made (the snapshot method).

Option #3: A plan sponsor may determine the average number of lives covered under the plan for the plan year based on a formula that includes the number of participants actually reported on the Form 5500 for the applicable self-insured health plan for the plan year (the form 5500 method).

Third Party Reporting and Payments
The IRS does not intend to create reporting or payment requirements for third parties who may act on behalf of plan sponsors in complying with the fee payment requirements.

A special thanks to Central Insurance Company for sharing this information!

1. You do need to claim your tax credit. Your business is eligible for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit if you have fewer than 25 full-time employees, cover at least 50% of the cost of their coverage, and your employees have average wages of less than $50,000 a year. To determine the amount of your credit, talk to your accountant and complete IRS form 8941.
2. You don’t have to report benefits on your W-2′s. PPACA requires employers to report the cost of coverage under an employer-sponsored group health plan on employees’ Form W-2s. However, this requirement was optional for all employers for the 2011 tax year. And the reporting requirement is still optional for businesses filing fewer than 250 W-2 forms for 2012. Reporting will remain optional for smaller employers until further guidance is issued.
3. You must provide proper notice. Under COBRA, employers with 20 or more employees that provide health benefits must continue to provide coverage to an employee when he or she leaves. You can require the employee to pay the full cost of the coverage and a 2% administrative charge. However, you must notify your plan administrator within 30 days of the employee leaving so your administrator can provide the proper employee notice.

Health care reform is confusing. Speak with your attorney, accountant, and insurance advisor to make sure you know what your business is required to do.

Summer is fast approaching and the chance of identity theft increases during these months when people are using their credit cards and other personal information while traveling.

Important tips for protecting yourself from identity theft can be found here.

Thank you to Central Insurance for sharing this information.

Most homeowner’s insurance policies offer identity theft coverage for a minimal premium (average $25/year). Most provide between $15,000 and $25,000 in coverage and there is usually a small deductible associated ($250 on average). Some policies will include access to an advocacy representative to help you navigate the process which can be very helpful.  Other expenses that are typically included within the endorsed coverage limit are:

• Costs for notarized fraud affidavits, certified mail, and long distance telephone calls to law enforcement and credit rating agencies
• Loan application fees when required to reapply for a loan denied due to identity theft
• Reasonable fees for attorneys hired to defend against lawsuits, to remove wrongly entered criminal or civil judgments, or to challenge the accuracy or completeness of information in your consumer credit report
• Lost wages at $250 per day up to $10,000 when you take off work to meet with law enforcement agencies, legal counsel or similar related activities

Every homeowner’s insurance policy can have varying coverage, so it’s important to read your policy to see what scope of coverage exists. 

There are also many other independent companies as well as banks and credit-reporting bureaus selling Identity Theft Protection or monitoring. No doubt you’ve seen the commercials. But, is it necessary to have $1M in coverage? What does the $1M cover? Most of these policies are secondary/excess to the coverage that you have added to your homeowners (or renters insurance) policy.

Typically only low-cost incidentals related to or resulting from the crime are covered (eg notary fees, credit-report costs, loan re-application fees, and usually a maximum of $1,500 in wages lost “solely” to fix your identity records).  If you need criminal defense costs paid, because you are charged with a crime committed by the person that stole your ID, most policies will pay after you have been acquitted, or the charges have been dismissed. You could also end up having to front the defense costs.

Not all policies are created equal! You should ask as many questions as possible and read all of the fine print to make sure you understand exactly what you are buying and then check with the Better Business Bureau. An informed buyer is the best buyer!

Below are some pro-active, no cost, common sense actions that you can take to prevent ID theft in the first place:

• Sign up for online access to your bank and credit accounts and monitor them frequently. Chances are, you’ll identify illegal activity before the ID theft service will.
• Periodically check your credit reports.
• Put a security freeze on your credit report. This prevents new creditors from getting access to your file when someone tries to open an account. When creditors do not have access to the file, they are more likely to deny a fraudulent credit application.
• Install and use security software on all of your computers and your phone.
• Besides the credit report bureaus, you can check the following databases each year, free of charge:
  • Lexis Nexis Full File Disclosure  (www.personalreports.lexisnexis.com, and then choose “Access Your Personal Information”)
  • Annual Statement of Medical Benefits (call or write your current insurer to get a copy of your statement)
  • Prescription Drug History contains info about the prescription drugs you’ve used over the past five years (call Intelliscript at 877-211-4816 and Medpoint at 888-206-0335)
  • Chex Systems and TeleCheck Reports have info regarding overdrawn or mishandled checking accounts (Chex Systems – www.consumerdebit.com,and click on “order consumer report”, TeleCheck – www.firstdata.com/telecheck/telecheck-request-file-report.htm)

• Spend less on overall medical services
• Receive equal or better quality care
• Are more engaged in their health and health spending
• Are more satisfied with their health care experience

CDHPs are significantly less expensive than traditional PPOs or HMOs – by about 15%, on average. The use of CDHPs has been growing steadily over the past five years, particularly among the largest organizations. In 2010, offerings of CDHPs ranged from 14% among employers with 10–49 employees to 51% among those with 20,000 or more employees.

The keys to successful implementation of CDHPs are communication and education. Studies show that when people have a strong understanding of their CDHP and feel comfortable with the level of perceived financial risk associated with it, they become better health care consumers. Detailing how the plan works and how it differs from their existing benefits are critical communication components before, during, and after implementation.

By employing strategies and tactics designed to create active participants who are encouraged and rewarded for choosing and using quality care, employers and employees come out on the winning side.

Unhealthy, unproductive, unengaged employees are one of the largest strategic risks an organization faces. As companies seek to maximize their return on human capital, having healthier, happier, and more engaged employees reduces costs and improves productivity year after year.

The key is creating unique and secure passwords.  Try using these tips when creating your passwords.

• Don’t use real words, but rather letters and numbers that have meaning to you, such as a phrase or acronym. For example, you could use an acronym representing something you think about often or were involved with in the past. Then pair this with a number that is associated with that experience, but that others wouldn’t necessarily know.  Let’s say you were involved for 22 years with a charitable organization.  A possible password could be Charit22.  Just make sure you haven’t posted your charity experience on Facebook!
• Use a special character in place of a letter that is relatively easy for you to remember. Examples are * $ # ^ & < >.  You can even use the same special characters to replace the same letters across all your passwords making it easier to remember.  For instance, $ could always replace the letter S.
• Change your passwords at various intervals, such as every six months. Change them immediately if you have ANY suspicion that a password has been compromised.
• Never click on a link in an e-mail that takes you to a website where you key your user name and password, even if the e-mail is sent by the website and you know it’s probably a valid link. Always, always, go to the website directly in your browser by typing in the location or using a trusted bookmark. The e-mail could be fraudulent and not really link you to the website you think it will (such as a credit card website), but instead to a “fake” website where a hacker could easily steal your information.

Another key security measure is to store your passwords securely. One technique is to save your passwords in a password protected document. Print this document periodically and save it in a secure location in your home away from your computer.

What are some techniques you use to create and remember secure passwords?  Feel free to share your tips – just be sure to be general enough in your explanation so no one can figure out what your password might be!

If you’re like me, probably not. It’s one of those appliances most people install and then forget about. The expectation is that it’ll be there to handle its job when needed.

Its job, of course, is to remove excess water from the basement.

However sump pumps, just like everything else, can’t do the job without proper maintenance. Here are some quarterly and annual maintenance tips to consider performing on your sump pump.

Every three months you should:

• Clean the pump inlet screen.
• Check the power cord and make sure the cord is connected to power.
• Pour a bucket of water into the sump to raise the float and make sure the pump turns on, adjusting the float if required.

At least once per year you should:

• Remove the pump from the sump to inspect and clean it.
• Clean out the sump.
• Check the owner’s manual to see if the pump bearings require grease or oil. If you do not have the manual, look it up on the Internet using the manufacturer and model number of the pump. Otherwise, contact the manufacturer to get a replacement copy.
• Replace the pump in the sump.
• Check the electrical cord and make sure the cord is connected to power.
• Pour a bucket of water into the sump to raise the float and make sure the pump turns on, adjusting the float if required.

A little time invested now will help your sump pump do the job that it was designed to do later should excess water become a problem for your home.

While we’re mostly concerned with just getting our brood and their belongings sanely and safely from home to activity and back again, have you ever thought how those additional passengers would be covered by your auto insurance policy in the event of an accident? For instance, if you were held liable as a result of an automobile accident in which one of your kids’ friends got hurt, would your policy provide coverage for that child?

Fortunately, most personal automobile policies will provide coverage for injuries that occur to non-family vehicle occupants as a result of an accident that is your fault. Keep in mind though, that serious injuries often mean tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills. Plus, the more people injured in the accident, the greater the cost. It’s not uncommon for a serious automobile accident to exceed several hundred thousand dollars in bodily injury expenses.

So how can a family shuttle service operator best protect him or herself from the financial risks of their avocation?

1. Purchase high limits of liability on your auto policy. Coverage is available in most states up to $250,000 for each person and $500,000 for each accident. A high-limits policy ensures you’ll have the coverage you need in case the worst happens.

2. Consider a Personal Umbrella Policy. Did you know that for less than a dollar a day (in many cases) you could purchase a $1 million umbrella policy which provides additional coverage above and beyond the basic auto and homeowner’s policies?

3. Talk to your advisor before you load up. Don’t assume you’re covered. Let’s say you rent a 20-passenger van to take your teenager’s tennis team to an out-of-town tournament. The fact is, your personal auto policy may not provide coverage depending on the vehicle’s weight. Or let’s say you’re a coach, teacher, or volunteer who has regular access to the school’s vehicle in order to transport your team. The personal auto policy won’t provide coverage for vehicles you don’t own but are available for your regular use. It’s always safest to consult with your advisor first—when in doubt, give your advisor a shout!