Top 10 Questions to Ask Your Benefits Broker
Analyzing these ten critical questions in relation to your organization’s needs will help you make a more informed decision about your benefits broker
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How Does Level Self Funded Health Insurance Work?
We have received a lot of questions regarding the new level funding health benefit programs so we prepared this video to make it a little easier to understand. Ask us today if Level Funding your group’s health insurance might be a good for for your health plan! Contact your Total Benefit Solutions Account manager at (215)355-2121.
Continue ReadingMedicare Part D Notification Requirements
Employers sponsoring a group health plan with prescription drug benefits are required to notify their Medicare-eligible participants and beneficiaries as to whether the drug coverage provided under the plan is “creditable” or “non-creditable” prior to October 15th, 2018. Please follow this link for more information: Medicare Part D Notification Requirements As always, if you have any questions or concerns about this notification or your specific policy, please contact us at 215-355-2121
Continue ReadingPrevent Osteoporosis with Screenings
10 Facts About Osteoporosis By Kathleen Hall This silent disease significantly raises your risk for fractures and disability. 1. Losing bone density is a normal part of aging. We reach peak bone mass between ages 25 and 30, and then slowly lose begin to start losing bone mass at age 40. For women, reduced levels of estrogen after menopause accelerate bone density loss. “Women lose 1.5 to 2 percent of their bone density per year in the first 10 years after menopause,” says Laura Ryan, MD, clinical associate professor of medicine in the division of endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. 2. You don’t lose… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Four Stages of Medicare Part D (2018)
The Four Stages of Medicare Part D Coverage
Continue ReadingYour Medicare Card Is Changing!
The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015 requires that Social Security Number-based Health Insurance Claim Numbers (HICN) be removed from Medicare cards by April 2019; this is in an effort to lessen the current risk of beneficiary medical identity theft. A unique Medicare number, called the Medicare Beneficiary Identifier or MBI, will replace the current HICN. Beginning in April 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will begin the process of mailing new Medicare cards and will meet the statutory deadline for replacing all cards by April 2019. Educational Resources: CMS Transition to New Medicare Numbers and Cards – Fact Sheet CMS Website –… Read More
Continue Reading8 things to know about Medigap policies
Medicare Supplements or Medigap Plans A Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) policy, sold by private companies, can help pay some of the health care costs that Original Medicare doesn’t cover, like copayments, coinsurance, and deductibles. Some Medigap policies also offer coverage for services that Original Medicare doesn’t cover, like medical care when you travel outside the U.S. If you have Original Medicare and you buy a Medigap policy, Medicare will pay its share of the Medicare-approved amount for covered health care costs. Then your Medigap policy pays its share. A Medigap policy is different from a Medicare Advantage Plan. Those plans are ways to get Medicare benefits, while a Medigap policy… Read More
Continue ReadingCan I Work and Have Medicare?
Some individuals, maybe even you, will still be actively employed upon becoming eligible for Medicare. Can you enroll in Medicare while you’re still in the work force, and if not, will you get a penalty? If the employer has fewer than 20 employees, you’ll probably want to enroll in Parts A, B, and D upon becoming eligible for them. In this situation, Medicare usually becomes your primary coverage. If the employer has 20 employees or more, you may want to delay Parts A, B, and/or D if you have sufficient group coverage and know you won’t incur late enrollment penalties. Medicare usually pays second to group coverage from larger employers.… Read More
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Compliance Bulletin & Reform Center
Health Care Compliance and Reform Education Center A fundamental change in the way the United States handles health care has arrived. Benefit rules and coverage change faster today than they used to in ten years! Our Compliance and Health Reform Education Center is where we will keep a copy of our health care reform bulletins throughout the year, in an easy to view format where you can download a brief summary or watch a short informative video. Click here to visit totalbenefitscomply.com Please contact your Total Benefit Solutions account manager at (215)355-2121 if you have any further questions.
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MEDICARE PART D: CMS NOTIFICATION REMINDER
Employers sponsoring a group health plan need to report information on the creditable status of the plan’s prescription drug coverage to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Watch a video overview Download a bulletin
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Individual and Family Open Enrollment-2017 Important Updates
As many people know by now there are many big changes with individual and family plans for open enrollment 2017. For anyone who is currently enrolled on one of the following your plan will NOT be renewed for 2017 and you will have to pick a new plan and/or a new insurer: Aetna: all plans cancelling in PA/NJ/NC/FL Aetna plans only remain in Delaware in our service area United Healthcare: All ACA plans cancelling. Short term plans are still available Oscar: All plans in NJ cancelling Health Republic: All plans in NJ cancelling Highmark and Capitol Blue Cross: No longer paying broker compensation Geisinger: No longer paying broker compensation Independence Blue… Read More
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Reminder to Distribute Creditable Coverage Notice
Employers who sponsor a group health plan with prescription drug benefits are required to notify their Medicare-eligible participants and beneficiaries as to whether the drug coverage provided under the plan is “creditable” or “non-creditable.” This notification must be provided prior to October 15th each year. Download medicare-part-d-reminder-to-distribute-creditable-coverage-notice-
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Aetna to pull out of most Obamacare exchanges
From cnn.com: The insurer will stop offering policies on the exchanges in 11 of the 15 states where it currently operates, according to a press release it issued Monday evening. Aetna (AET) will only sell Obamacare products in Delaware, Iowa, Nebraska and Virginia… Click here for the story on CNN
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Aetna Small Group: New Small Group ACA termination policy effective October 1, 2016
New Small Group ACA termination policy effective October 1, 2016 RE: renewal policy changes from Aetna…. Starting October 1, we must receive written confirmation of customer renewal acceptance in advance of the customer renewal date for all Aetna small groups. This means that beginning with all October 1 renewal dates, we must receive written confirmation in advance of the policy renewal date. Written confirmation may include signed renewal acceptance from the customer delivered by mail, fax or email. Note: premium payment received in advance of the renewal date will also be considered renewal acceptance. If we haven’t received written acceptance of the renewal, or renewal alternates, from the customer in this… Read More
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