February 11th 2019: For the past several months, we have been negotiating the terms of our agreements with Trinity Health (Trinity), which includes the following entities, as well as their professional providers, subsidiaries, affiliates, and divisions: Mercy Health System of Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Mercy Fitzgerald, Mercy Philadelphia, and Nazareth hospitals St. Mary Medical Center, including St. Mary Rehabilitation Hospital, Saint Francis Healthcare, including Saint Francis Hospital, Wilmington, Delaware. We continue to engage in good‑faith negotiations, but we want to explain how customers and members could be affected if we are unable to reach a new agreement by March 31, 2019. How members would be affected If we are unable to reach a new agreement, Trinity will no longer be… Read More
Continue ReadingWalgreens Boots Alliance agreed to pay $269.2 million to settle U.S. claims that the drugstore chain defrauded a federally funded health care program over insulin drugs and a consumer-discount initiative. The two settlements, announced Tuesday, cover allegations over improper billing. In the first one, the company agreed to pay $209.2 million to resolve claims it billed Medicare, Medicaid and other programs for hundreds of thousands of insulin pens it distributed to people who didn’t need them. In the second, Walgreens said it would pay $60 million for overbilling Medicaid by not disclosing lower prices it offered in a discount program. To read more, click here.
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The Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) of the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) has posted an alert warning employers, and others, of a fake communication involving the OCR audit program under HIPAA. The email falsifies HHS departmental letterhead and the signature of the OCR Director and directs individuals to a non-governmental website marketing the cybersecurity services of a firm that is not associated with HHS or OCR. This phishing email originates from the email address OSOCRAudit@hhs-gov.us and directs individuals to a URL at http://www.hhs-gov.us. This is a subtle difference from the official email address for the real HIPAA audit program, OSOCRAudit@hhs.gov Phishing is a scam typically carried out… Read More
Continue ReadingOne of the benefits of getting your Health Insurance through the Marketplace is the tax credit applied to your premium, which makes your costs much more affordable. However, when determining how much your tax credit will be, you use an estimate on your income for the following year. Life is always changing, so if your income changes, if your Family size changes or even being offered Healthcare in some other way it is IMPORTANT to alert the Marketplace of these changes or you may end up owing money back to the Government when you file your taxes at the end of the year. Here we will talk about which types… Read More
Continue ReadingCheck the Status of Your New Card *Cards have finished mailing to American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and to people who get RRB benefits. Three Things To Know Your new card will automatically come to you. You don’t need to do anything as long as your address is up to date. If you need to update your address, visit your My Social Security. Once you get your new Medicare card, destroy your old Medicare card and start using your new card right away. Your new Medicare Number is a unique combination of numbers and letters. Your new number uses numbers 0 thru 9. The letters S, L, O,… Read More
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Preparing for 2015 Open Enrollment Getting prepared for open enrollment 2015 has been a major challenge. Total Benefit Solutions is dedicated to serving all of our clients throughout this second annual open enrollment period. With that in mind our offices will be open on the weekend of November 15th 2014 to help you get enrolled. Open enrollment for individual plans begins November 15th, 2014 and ends February 15th 2015. Anyone who enrolls prior to the 15th of the month will be effective the 1st of the next month. This is important because you must enroll by December 15th in order for your plan to be effective on January 1st, 2015… Read More
Continue ReadingMedical Savings Account Plans: MSA Plans combine a high-deductible Medicare Advantage Plan and a trust or custodial savings account (as defined and/or approved by the IRS). The plan deposits money from Medicare into the account. You can use this money to pay for your health care costs, but only Medicare-covered expenses count toward your deductible. The amount deposited is usually less than your deductible amount, so you generally have to pay out-of-pocket before your coverage begins. Medicare MSA Plans don’t cover prescription drugs. If you join a Medicare MSA Plan, you can also join any separate Medicare Prescription Drug Plan. There are additional restrictions to join an MSA plan,… Read More
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Free Series for Small Business Owners to Help Understand the Law The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), together with the Small Business Majority (a national nonprofit advocacy organization), has launched theAffordable Care Act 101 Weekly Webinar Series. The webinars feature guidance on key pieces of the law for small business owners provided by SBA representatives, followed by a question and answer period. Topics being discussed in the webinars include: Small business tax credits—who is eligible and how to claim the credit; Shared responsibility (also known as “pay or play”); Cost containment; and Tools and resources available for small businesses to learn more about the law. The… Read More
Continue ReadingThe health insurance industry is on its way to a major overhaul by the end of this year. With the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), nearly every American will be affected by the new law and many already have. With this in mind, we have decided to refocus our efforts to better serve our clients in alignment with the new world of health benefits. We are proud to announce that beginning August 1, 2013; EMA Group Inc. will be known as Total Benefit Solutions Inc. Although our name is changing; our commitment to provide top notch guidance and support to our clients will never change.… Read More
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Healthcare Reform Presentation at Gloucester County Tea Party Edward T. MacConnell CBC, CHRS will be speaking at the Gloucester County Tea Party Patriots meeting on May 22nd. The Topic is Health Care Reform and You! Meeting Start time is 7:00 at the Gloucester County Library, in MullicaHill Branch, 389 Wolfert Station Road Mullica Hill (East of NJ Rte 45, Bridgeton Pike) at 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM. To reserve your seat contact Rose at 856-228-9249
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Questions about Medicare, Medicaid, Long Term Care and Elder Law Planning? Join us for a Q+A session with Edward T. MacConnell CBC, CHRS and Elder Law Attorney Terry Farber on May 16th 2013 at Noon. Location: Arden Courts at Warminster, 779 W County Line Road, Hatboro PA 19040 Call to reserve your seat: Sarah Gawlinski-Greenstein, (215)957-5182 . The presentation starts at 12 Noon.
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