Did you know that one third of all households would feel adverse financial impacts within one month if a primary wage earner died?
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Life insurance isn’t a fun thing to think about, and it may seem like an unnecessary expense. But if you have people who depend on you for financial support, then life insurance is really about protecting them in case something happens to you – your designated beneficiary would collect a financial benefit upon your death. Life insurance can be confusing, so here’s a rundown of the basics.

Both employers and employees both have much to gain from a successful voluntary benefits program. 
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Thanks to technology, working remotely has become a more accessible and more plausible option for employees everywhere.  With more companies offering work from home policies, it’s crucial for employers to be aware of the unanticipated risks and be ready to address them.
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Keeping employees who work remotely safe is a difficult challenge since they are not in a controlled work environment. OSHA will not do home safety inspections; however, the agency maintains employers are responsible for safe working conditions regardless of location. Because employers are responsible for worker safety, injuries that occur while working off-site will likely fall under workers’ compensation.

When you apply for life insurance or open a retirement account, you'll be asked to name beneficiaries. This is an important step in financial planning.
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Research consistently points to time away from work as improving productivity, lowering stress, and reducing absenteeism.

An attractive benefits program is vital for your recruiting and retention efforts, but it is also a significant expense. To ensure you are providing a package that is both competitive and economical, you need to know how your offerings compare to others in your industry. Benchmark data can provide valuable insight for evaluating your benefits package, including:

• Where your weaknesses are
• Where your strengths are and how to maintain them
• Which areas you can improve
• Strategies for improvement
• New or different ways to do things

Employer interest in benchmark data has grown over the past decade, as companies look for new ways to manage costs. Analyzing how other companies are structuring their plans and the strategies they are using to cut costs may make your own benefit plan decisions a bit easier.

The possibility of becoming disabled is very real for working Americans, and so are the financial consequences and costs associated with employee absence. Unless it is offered through their employer, most adults have little, if any, disability insurance coverage.
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​Did you know that millennials have become the nation’s largest living population? Millennials, also known as “Gen Y,” are projected to surpass 75 million this year.  In fact, more than 1 in 3 American workers is a millennial. That means millennials – those workers age 18-34 – have the largest share of the country’s workforce, and this number will only increase as more finish college and enter the workforce.  
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SF563 and HF489 are companion bills that would require health plans to share prescription drug rebates directly with the consumers, instead of sharing the rebates with the employers to reduce premiums and health costs. Despite being promoted as a benefit to the consumer, these bills may lead to the use of higher-cost drugs even when less expensive, equally-effective drugs are available.
 
Both bills have survived the first “funnel” deadline of the Iowa legislature.
 
Whether your health plan is self-funded or fully-insured, it is expected that these bills (if passed) will raise premiums and increase overall spending on drugs. Based on actuarial calculations, premiums could increase 2-3%.
 
Pharmaceutical manufacturers have made these bills a priority, and have been successful at attracting state and national attention to these proposals. However, efforts to curb prescription drugs at a national level are already well underway with Senator Chuck Grassley leading a bi-partisan effort in Washington to lower drug prices and increase transparency.

LMC is dedicated to keeping employers informed of important issues such as these. Please contact us to learn more!  Employers who are concerned about the potential impact of this legislation should immediately contact their Iowa legislators. A vote is expected to take place in the very near future