Jerry Geisel (mailto:jgeisel@BusinessInsurance.com)
WASHINGTON?The House of Representatives for the second time in the last three months failed to override President Bush?s veto of legislation that would added $35 billion in federal funding over the next five years to expand health insurance coverage for children in low-income families. On a 260-152...
WASHINGTON?Legislation given final congressional approval Tuesday would expand the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to allow employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave when a spouse, son, daughter or parent is on active duty in the Armed Forces or is called up for active...
WASHINGTON?A.J. Heinz Co. is asking the Labor Department for permission to expand employee benefit risks funded through its Vermont captive. In 2006, the Labor Department approved Heinz?s request to use its Vermont captive, Heinz-Noble Inc., to reinsure group term life insurance policies written by...
Employment-based pensions received by men typically are much higher than pensions received by women, but the gap is likely to narrow somewhat in the future, according to a study released Thursday. The study by the Employee Benefit Research Institute in Washington found that 44.6% of men age 65 and...
WASHINGTON?In its first official guidance on the subject, the Internal Revenue Service has provided examples of situations in which employers can and cannot take tax deductions for premiums paid in cell captive insurance arrangements. In typical cell arrangements, which have proliferated in recent...
LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill.?Hewitt Associates Inc. is selling its Cyborg payroll and human resources software services unit to Vista Equity Partners L.L.C., a San Francisco-based private-equity firm. Hewitt paid $43 million in May 2003 to acquire Cyborg. The acquisition of Chicago-based Cyborg allowed...
PASADENA, Calif.?The city of San Francisco can enforce its law that requires employers to spend a certain amount of money on health care coverage or pay a fee to help fund coverage for uninsured city residents, a federal appeals court panel ruled Wednesday. The unanimous ruling by a three-judge...
With the traditional insurance market softening, captive formations are easing in two of the nation?s largest captive domiciles. In Vermont, 32 captives were licensed in 2007, down from 37 each in 2006 and 2005. New captive sponsors included well-known companies such as American International Group...
WASHINGTON?A major biopharmaceutical company is asking the Labor Department for permission to fund employee benefit risks through the Vermont branch of its Bermuda-domiciled captive insurer. Cephalon Inc., which is based in Frazer, Pa., wants to reinsure group term life, accidental death and...
WASHINGTON?Congress has given final approval to legislation that extends through 2008 the federal law that bans group health care plans from imposing lower annual and lifetime dollar limits for coverage of mental disorders than for other medical conditions. The one-year extension of the law, which...
