HRM textbook

436 PART 4 COMPENSATION
FIGURE 13-4 COBRA
Record-Keeping Compliance
Checklist
Source: Reprinted from
www.HR.BLR.com with permission
of the publisher Business and Legal
Resources, Inc., 141 Mill Rock Road
East, Old Saybrook, CT © 2004. BLR ®
(Business and Legal Resources, Inc.).
Detailed record keeping is crucial for COBRA compliance. The following checklist is designed
to ensure that the proper records are maintained for problem-free COBRA compliance.
Do you maintain records so that it is easily determined
who is covered by your group health care plan?
Do you record terminations of covered employees as
soon as terminations occur?
Do you track reduction of hours of employees covered
by group health care plans?
Do you track deaths of employees covered by group
health care plans?
Do you track leaves of absence of employees covered
by group health care plans?
Do you track Medicare eligibility of employees covered
by group health care plans?
Do you track the disability status of employees covered
by group health care plans?
Yes No
Do you track retirees covered by group health care plans?
Do you maintain current addresses of employees?
Do you maintain current addresses of individuals
receiving COBRA benefits?
Do you require employees to provide a written
acknowledgment that they have received notice of their
COBRA rights?
Do you have a system to determine who has paid
COBRA premiums on time?
Do you have a system to determine who has obtained
other group health coverage so that they are no longer
eligible for COBRA under your plan?
Do you maintain a telephone log of calls received about
COBRA?
Do you maintain a record of changes in your plan?
Do you maintain a record of how premiums are calculated?
Do you maintain a log of those employees who are
denied COBRA coverage?
Do you maintain a log of why employees are denied
COBRA coverage?
For many employers, deductibles and co-pays are the low-hanging fruit in health
care cost control. For example, 22% of employers imposed deductibles of at least
$1,000 in 2011 for in-network services, up from 8% in 2008. 57 Even more 44%
imposed such deductibles for out-of-network services. 58 Consumer-driven health
plans (CDHPs) are increasingly popular. These are high-deductible plans that give
employees access to, for instance, a health savings account. (The Medicare Modernization
Act of 2003 allows employers to establish tax-free health savings accounts
(HSA).) 59 After the employer, employee, or both deposit pretax (and thus tax
sheltered) pay in the employees HSAs, employees or their families can use their HSA
funds to pay for low dollar (not catastrophic) medical expenses. 60 The assumption
is that this will motivate employees to utilize less expensive health care options, and
thus avoid big deductibles. 61 Employers generally offer CDHPs as an option to
traditional plans, such as PPOs. 62 We ll address other important cost-control trends.
COMMUNICATION AND EMPOWERMENT Most importantly, make sure
employees know the costs of their medical benefits. 63 As one expert said, the biggest
criticism of managed care . . . is that the health care consumer has little financial stake