New! Redesigned Health Care Reform Connect website to make it easier for you to find and use valuable information. Topics have been divided into the following sections:

•    ACA Overview
•    Mandates
•    Compliance
•    Insurance
•    Articles
•    Resources
•    Events

Visit http://michbusiness.org/hcrc/ and sign in today to see the new design. Login to get the full array of services!

Health Reform Connect gives you:

•    Access to our exclusive Health Reform Questions and Answers Hotlink. This email link will give you opportunity to ask any specific question related to reform and your clients needs.
•    The ability to request the MBPA Health Reform team to make a presentation to your staff or for your client meetings to keep you abreast of recent changes in reform.
•    Small Business Tax Credit Calculator
•    Full Time Employment Calculator
•    Health Care Reform Business Checklist
•    Small Business ACA Operational Checklist
•    Small Business Guide
•    SBC resources and templates for clients that is self-insured.
•    NEW Quick Guide for Individuals.  By January 1, 2014, the ACA requires individuals to have Minimum Essential Health Coverage or a Grandfathered health plan as allowed by the ACA Transitional Policy.  Click here to see our Quick Guide and other need to know information for Individuals. (Add link to this section on HCRC).
•    Expert Advice on Complicated Compliance issues and technical guidelines.
•    Complimentary access to monthly webinars and seminars on Health Reform.
•    Links and Feeds on the latest news on PPACA and Health and Human Services.
•    Compliance Solutions such as W2 compliance and resources for payroll services
•    IRS and tax compliance, credits and penalty, information and tools.

To take advantage of all of these services, simply use your login information at the top of the screen. If you have any questions, please call us at 888-277-6464 and ask for your Membership Services Representative.

When you write your Blues with sponsored code AL you get enormous value for your clients:

• MBPA is proud to reach over 150,000 businesses with the vast array of programs, conferences and educational resources provided to the business community. That’s one out of three businesses in Michigan.
• Health Care Reform Connect™: MBPA’s exclusive tool to help answer all your questions and provide tangible resources and education for your clients. Over 50 health care reform resources available and serviced by the MBPA team.
• Reform Compliant SPDs – Free for all association members.
• Low dues structure – only $75 for the first year – pays for itself in financial value.
• Over 100 member programs and 30 educational conferences per year.

Keep sticking with AL and writing your Blues business with the MBPA:

In addition to the valuable membership benefits we offer to your clients, the MBPA continues to offer contest and bonus rewards with our program partners. Choose from the following contests:

1. Staples Sizzler: For all your new Blue 10+ groups signed up with MBPA membership receives a $500 incentive.

-or-

2. BASIC’s COBRA Bonanza: Receive one year of complimentary COBRA Administration for qualifying groups of 20-99 lives, plus a $250 bonus.

Retention Rewards:
Agents that continue to keep their clients with the MBPA for renewals are part of our Retention Rewards perks and have opportunities for additional bonuses, contests and prizes throughout the year brought to you by the MBPA Community Partners.

As many of you are aware the Michigan Business & Professional Association launched its Health Care Reform Connect™ website and e-publication last fall.

We wanted to take a moment to update you on what we have been working on as it relates to supporting Michigan Businesses and your clients through the implementation of health care reform. Here is a summary of activities in case you missed one:

• The development and launch of Health Care Reform Connect™ last fall has resulted in thousands of visits to our website by Michigan Businesses and independent agents who are looking for reliable information on health care reform and a source to get their reform questions answered.
• We have been hosting health care reform seminars, monthly webinars, and reform conferences across the state with several hundred attendees who have learned about the impact of health care reform on their business.
• We have published numerous health care reform articles from various subject matter experts from around the country – available via our secured site as downloadable PDF’s.
• Our team has spent countless hours lobbying at the State and Federal level on health care reform and the impact on Michigan Businesses and its employees.
• We have launched a dozen health care reform tools such as our Small Business Health Care Reform Guide, Tax Credit and FTE Calculators, Health Care Reform Timeline, and Reform Roadmap, to name a few, to help Michigan businesses and their agents through health care reform.
• We have hosted dozens’ of onsite meetings with members and agents to help educate them on health care reform.
• We have developed a reform “hotlink” giving members and agents the opportunity to ask their specific health care reform questions with a typical answer back in 24 hours. This free service for our members has saved them countless hours and helped to clear the fog on reform.
• Health care reform alerts and e-publication available to members and agents. Each month we send out an updated e-publication via our Health Care Reform Connect™ brand with an overview of new tools, articles and white papers on reform. We also send out timely reform alerts when various federal departments make announcements regarding reform.  

Please feel free to connect with our team today to ensure you and your clients are receiving our health care reform communications P: 888.277.8800 / E: info@michbusiness.org
 

The MBPA Provides Summary Plan Descriptions (SPDs) at No Cost to our Members!

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) guidelines make it mandatory for all businesses with 2 or more employees to provide employees with a Summary Plan Description (SPD). The MBPA continues to take a leading role in informing and helping our members meet their obligations under ERISA.

Types of benefits covered by Summary Plan Descriptions include: Medical, Long Term Disability, Short Term Disability, Life/AD&D and freestanding Dental/Vision.

•    The MBPA SPD is a comprehensive document that satisfies all of the Department of Labor (DOL) requirements.
•    The MBPA SPD is essentially a “wrap plan SPD” under which an employer can combine all of its benefits into one plan and one plan document for ease of administration and for purposes of DOL reporting requirements (e.g. Form 5500s) for those employers subject to such reporting.
•    The MBPA SPD can be used for both insured and self-insured benefits.

NOW, Two Easy Ways to Get Your Client’s SPD for Active Members:

1.    Let Us Do It For You:

•    Access an SPD adoption agreement from our Agent Pavilion
•    Complete it and e-mail it back to us IN WORD FORMAT at info@michbusiness.org, being sure to provide your complete contact information
•    We will complete and return the documents within two business days.

2.    Create Your Own On-Line (NEW):

•    Go to our Agent Pavilion and click on Summary Plan Description on the main menu.
•    Follow the instructions to create your client’s plan…..you can save it in your client’s ‘library’ for their/your future use.

Remember: SPDs are FREE for members and $125.00 for non-members.

We look forward to continuing to provide you and your clients with the most up to date and easily accessible services in this important area. If you have questions or are in need of assistance, please contact our Member Services Team at 1-888-277-6464 or 1-586-393-8800.

The Internal Revenue Services Bureau (IRS) and the United States Department of Labor (DOL) have recently sent up a flare to warn businesses who try to avoid the Affordable Care Act (ACA) penalties by classifying employees as “independent contractors.” Due to the penalities that are forthcoming in 2015 for businesses with 50 or more full-time employees that do not offer healthcare coverage or offer healthcare that is not affordable, some businesses may consider reclassifying their common law employees as independent contractors. The IRS and DOL are stating that the scutiny over worker classification will be very thorough as to make certain those that intentionally reclassify will be penalized. Since there are more good apples that bad ones, both departments want to also educate business owners on how each classification is defined, to avoid a truly accidental misclassification.

When classifying workers as employees or independent contractors a fact intensive inquiry must take place in order to properly count the number of employees a business has. This “count” is very important when calculating for the purposes of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), as indicated by the IRS. IRS says businesses must use the traditional common law test for determining employment status. The common law classification rules require that the employer examine 20 factors in determining employment status, and every employee counts. The factors focus on the degree of control that the employer exercises over the worker’s performance. Simply put, does the employer have the right to control what work will be done, and how it will be accomplished.

Important factors in analyzing employee status:

1. The worker is required to follow the business owner’s instructions;
2. Any training requirements are imposed upon the workers by a business owner;
3. Work is performed on the business owner’s premises;
4. There is continuing relationship between the worker and the business owner;
5. The worker’s travel expenses are paid by the business owner;
6. The busines owner pay for administrative support; and
7. The work-related tools are provided by the business owner.

It is more critical now than ever to make certain business owners know the rules on how to classify their workers. The penalties for misclassification of workers as independent contractors have always been heafty, but with the additional ACA penalties the stakes are high. Please feel free to contact the MBPA legislative and agent relations team with any questions. Our association has the tools to help navigate you through the waters of the ACA, we look forward to your feedback. (888)277-6464 /www.michbusiness.org / info@michbusiness.org