CHOLESTEROL MANAGEMENT

Taking care of yourself is one of the most important things you can do. We want to be sure you are receiving all of the tests and screenings necessary to help keep you healthy.  Clinical trials have shown that lowering your LDL cholesterol can sharply reduce your risk of a subsequent heart attack.  Regular screenings are important. Have your blood cholesterol and blood pressure checked regularly, as per your doctor’s instructions. Things you can do to reduce your risk:  If your cholesterol level and/or blood pressure are high, the following tips may help you lower your cholesterol level and blood pressure, which may reduce your risk of heart disease.

Quit smoking. Smokers have more than twice the risk of heart attack as nonsmokers.

Maintain a healthy weight. If overweight, take steps to lose weight. Excess weight increases your risk of heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Follow physician recommended/prescribed exercise plan. Thirty minutes a day on most or all days of the week is often recommended. Exercise can help control blood cholesterol levels, diabetes and obesity.

Consume a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and reduced content of saturated and total fats. If you do drink alcohol, do so in moderation.

Alcohol can increase your blood pressure.

Please consult your doctor for the plan that is right for you. 

The information provided is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be medical advice or a substitute for your doctor’s care.

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Tip Tuesday: It’s National Wellness Month! 3 strategies to boost participation

It’s National Wellness Month! 3 strategies to boost participation

June is National Wellness Month. Which gives you the perfect entree to make a push for greater participation in this key health cost-cutter.

The good news is there are a slew of resources out now to help you make that appeal.

In fact, there’s a brand new study out that can help your company zero in on the best practices your peers are tapping to get the most from their wellness initiatives.

Check out some of the key findings out of the “2011 National Employee Wellness Month Employee/Employer Survey,” conducted by Virgin HealthMiles, to see how they can shape your own program.

Click Here for the entire article including the three useful strategies to boost participation!

UnitedHealth enters drug benefits business

NEW YORK | Thu Jun 9, 2011 5:57pm EDT (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group is pushing into managing pharmacy benefits, bucking a trend among U.S. health insurers and threatening the dominance of the three largest companies that help negotiate drug pricing.

Rivals WellPoint and Aetna have sold or outsourced prescription drug benefits. UnitedHealth -- the largest U.S. health insurer by market value -- has signaled it is moving in the other direction to seek new growth.

The company is seen as likely to take over the $11 billion drug benefits business it outsourced to No. 1 benefits manager Medco Health Solutions.

And well before that partnership expires next year, UnitedHealth's OptumRx unit is winning union and municipal contracts. It is now targeting employer accounts, including those who use its competitors' health insurance plans.

OptumRx CEO Jacqueline Kosecoff said in a recent interview the company is "very interested in the employer market and are getting very aggressive on bidding some very large accounts."

OptumRx's facilities are running at 50% capacity, giving it plenty of scope to bring the Medco business in-house, according to one analyst's estimate.

That alone would boost UnitedHealth earnings 3% in 2013, according to Sanford Bernstein analyst Ana Gupte, before profits from any other contracts the company might win.

Taking the Medco business would vault OptumRx's prescription volume by about 50% to over 500 million total annual prescriptions, according to Lazard Capital Markets. That would help close the gap with bigger players Medco, CVS Caremark and Express Scripts, giving UnitedHealth the scale to wrest greater drug discounts.

UnitedHealth Chief Executive Stephen Hemsley told an investor conference last week its business was "emerging as a preferred alternative to the three largest PBMs."

"It's an unexploited growth opportunity, given that they do have an asset that is capable of competing with the Big 3," said Brian Wright, an analyst with Citadel Securities, who covers both PBMs and health insurers.

Click Here for the complete article.

The state of employee benefits

What is it employers hope to accomplish most with their benefit plans this year?

• 39% said retaining employees
• 25% want to motivate existing employees
• 19% said attract new talent, and
• 17% want to reward existing employees.

Those figures come from the HR consultancy Employers Group, which recently conducted its 2011 National Workplace Benefits Survey. It polled more than 400 employers to determine the current state of employee benefits.

It shows which benefits are most popular among employers today — and can help you benchmark your own plan.

Of course, it’s no surprise that health insurance and retirement benefits top the list, but there may be a few surprises as you work your way to the bottom.

To see today's most popular benefits and the entire article click here!

Tip Tuesday! 4 things to say that’ll boost HRA participation

As you know, completing a health risk assessment (HRA) is one of the best first steps employees can take to start improving their health – not to mention lower your health insurance costs. But there are some common problems.

Employees are often reluctant to complete HRAs for three reasons:

• They’re unsure how completing an HRA will benefit them
• They don’t know how the info will be used, and
• They’re unsure what their employers’ motives are behind issuing the HRAs.

Employees are commonly concerned their answers will result in them paying higher insurance premiums.

Click Here to read the complete article.

Feds give retirement plans more breathing room

It looks like the Department of Labor (DOL) will give employers some relief when it comes to complying with its new retirement plan fee disclosure rules.

The effective date for sponsors to disclose all fees and expenses to participants of 401(k)-type plans will remain Jan. 1, 2012 for calendar-year plans.

But the DOL just issued a notice of its proposal to extend the applicability date of the fee disclosure rules in order to give plan sponsors more time to comply with the requirements.

Click Here to read the full article.

Summer hours: 2 benefits of this alternative to flex time

You’ve heard it a million times: Employees love flex hours. And for those employers leery about making a year-round commitment to flex scheduling, there is an alternative that’ll boost morale in the short term.

The alternative: A summer hours program.

It’s similar to a flexible work arrangement, with a few tweaks.

Two benefits of a summer hours program:

• It doesn’t require a year-long commitment, and
• It gives employees a chance to vacation and spend more time with their kids while school’s out, which is the time of year employees use flex hours most.

Click here to read the complete article.

Tip Tuesday! Natural Sleep Remedies for Adults

Sleep is recognized as an activity wherein the body is able to rest and recharge its lost energy from the day’s activities. Although it is a natural process for our body to sleep; some people are still experiencing difficulties when it comes to doing it. Because of this, sleep is even considered by many as luxury since not all people are able to attain it in an optimum level. This can be caused by many factors; nevertheless, one of the most common is due to insomnia. Nowadays, many people are suffering from this type of disorder. Insomnia is defined as the inability of a person to fall asleep or maintain it. According to statistics, more than 50 million Americans are dealing with sleep disorders such as insomnia. Fortunately, there are still some things or methods that we can use or do in order to alleviate or eliminate insomnia. Below are some of the effective natural sleep remedies for adults that are considered great treatments for insomnia.

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Aetna Life Essentials - A value added program, not insurance.

There's an old saying that life insurance isn't for the dead - it's for the living. So why shouldn't you be able to take advantage of resources and services available through your coverage while you're living? Aetna Life Essentials is not insurance. It's a program that, in addition to death benefits, gives you access to resources you may need during your life, at the end of your life and after you've passed away, to help the ones you love. To learn more about the Aetna Life Essentials program available to you, visit their site here.

Study Predicts How Much Health Costs Will Rise In 2012 | HR Morning

How much are you anticipating your healthcare costs to increase next year? 

PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) Health Research Institute estimates that healthcare costs will increase 8.5% in 2012 — and that’s on top of the 8% increase PwC says employers will endure this year.

Those figures come from the organization’s annual survey of medical cost trends. Participants included 1,700 companies from 32 industries, in addition to hospital executives and health plan actuaries.

Link: Read the whole article from HR Morning

Tip Tuesday! Your Weight: Success for Life

Be a calorie-burning machine!

Unused calories are stored in the body as fat. Most days, you can help avoid creating this surplus by eating sensibly and exercising.

But, how about giving yourself an added kick of calorie burning? You can do that by sprinkling more movement throughout your day — in addition to your regular workouts. If you're trying to maintain or lose weight for good health, these seemingly small moments may be a big help.

See tips for how to set your average day in motion.

Link to Article: Website United Healthcare | Healthy Mind, Healthy Body

Discover more information and resources at myuhc.com^®.

Have a great Tuesday!

Your Firm’s Chance to Weigh In On Healthcare Reform | Sumbit Comments to IRS | Deadline June 17, 2011

The IRS wants to hear your thoughts on one of the most controversial provisions in the healthcare reform law: the shared responsibility mandate. But you don’t have much time to respond. 

Employers have until June 17, 2011, to submit public comment to the IRS.

Commonly referred to as “Play or Pay,” the shared responsibility provision would require firms with at least 50 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees to pay a penalty if they fail to offer FTE workers healthcare coverage – or if they offer coverage that’s unaffordable or doesn’t provide minimum value, starting in in 2014.

Link to Article on CFODailyNews.com

Why the New ADA’s an Even Bigger Pain than You Thought | HR Morning

The new ADA substantially expanded the pool of employees who might be classified as disabled. But there’s more: It will also affect how you handle FMLA leave and potential GINA violations. As you know, the new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADAAA) recently expanded the definition of “disability,” meaning more people than ever qualify as disabled.

But that expansion has also affected other employment laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the Genetic Non-Discrimination Act (GINA).

Here’s a look at just how the new ADA will affect your dealings with the FMLA and GINA, courtesy of Robin E. Shea of Employment and Labor Law Insider.

With More Topics About:
Family and Medical Leave Act
Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act

Link: Read Whole Article Here at HR Morning