Strategic benefit planning is a management process that establishes overall objectives that form the basis for decision making on all elements of indirect compensation. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 and implications to tax-sheltered annuities are discussed. An example of a statement of university policy on employee benefits is appended. (MLW)

Discusses the matter of liability and insurance coverage of staff members when they are reporting about activities. (JK)

Harvard University has found that insuring its retiring faculty for long-term health care was too expensive, blocking implementation of its planned benefits program and potentially affecting the planning of many colleges. (MSE)

This fringe benefit plan saves money for both employers and employees, provides a better fit for employees' actual benefit needs, and allows employees to choose options from a menu of benefits. One option is a flexible spending plan. Employees place a portion of their before-tax income into a special account from which allowable expenses are paid…

As many court cases demonstrate, insuring against punitive damages is a complex issue facing school districts. Districts should secure competent legal counsel when purchasing liability insurance that specifically covers all potential punitive awards. (12 citations) (CJH)

Describes a 9-district, 750 employee self-insurance cooperative in northeast Missouri that achieved a $90,000 balance over claims in just 9 months of operation. Explains mechanics of plan operation including level of benefits, premiums, financial integrity, and results. (NEC)

A study shows that reemployment success--as measured by earnings of workers in a 1-year period following a spell of unemployment--was positively related to higher weekly unemployment insurance payments and longer periods of unemployment compensation. (Editor/HD)

This paper discusses the background and character of changes introduced by the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), examining post enactment responses by Congress, the states, and the courts. It explores the impact of the law on benefit use among immigrants, highlighting changes in usage among different…

Eleven federal agencies have established a multi-agency effort to increase enrollment of uninsured children in Medicaid and the state Child Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Noting that the cooperative efforts of agencies with jurisdiction over children's programs within the Department of Health and Human Services offer new opportunities for Head…

Dental disease is one of the most prevalent illnesses facing children in the United States today. Eighty percent of untreated dental disease in permanent teeth is found in roughly 25 percent of 5- to 17-year old children, most of whom come from low-income and other vulnerable populations. The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)…

This report assesses hardship among children of immigrants nationwide and in states with large immigrant populations (California, Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Texas, and Washington). Data from the 1999 National Survey of America's Families show that hardship is greater for children of immigrants than for the children of…

This study examined the enrollment process for the State Childrens Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) and the outcomes of that process. Data were collected during spring and summer of 2000 through telephone interviews with state program officials from eight states selected based on a variety of demographic and programmatic variables; the states were…

This booklet gives young people who are just starting out on their own with a small income the information they need to manage their money. The following topics are discussed: how individuals can determine how much money they will have to live on; how to read a pay stub; Social Security and the future; the importance of putting money in the bank…

This testimony before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget discussed Medicaid coverage of children with disabilities and the proposed Family Opportunity Act of 2000 that would create a new state option to allow parents who have a child with a severe disability or a potentially severe disability to purchase health care coverage for the child…

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) was designed in 1997 to support working families by providing affordable, quality health coverage for their children in an efficient, effective, and coordinated way. This report examines the progress made in implementing CHIP nationwide. Information sources included the following: (1) federal…