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Monthly Archives: January, 2016

  • Congrats to our sweet employee, Ashley Moldenhauer!

    ashley

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  • American Cancer Society Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines

    Who: Women of all ages, but particularly women above age 45, whether insured or not.

    When: On October 20, 2015, the American Cancer Society (ACS) published new guidelines for breast cancer screenings in the Journal of American Medical Association.

    What: The American Cancer Society updated its screening guidelines based upon new studies and recommends breast cancer screenings for most female adults. Guidelines for women with average risk are listed below:

     

    Women 

        Ages

     Previous  New
     20 to 39  Clinical Breast Exam every 3 years.  Clinical Breast Exams and Self-Exams are not
    recommended. Optional. Those who choose Self-Exams should receive
    instruction and have techniques reviewed periodically and
    report any changes to a care provider.
     40 to 44  Clinical Breast Exam, preferably
    every year.Mammogram, yearly as long as in
    good health.
     Clinical Breast Exams and Self-Exams are not
    recommended. Optional. Women should have the choice to start annual
    screening with mammograms.
     45 to 54  Clinical Breast Exam, preferably
    every year.Mammogram, yearly as long as in
    good health.
     Clinical Breast Exams and Self-Exams are not
    recommended.Mammogram, yearly.
     55 and
    Older
     Clinical Breast Exam, preferably
    every year.Mammogram, yearly as long as in
    good health.
     Clinical Breast Exams and Self-Exams are not
    recommended.Mammogram, every 2 years. Optional. Women should have the choice to continue
    annual screenings with mammograms if in good health
    and expected to live at least 10+ years.

     

    Women at increased risk may need a different testing schedule. Increased risk includes women who:

    1. Have a lifetime risk of breast cancer of 15% to 20% based on family history.

    2. Have a personal history of breast cancer, ductal carcinoma in situ, lobular carcinoma in situ, atypical ductal hyperplasia, or atypical lobular hyperplasia.

    Women at high risk should get an MRI with an MRI-guided breast biopsy and a mammogram every year. High risk includes women who:

    1. Have a lifetime risk of breast cancer about 20% to 25% based on family history.

    2. Have known BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation.

    3. Have a first-degree relative with the gene mutation and have not had genetic testing themselves.

    4. Had radiation therapy to the chest between ages 10 to 30.

    5. Have Li-Fraumeni syndrome, Cowden syndrome or Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba syndrome, or have first-degree relatives with one of these syndromes.

    The ACS guidelines should NOT be confused with the 100% preventive care cancer screening requirements mandated by the ACA. USPSTF recommendations are: A (strongly recommend), B (recommend), C (no recommendation), D (recommend against) and I (insufficient evidence). Grades A and B are ACA mandates requiring 100% coverage (no patient cost sharing).

     

    United States Preventive Services Task Force
    Breast Cancer Screening for Average Risks

     Women Ages

                 Current (October 2015)

    Draft Recommendations
    (2015 Review)

     Recommendation

     USPSFT
    Grade

    ACA
    Mandate 

    Recommendation

     USPSTF
    Grade

    ACA
    Mandate 

     Before
    50
     Mammogram

     Optional. Women
    should have the
    choice to start
    annual screening
    with mammograms.

    C

    No

     Mammogram
    during ages 40-49
    may be helpful. Optional. Women
    should have the
    choice to start
    annual screening
    with mammograms.

    C

    No

     50 to 74  Mammogram,
    every 2 years

    B

    Yes

     Mammogram,
    every 2 years

    B

    Yes

     75 and
    Older
     Mammogram

    I

    No

     Mammogram

    I

    No

     All
    Women
     Teaching
    self-exams

    D

    No

     3-D mammograms

    Clinical breast
    exam

    I

    No

     Clinical breast
    exam

    I

    No

     Dense
    Breasts
     Screening with
    ultrasound, MRI,
    or tomosynthesis

    I

          No

     

    Actions: Women may want to follow their preferred screening schedule with the recognition that some may not be covered by insurance. Plan sponsors should consult with their agent, broker, plan consultant, legal counsel, and/or Human Resources Department to determine if plan benefits for breast cancer screenings should follow ACS guidelines or the ACA preventive care mandates. In addition, state laws may require a different set of breast cancer screenings. Plans should also assure that their employee notifications properly inform plan participants of any benefits and any changes.

     

    The information presented and contained within this article was submitted by Ronald E. Bachman, President & CEO of Healthcare Visions and a contributor to the Client Community newsletter. This information is general information only, and does not, and is not intended to constitute legal advice. You should consult your legal advisers to determine the laws and regulations impacting your business. Any opinions expressed within this document are solely the opinion of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of Ebix or its personnel.

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  • Does Your Company Offer Competitive Paid Leave?

    Most U.S. employers aren’t required to offer their employees paid leave, but many do. According to the 2015 Employee Benefits research report by the Society for Human Resource Management(SHRM), more U.S. employers are offering paid leave benefits.

    For example, compared with 2014, more employers are offering:

    • Paid sick leave plans.

    • Paid parental leave.

    • Paid vacation time.

    • Paid personal days.

    As these numbers change, it’s important to review your own leave policies to ensure your offerings are competitive. Offering less paid leave than other companies in your industry or geographic area will make it harder for you to attract and maintain top talent.

    Top Paid Benefits

    According to the SHRM survey, the top paid leave benefit is paid holidays, which are offered by 98% of respondents. Other popular paid leave benefits include:

    • Paid bereavement leave, offered by 86% of respondents.

    • Paid jury duty above that required by law, offered by 67% of respondents.

    • PTO plan, offered by 53% of respondents.

    • Paid vacation plan, offered by 46% of respondents.

    The survey found the rate of companies offering PTO plans dropped in 2015 by 5 percentage points, while the rate of those offering paid vacation plans went up by 6 percentage points. Paid sick days went up, as well, with 42% of companies offering them in 2015, compared with 33% in 2014.

    Parental Leave

    Unlike most developed nations, the United States does not have a federal law that guarantees paid leave for working parents who have or adopt a child, says Melissa Burdorf, legal editor at XpertHR. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides some employees protections to take unpaid leave to care for a new child, but it doesn’t apply to every employee.

    And paid parental leave has become a hot topic in recent months, Burdorf says. For example, the Universal Paid Leave Act of 2015, introduced by the Council of the District of Columbia in October, would require employers to provide up to 16 weeks of paid family leave and 16 weeks of paid medical leave per year, and it’s expected to be approved.

    According to the SHRM report, more employers are offering paternity leave. In 2014, 12% of respondents said they offer paid maternity leave; in 2015, 21% said they do. Paid paternity leave and paid adoption leave both jumped from 12% to 17%. In addition, about 1 in 5 companies offers parental leave beyond what’s required by state and federal FMLA laws.

    State laws requiring paid leave insurance that can be used during parental leaves may be inspiring employers to provide more leave. In addition, big-name organizations have been providing high-profile new leave benefits for parents, as well. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, for example, recently announced that employees will be able to take up to 1 year of paid parental leave, starting in 2016. NetflixAdobe and Microsoft also have recently increased parental leave policies, Burdorf says.

    Unlimited Paid Vacation

    According to a recent survey by Accountemps, a Robert Half company, 30% of employees said that other than additional compensation, more vacation days led the list of things that would top their wish list for the coming year. More time off outscored “a better benefit plan, such as an enhanced health care plan,” scheduling flexibility and training. Unlimited paid vacation time — often seen as a Silicon Valley dream perk — is offered by less than 1% of companies, the SHRM survey found.

    Paid Sick Leave

    Paid sick leave also has been in the news lately as mandated paid sick leave is picking up at the local level. The number of jurisdictions mandating paid sick leave doubled in the past year, Burdorf says. At the federal level, President Barack Obama recently signed an executive order establishing paid sick leave requirements for federal contractors and has put the heat on Congress to pass the Healthy Families Act, which would expand paid sick leave protections to private industry, Burdorf says.

    The SHRM survey found that the percentage of companies that offer paid sick leave went up from 3% to 42% in the past year. In addition, 3% of employers offer unlimited paid sick leave.

    Paid Volunteer Time

    “There is a nice trend in Fortune 500 companies to use paid corporate international volunteerism programs to increase employee engagement,” says Paula Caligiuri, distinguished professor at the D’Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University. These paid-time-off opportunities can last weeks or months as employees volunteer their professional skills to non-governmental organizations in developing countries.

    As employers look for ways to attract and retain millennials, these kinds of programs can appeal to members of that generation who desire to work for organizations that have strong missions that match their own values. The programs help employers meet corporate social responsibility goals while dramatically increasing engagement, Caligiuri says.

    The SHRM study found that 21% of employers offer paid time off for volunteering. In 2014, 16% of employers offered these programs.

     

    Mary Ellen Slayter is CEO and Founder of Reputation Capital Media Services. She has more than 15 years of experience writing about HR and financial services as a journalist and marketer. Any opinions expressed within this document are solely the opinion of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of Ebix or its personnel.

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  • Mentoring May Benefit Women More than Men

    Mentoring can boost the careers of women — if they can find a mentor. Research from University of California Berkeley’s Haas School of Business associate professor Sameer Srivastava, PHD suggests women have more to gain from affiliation with a mentor than their male counterparts.

    Formal mentoring can build social skills and provide access to higher-status members of an organization, according to Srivastava. His recent study, published in the journal Social Forces, found that simply being publicly affiliated with a high-status mentor in a company appeared to benefit women more than it did men, apparently because the mentor affiliation resulted in a boost in visibility and a perceived legitimacy of the women’s career paths. As a result, Srivastava concluded, the women became more attractive as networking partners for colleagues.

    Although the study was small, involving 139 employees of a U.S.-based company’s software lab in China, it looked directly at the impact of a formal mentoring program.

    “Most mentoring research is based on cross-sectional surveys that are ill-suited to assessing whether formal mentoring programs actually work,” Srivastava explains. “The goal of this study was to provide more credible evidence about whether these programs can work, and if so, for which kinds of employees.”

    The mentoring program involved assigning employees to shadow more senior persons in another part of the organization for about 24 days over 2 to 3 months. Those being mentored worked on short-term projects and attended meetings with their mentors.

    The study also compared the mentored group to a control group of employees (who didn’t receive mentors) with similar past work performance and perceived potential for advancement. The results of the study showed those who were mentored – especially the women – developed far more social capital in their company. That suggests that formal mentoring may be a way to reduce gender inequality in the workplace, Srivastava concluded.

    However, there can be potential problems when it comes to the mentorship of women. Women may not have adequate opportunities in many organizations to either have or be career mentors.

    Research from Development Dimensions International (DDI), an international management consultancy firm, found the majority of mid- to senior-level businesswomen surveyed lacked workplace mentors.

    “A staggering 63% of the survey group never had a formal mentor,” said DDI Chief Executive Officer Tacy M. Byham, PhD. “Considering that 67% rated mentorship as highly important in helping to advance and grow their careers, this indicates a critical gap in businesswomen’s development.”

    The DDI survey, titled “Women as Mentors: Does She or Doesn’t She? A Global Study of Businesswomen and Mentoring,” involved 318 women in mid- and senior-level positions in 30 different industries across the globe. The results revealed that women don’t mentor other women for 1 primary reason: They are rarely asked to be mentors. However, 75% of the women executives queried said they always accept invitations to be a mentor in their organization and would mentor more often if given the chance.

    Other findings from the DDI research:

    • About half of the women surveyed said they welcomed the opportunity to help other women rise to the top of their careers.

    • Although 75% of the research participants reported that the time it takes to mentor affected their decision to accept mentorships, only 1% turned down mentoring because it interfered with other commitments.

    • Only half of the women surveyed work at organizations that sponsor formal mentoring programs.

    • Twenty percent of women in the study rated the quality of the formal mentoring training they received as high or very high. However, another 22% said they received no formal training at all in mentoring skills such as coaching and networking.

     

    – Sherry Baker is a health and medical journalist whose work has appeared in Psychology Today, Newsweek, Discover and many other publications. She is also the former Director of Public Relations for the Emory Heart Center. Any opinions expressed within this document are solely the opinion of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of Ebix or its personnel.

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