Dear Subscriber,
Amazing news. Life is returning to a new normal, in a great way.
I was concerned with what attendance levels would be like for in-person events after the past 2 years. We've been lucky enough to pull off some great (in person) events when COVID allowed, but attendance has been lower and many cancelling last minute. I'd like to say we are great planners, in getting these events to happen when most other events were not even considered, but really we just got just lucky.
We held live seminars in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver in Sept 2020 and then another in Toronto in 2021. Attendance was lower, protocols were higher, but they went off very well with great feedback.
So... as we worked towards our March 30th event in Toronto, I took the cautious root of doing a smaller workshop style event, not knowing how many might attend. In less than 2 weeks, we are essentially sold out, and I could not be more pleased. We are going to plan to do a repeat of this on October in both Calgary and Vancouver in October, so watch for registration to open. I look forward to seeing many of you at these events.
On another positive, we have over 85% of members on Slack now. This is where the real support and solutions happen, so if you're not on yet, get on, or ask me for help.
Want an example? This happened at 8:30 EST Friday and ended within about 15 minutes (before insurers are even answering c/s lines :-). I've clipped parts to shorten.
Advisor 1: Ontario based client has QC plan member who works in Ottawa, and uses an ON dentist. The carrier is having issues with that and claims payments are being impacted. Does anyone know if other carriers are ok with this arrangement?
Advisor 2: Maybe ask if you can have them send them in manually rather than EDI. Could just be a tech issue, over a payment issue. Not ideal, but maybe a workaround?
Advisor 3: I've run into many claims issues being here since a ton of QC residents cross the border to work in Ottawa. Usually it's a matter of fee guide....some carriers go by "province of member residence", and others go by " province of service rendered". So sometimes you'd have a carrier adjudicating based on the QC fee guide when the member is charged at point of sale according to the ON fee guide.
Advisor 2: sometimes think UN-tech is the work around, especially in this environment (legacy mainframe systems) Maybe request a change in province of residence vs business location. Even the “Benefit” (under 20) app has this option.
Advisor 1: Thanks. just checked their completed master app and they did select "employee province of residence".
Advisor 4: My experience in Ottawa is exactly the same as. We sometimes have issues as to which fee guide the claim is being adjudicated on. Usually the carrier then lets us make a decision for the adjudication rule that will apply to the whole policy - adjudicate based on where services are rendered vs. employee province of residence. It's very common for these QC residents working in Ottawa to have their dentist near their place of work in Ottawa.
Where else can you get this kind of support?
Dave |
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OUR EVENTS
CGIB COFFEE CHATS
Coffee chats are like a virtual breakfast. Log in, ask questions, share problems, seek solutions and talk about what's on your mind. Best done from a computer, with a camera and a microphone. No CE credits, but also no cost, just show up.
Thursday March 31st @2pm (EST) Tuesday April 12th @ @2pm (EST) Monday May 2nd @ 2pm (EST) ____________________________________________________________
BREAKFAST MEETINGS CGIB no longer runs the breakfast meetings, but supports the initiative of the volunteers that do.
Please find the details for your closest location below. Ajax, Cambridge, London, Markham, Oakville, St Catherines, Toronto, Vancouver Island, Windsor or the Virtual National Meeting
Virtual meetings through Zoom may be utilized until COVID19 passes. Please contact the event champions to be added to their lists, and receive more info.
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LOOKING FOR PEOPLE
Share your info and we'll post it here. ____________________________________________________________ Upcoming CGIB Events:
Toronto Plan Admin Checklist & Legal update workshop
Building and Using a Plan Administration CheckList workshop with the an employers in house lawyer to share their perspective.
Hold the date for these upcoming events, and watch for details HERE.
Toronto Seminar - Wednesday October 5th - FULL-DAY Agenda to be determined
Calgary Seminar - Tuesday October 18th Plan Administration Checklist & Employment Law Workshop - TBC
Vancouver Seminar - Thursday October 20th Plan Administration Checklist & Employment Law Workshop - TBC |
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GET ON SLACK
The CGIB SLACK channel is a great place to pose questions, share info and learn a ton from your fellow members. The info and discussions that are posted there are unlike anywhere in the industry. Sadly, about 15% of CGIB members are still missing out on all the info being shared. Others have not taken a look at all the documents, videos and information available in MEMBERS ONLY to make their life easier.
NOTE TO ALL SLACK USERS: We now have 40+ channels in Slack to handle different topics. Please take a moment to add these channels to your menu. To do so, just click on the + next to Channels on the top left. Browse the channels and then click JOIN to add each of them. By doing so you won’t be missing some really great info. |
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...and now for something a little bit (not completely) different!
Watch upcoming newsletters and the website for our all new podcast.
Canadian Group insurance Brokers is pleased to work with Business Career College to produce a quarterly podcast of all things benefit related. Jason Watt and Dave Patriarche will interview benefit advisors and those that work in the space including; insurers, TPA's, PBM's, pharmaceutical companies and anyone who plays an important role in group insurance plans.
Stay tuned for details and a schedule of speakers and release dates. |
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SUGGESTED READING
We think the information contained below is of great value and encourage you to read the articles and check out the events that interest you. In most cases, these articles and events are not run by CGIB, so please contact the organizers for more information. We take no responsibility for the websites, events, organizations or their content. |
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I’m pleased to inform you that Insurance Journal Publishing Group is offering you and your team 30% discount on a one-year subscription to PRO Level. Please follow these steps to subscribe: - GO on https://insurance-portal.ca/prolevel/
- Click on “I WANT TO GO PRO”
- Enter your email address and password
- Choose the annual payment method
- Enter your credit card information and click on validate
- Enter the Promo Code : CGIB30 and confirm (please note that you have until April 1st, 2022 to use this code)
Important : Please take note of the following before you proceed with the subscription: · The promo code will no longer be valid after April 1st, 2022. You must use it prior to this date · You must choose the annual payment option · The discount is only valid for the 1st year. At the time of the renewal, the full price will be charged. · The subscription is not refundable, you must click on the APPLY button to change the price when you enter the promo code before you CONFIRM ____________________________________________________________
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PRESCRIPTION DRUG MANAGEMENT EXAMINED
RISE IN DISABILITY CLAIMS ANTICIPATED With employers across the country working on their post-pandemic planning, many are also anticipating a sharp rise in their disability claims. With that in mind, how is disability management evolving to help get employees back to work quickly, says a Telus Health ‘Benefits Hub.’ Mental health concerns have overtaken musculoskeletal issues as the top driver of disability claims, it says, with more than half of Canadians saying COVID-19 has had a negative impact on their mental wellness. Making things worse, 24 per cent are unable to access support or treatment. These, and other concerning mental health trends, are driving more disability claims. While claims on the physical wellness side were down during the first year of the pandemic, new claims drivers may emerge from poor ergonomics for home-based workers and pre-pandemic concerns that were left untreated or undertreated because of reduced access to physicians, physiotherapists, diagnostic resources, and surgeries. Delayed surgeries and other interventions will also have an impact on how quickly employees can return to work, with some estimates saying it may take well over a year to clear the surgery backlog across the country. The old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure is particularly appropriate when it comes to rethinking disability management, it says.
EMPLOYERS NEED DISCONNECT POLICY Employers with 25 or more employees have until June 2 to have a written policy on disconnecting from work in place, says a Hicks Morley ‘FTR Now.’ It says the employment standard act (ESA) defines “disconnecting from work” to mean “not engaging in work-related communications, including eMails, telephone calls, video calls, or the sending or reviewing of other messages, so as to be free from the performance of work.” This definition is not exhaustive and other types of work-related communications could also fall under it. Among other things, it says whether an employer has 25 or more employees as of January 1 is a point-in-time assessment, meaning that if the employer has fewer than 25 employees as of January 1 then the ESA does not require it to have a policy in place for that year, even if that number increases to 25 or more after January 1. Conversely, if an employer has 25 or more employees as of January 1 and that number decreases later within the same year, the requirement to have a policy in place still exists throughout the remainder of the calendar year. However, the “obligation to have a policy does not require an employer to create a new right for employees to disconnect from work and be free from the obligation to engage in work-related communications in its policies” as employee rights under the ESA to not perform work are established through other ESA rules (e.g. hours of work and eating periods, vacation with pay, public holidays). A policy may afford employees a greater right or benefit than under the ESA and may be enforceable along with other ESA rules. It applies to all employees in Ontario that are captured by the ESA, including management, executives, and shareholders if they are employees under the ESA. However, an employer can have a different policy (or different sections of the same policy) for different groups of employees.
COVID-19 STRESSED HEALTHCARE SYSTEM The COVID-19 pandemic has put incredible stress on the healthcare system, says Dr. Arif Bhimji, medical consultant to Medavie Blue Cross. Speaking at its ‘Disability Disrupted: How Innovation is Improving Access to Care’ session, he said prior to the pandemic, the healthcare system was operating at 85 to 90 per cent capacity at all times. However, with COVID-19, the focus of care was shifted because of the excessive demands on the system. One result was that all elective procedures were cancelled. There was a reprieve when COVID cases came down and hospitals were able to go back to doing some of those other things. But COVID has come in waves and “we’ve seen opening and closing of all of these different services,” he said. People still need their cataract surgeries, he said, they still need their MRIs and they still need cancer diagnoses, but they can’t get access to the system. This backup is going to take anywhere between seven and 10 years to clear up, he said. The reason is capacity. “We only had 10 per cent capacity for these before so we can really only increase the number of elective surgeries by about 10 per cent,” said Bhimji, “so it’s going to take anywhere from seven to 10 years to catch up unless we build any more capacity. Unless more money is spent to change the system, “we will continue to fall behind with respect to these non-urgent surgeries.” And “there is no easy fix. It takes about 10 to 12 years to become a specialist as a physician. It takes five to seven years to build an addition to a hospital. That’s a long time. “So we are all going to continue to face some very significant challenges in our system,” he said.
NOVA SCOTIA SWITCHING FROM BIOLOGICS The government of Nova Scotia has started switching certain biologic drugs covered under the provincial Pharmacare program to biosimilar versions, says an Eckler ‘Group News.’ The move follows similar changes in other Canadian jurisdictions, including British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, and New Brunswick. The switch to biosimilars includes drugs such as Humira, Enbrel, Remicade, Lantus, Humalog, NovoRapid, and Rituxan used to treat conditions like diabetes, Crohn’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriasis. While biosimilars have been used in the province’s Pharmacare program since 2016, over 5,000 Nova Scotians in the program are currently on biologics that will need to be switched. Pharmacare beneficiaries will have 12 months to work with their healthcare providers to switch to the biosimilar version of their drug. The government expects to save an estimated $13 million annually once the switch is fully implemented. With the trend of more Canadian jurisdictions switching to biosimilars for cost relief, it is anticipated that private plans may also adopt similar initiatives to expand the use of biosimilars to support sustainable costs.
MENTAL HEALTH DISABILITY RISES During the second year of the pandemic, mental health-related disability significantly rose among employed Canadians, says Statistics Canada. Using data from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and the Canadian Income Survey, it found that more than one-fifth (21.5 per cent) of individuals employed during the first four months of 2021 had a physical, mental health, cognitive, or other disability. The figure was a 2.7 per cent-point increase over the previous year (18.8 per cent), which continued a long-term rising trend linked to population aging and other reasons. From 2019 (6.4 per cent) to 2021 (7.3 per cent), the proportion of employed people with a mental health-related disability climbed by 2.3 percentage points (8.7 per cent). Young women had the highest frequency of mental health-related disability among those employed in 2021, with 17.2 per cent of working women between the ages of 16 and 24 saying they were affected. That was a 7.6 per cent increase from the previous year, the biggest growth among the major demographic groupings. “Given the change in labour market conditions from 2019 to 2021, particularly large scale employment losses related to the pandemic, this increase was likely due mostly to an increase in the prevalence of mental health-related disability among those who were already employed, rather than an increase in employment among those with a disability,” it says. |
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Who invented the smartphone?
Well, certainly Alexander Graham Bell and Antonio Meucci and Edison and Tesla had something to do with it. And the folks at Fairchild. And Palm and Cisco and General Magic and countless others.
When we insist on waiting until it’s done before we share it, we walk away from the most important component of innovation.
My Take on Seths Post
Put another way... Get it out there. If I'd waited to have a perfect website, I never would have launched the one I did 20+ years ago. I'd still be tweaking, fixing and improving it. Instead, I posted it and moved on. Over time we made it better.
The work you do now, even if imperfect, counts. It keeps moving you towards a better product and offering. Just do it.
Curious at what my first site looked like in 2002? You can see it live here... |
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EDUCATIONAL EVENTS
ONLINE CE CREDITS
Looking for benefits dedicated online CE courses? Want to provide your admin and support staff with basic knowledge? Want to dig into something more detailed for your benefits/insurance business? Business Career College (BCC) has an extensive catalogue of online CE courses with a number of group benefits specific courses covering topics ranging from contractual concerns, plan designs, and underwriting requirements, to product specifics and integration with government benefits. Courses consist of narrated videos with short, online quizzes. The full catalogue includes over 60 courses, podcasts, and videos covering topics from the world of insurance, investments, financial planning, taxation, and ethics with a focus on technical content and real-world application. Courses are accredited for the maximum categories of credits and can include provincial Life and A&S credits, FP Canada, Advocis, and more! Use code CGIB on registration for your first three months free! ____________________________________________________________
The BC Insurance Council now offers online continuing education (CE) courses that are available for registration through Insurance Council’s online portal. Once courses are registered through the online portal, they can be accessed through the newly launched Learning Management System (LMS) with CE certificates ready for immediate download upon course completion.
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10 Trends Shaping the Future of Health Care in Canada
Thursday, March 17, 2022 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. EST
You’re invited to join CADTH for the launch of our 2022 Health Technology Trends to Watch report.
CADTH’s annual trends watch list offers insight into the health technologies that are likely to disrupt the delivery of health care in Canada over the next 2 to 3 years. Join us for a special event with leading experts who will discuss the changes these trends could usher into the practice and economics of health care. Our speakers will also reflect on the growing importance of horizon scanning and how decision-makers can use forward-looking information and evidence to prepare for the new realities of health care.
___________________________________________________________ PHARMACY ROLE IN CHRONIC HEALTH EXAMINED ___________________________________________________________ CHANGING LANDSCAPE EXAMINED ‘The Changing Risk Landscape: Trending Solutions for Plan Sponsors’ is the focus of a Benefits Breakfast Club session. The presenters will explore several chronic diseases and discuss their impact on patients and on benefit plans, plus what insurers, advisors, and plan sponsors can do to proactively work with patients to detect these conditions early and manage them for optimal health outcomes. It takes place March 24.
___________________________________________________________ RETURN FROM DISABILITY EXAMINED ___________________________________________________________ A New Era of Innovation As the pandemic has profoundly altered our lives and our society,it has also brought about unprecedented innovation and stakeholder collaboration. What lessons have we learned, and how do they impact the benefits and pharma industries? What can we do today to create a better post-pandemic future for the health and well-being of Canadians?
AboutGIPC: The Group Insurance and Pharmaceutica lCommittee(GIPC) was founded in 1997 as a joint educational initiative by representatives from the pharmaceutical and group insurance industries.
Join us April12 from 11:00 to 12:00 p.m. ET for a special GIPC event on industry innovation and the importance of collaboration in advancing employer-sponsored health benefits.
This event is FREE to attend.
Event Registration or visit www.gipc.ca ____________________________________________________________ Last year, Benefits Canada created Tech Insights as a platform for presenters to explicitly showcase the depth of their technological innovation. It’s a deeper dive into a product’s intricacies – and illustrates to attendees what makes an offering different and unique from other companies’.
Go shopping on Apr. 14 at this free event designed to show off the latest in benefits technology solutions for plan sponsors and/or their plan members. Attendees will learn about a variety of benefits products to help make the most informed decision possible.
Stay tuned for agenda announcements in the coming weeks. REGISTER NOW ___________________________________________________________
TOTAL REWARDS CERTIFICATE OFFERED ___________________________________________________________ Canadian Benefits Certificate Program - Online Course
offered by CPBI Ontario in partnership with the Human Resources Professionals Association
Starts: May 4, 2022 at 9:30 AM - Ends: May 13, 2022 4:00 PM
The Key to Attract and Retain Key Talent
Gain a clear understanding of Canadian Group Benefits. Benefits form an important part of an employee’s compensation program and play a valuable role in attracting and retaining key talent. Now you can get a comprehensive overview of benefit programs in Canada with this course.
What will I learn? After completing the certificate program, participants will have the skills and information required to:Understand the basics and develop better strategies Manage your programs more effectively Keep escalating costs under control
Price HRPA and/or CPBI Members: $1650 + Taxes Non-Members: $2060 + TaxesJoin CPBI-ICRA to save $410 now and much more! (regular membership $325 + taxes) ___________________________________________________________ For the past 18 years, the TELUS Health Annual Conference has been an industry-leading source of insight and trends across the private payer ecosystem.
Get the most up-to-date drug and benefits data trends for 2022, the latest developments in the industry and what it means for you. Review and implement plans that suit your customers’ ever-changing realities. Why attend? You’ll get... • Comprehensive data trends and national benchmarks • Informative and topical presentations on industry trends • Continuing education credits • Virtual networking opportunitie Save the date! (Registration will open in the spring, and an actual invite will follow.)
Join us on May 10 & 17, 2022* ___________________________________________________________ PAYROLL ASSOCIATION ROARS BACK The Canadian Payroll Association national conference will be offered in-person and virtually. ‘Roaring Back’ will feature speakers such as Andrew Au, the co-founder of Intercept, who will provide a real-time glimpse into how leading global organizations are redefining their future of work strategies and Anna Olson who will share her culinary journey. It takes place June 8 to 10 in Niagara Falls, ON. Information is at https://conference.payroll.ca/ ___________________________________________________________ June 21st at noon EST - Meeting details to follow.
Session: An Introduction To Managing Global Benefits This session is aimed at providing a starting block for advisors to start the conversation with HR professionals around managing global benefits. The session will cover the factors a company should consider when starting building out global benefits with a focus on the following themes; - Staying compliant
- Controlling Costs
- Managing colleagues expectations and curbing internal enthusiasm
- Implementing an appropriate strategy which will account for your business’ culture
- Creating a culturally aligned employee benefits program for a growing multinational workforce
Lewis Mosley - DIRECTOR Benefits Advisory Services Ltd Lewis is a Director and lead Global Consultant at Benefits Advisory Services Ltd. He has over 10 years’ experience working within the global employee benefits space, most of which have been spent advising North American multinationals on all aspects of their global benefits, from their first overseas hire’s benefit program in a new country to managing 30+ countries with merger & acquisition heritage. ___________________________________________________________
ClaimSecure is pleased to announce our 2022 eLearning series. Below is the schedule with the dates and times for the webinars.
We will be sending the registration links two weeks prior to each webinar.
The first webinar in our eLearning series will take place on March 16th, 2022 and the registration link will be provided to you on March 2nd, 2022.
We hope you will enjoy our 2022 eLearning series and we will look forward to your feedback. |
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Need help? Have questions? Looking for something?
Reach out to CGIB - Dave Patriarche - dave@cgib.ca - 905-886-9203 |
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