I see what we can do as colleagues and as friends to emerge even stronger, blazing a path to an improved future. This experience will forever change us, but I choose to see how that change can be for the better. I do know that my Phia family has shown exceptional resilience and grown stronger through this ordeal - our employees believe in each other and our collective future is bright. I hope that our webinars, podcasts and articles have helped you and your clients do the same in these bizarre times. We are here for you. Be well, and stay in touch.

Enhancement of the Quarter: Subrogation Value Reports

To the Phia Group’s valued recovery clients: rejoice! We have supplemented our already-extensive reporting suite to provide you with a brand new report. The Value Report is a new activity report that highlights recovery benchmarks for a particular group, or across your entire block. This report will provide the user with an easy-to-read summary of how much money The Phia Group has recovered for the client health plans, on a quarterly or yearly basis. The Value Report also contains metrics comparing this performance to The Phia Group’s entire book of business.

This new report presents as a clean, readable PDF; it can be run on-demand and is designed to give a comprehensive summary of the most valuable performance metrics, which can be an important retention and marketing tool for any user!

The Value Report will be added to our client-ready Tableau reporting suite, so recovery clients can run them as needed – and as with all our reports, they will be accurate as of the minute they were run.

Phia’s Latest Hire – Rebekah McGuire Dye, J.D.

Rebekah McGuire Dye was recently hired as the new Vice President of Client Solutions and Account Management with the Phia Group. Ms. Dye is leading the Phia Group’s client care service to the highest level of concierge client service ever established in the cost containment industry.

As a partner to clients’ senior leadership, Ms. Dye and her accomplished team provide an authentic level of customer caring to ensure every aspect of the Phia – client relationship is positive, productive and genuine.

Ms. Dye comes from a 25-year career with the largest cost containment provider in the industry. During her tenured career she has served over 150 health benefit providers in roles ranging from front line file handler to Group Vice President overseeing all Commercial subrogation operations for over 20 million benefit recipient lives. Her lengthy cost containment career, while focused on the Health Care line of business, also includes expertise in both Disability and Property & Casualty subrogation matters.

Ms. Dye is an active member of both IDS and NASP. You can find several published articles by Ms. Dye in the NASP Subrogator magazine and she is a frequent subject matter expert speaker on recovery matters.

While not pursuing cost containment endeavors, she is an avid reader, nature lover and family-centered person residing in rural Kentucky. Her favorite stewardship is serving as an elected member of the Nelson County Kentucky school board. Her passion for education and children make her an invaluable member of the Board.
 

Service Focus of the Quarter: Phia Unwrapped

Wrap, extender, and other leased networks offer small discounts and audit restrictions, affording providers nearly unlimited billing rights. With Phia Unwrapped, The Phia Group replaces wrap network access and modifies non-network payment methodologies, securing payable amounts that are unbeatably low, based upon fair market parameters.

Phia Unwrapped places no minimum threshold on claims to be repriced or potential balance billing to be negotiated. Additionally, The Phia Group attempts to secure sign-off, ensuring providers will accept the plan’s payment as payment in full. – and if there’s pushback or balance-billing, our Provider Relations team is ready to handle it.

Phia Unwrapped implementation entails setting up an EDI feed with the claims administrator, so claims are flagged, transferred, and repriced automatically. Phia Unwrapped is billed based on a percent of actual savings, leading to fair rates and no excessive costs for unprecedented savings.

Out-of-network claims run through The Phia Group's Unwrapped program yielded an average savings of 74% off billed charges (three times the average wrap discount). On average, The Phia Group sees roughly 2% of claims result in some form of balance-billing; these results are similar throughout many different plan types and geographies, proving that this program and these results can be replicated nationwide.

Contact our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, attorney Tim Callender, to learn more about Phia Unwrapped. Tim can be reached by phone at 781-535-5631 or by email at TCallender@phiagroup.com.
 

New Service Offered by Phia: Patient Defender

The Phia Group is proud to introduce its “Patient Defender” program. For a small PEPM fee, every plan participant has access to legal representation against lawsuits targeting patients, or crippling balances being sent to collections, when efforts to amicably resolve these disputes fail, Patient Defender is the ultimate weapon in the battle against abusive balance billing tactics. Best of all, Patient Defender can be coupled with any type of health benefit plan – from reference-based pricing plans to traditional network plans; if and when a patient is threatened by these increasingly aggressive tactics, Patient Defender will be there.

Patient Defender finally plugs the gap that has existed across the industry in relation to reference-based pricing programs and balance billing concerns. With Patient Defender, a small PEPM rate ensures that a trusted law firm is placed on retainer, ready and willing to assist the patient when balance-billing occurs. Health plans, TPAs, and brokers can now contain costs while knowing that patients have a legal advocate standing by.

To learn more about Patient Defender or any of The Phia Group’s services, please contact our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tim Callender, Esq., at 781-535-5631 or tcallender@phiagroup.com.


Success Story of the Quarter: Managing COVID-19

We have all heard enough about COVID-19 to last a lifetime, but in this difficult time, this quarter’s success story is designed to thank you for your contribution to stopping the spread of the virus.

We have been asked – or ordered – by our various governments to practice social distancing, or even true quarantining. This is neither easy nor convenient; the economy is suffering and many are getting laid off from their jobs, but humans are facing a dangerous threat against which we must unite.

This success story is ongoing. The Phia Group has committed to enabling all employees to work remotely to avoid the need to congregate in an office, to ensure that our valued clients and the industry can keep functioning as normally as possible, and we thank you for whatever actions you have taken to help stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

We wish you all good health.
 

Phia Case Study: Outpatient Detox Negotiation

A health plan utilized the Phia Unwrapped service, allowing out-of-network claims at the rate of 150% of Medicare. This plan did not use a large national network, but instead used a narrow, regional network (which was less expensive and yielded better discounts, since each provider was afforded greater steerage).

One particular out-of-network substance abuse provider billed $2,900 per day for outpatient detox, which is many times what Medicare would allow. The plan’s TPA had tried to secure a direct contract multiple times, but each time the provider stalled the conversation, and once the statutory timeframe to pay was about to toll, the provider denied the attempts to contract and forced the plan to pay the claim or watch its member be balance-billed.

When the matter was escalated to The Phia Group, the Provider Relations team leveraged certain data as well as innovative arguments and tactics to yield a result where the provider agreed to a flat fee of 175% of Medicare per day.

In just the first few weeks since this negotiation was finalized, the plan has already saved over $22,000.

Fiduciary Burden of the Quarter: The Black Box

Whether it’s Usual and Customary, Maximum Allowable Charge, billed charges (GASP – why?!) or a network rate, or something else entirely, health plans obviously need to pay some amount for claims. That much is obvious. What is not so obvious, however, is how some plans and administrators come up with these amounts. We have seen many instances of the “black box” approach, where a number goes in one side and another number comes out the other, with no indication of how that repricing was performed; what’s worse is when neither the SPD nor the EOB provides any indication of what the repricing is based on.

New York, for one, has historically taken issue with this approach. ERISA favors extreme transparency, as do state laws. ERISA provides a self-funded health plan with an extremely wide latitude to structure benefits however it chooses, as long as the plan explains what it’s going to do.

New Service Offered by Phia: Patient Defender

The Phia Group is proud to introduce its “Patient Defender” program. For a PEPM fee, every plan participant has access to legal representation against collections lawsuits or crippling balances being sent to collections before legal action ensues. Patient Defender is a key tool in the battle against abusive balance billing tactics. Best of all, Patient Defender can be coupled with any type of health benefit plan – from reference-based pricing plans to traditional network plans; if and when a patient is threatened by aggressive tactics, Patient Defender will be there.

To learn more about Patient Defender or any of The Phia Group’s services, please contact our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tim Callender, Esq., at 781-535-5631 or tcallender@phiagroup.com.

Phia Fit to Print:

• BenefitsPro – Expanded paid sick leave requirements under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act – March 17, 2020

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – Utah Goes To Mexico - A First For The Drug Importation – March 3, 2020

• BenefitsPro – The 'cost of care' contradiction – February 25, 2020

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – A Case Study In Savings: How The Phia Group is Offering Employees Free Healthcare – February 6, 2020

• BenefitsPro – Changing perceptions of health benefits, one pregnancy at a time – February 4, 2020

• BenefitsPro – California’s new FSA notice requirement not so clear – January 14, 2020


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From the Blogosphere:

• EMPLOYERS BEWARE: Handling Employee Absences Resulting from Coronavirus Quarantine. Facts you should know about this pandemic.

• New Insight on Provider Surprise Billing. These state-based laws have limited applicability.

• I Got a Fever, and the Only Prescription is More Transparency. Another transparency-minded federal rule is getting some push back.

• “Incur”-aging a Review of the Term “Incurred.” Make sure you know the meaning of this word when it comes to your plan documents and stop-loss policies!

• What Happens to a Health Plan during a Merger or Acquisition? There are typically three types of transactions when it comes to mergers and acquisitions.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Webinars

• On March 30, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “COVID-19: The CARES Act & Workplace Safety FAQs,” where we discussed the impact of this historic federal legislation on our industry and answer your questions about workplace safety.

• On March 23, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “Special Edition - The Phia Group and COVID-19 FAQs Answered,” where we addressed the COVID-19 pandemic and the industry's most frequently asked questions.

• On March 10, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “The Top 10 of 2020: Cost Containment Measures to Implement Right Now,” where we discussed the cost-containment measures they encounter most frequently, and tell some success stories, some horror stories, and how you can make the best decisions for your clients’ bank accounts.

• On February 12, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “Double Dose: Revisiting Rx Drugs and Answering Your Questions,” where we took a deeper dive on the topic of Rx drugs, tackle the difficult questions asked in last month’s webinar, and help plans protect themselves while staying ahead of the curve.

• On January 21, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “A Dose of Savings – Addressing Drugs, PBMs, and the Controversies Surrounding Them,” where we discussed the Rx trends to watch for, the biggest threats to health plans, cost-containment strategies to implement, political efforts underway, and an injection of information you can’t do without.

Be sure to check out all of our past webinars!

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Podcasts:

Empowering Plans

• On March 31, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “COVID-19: Provider & State Impact,” where our hosts, Kelly Dempsey and Brady Bizarro discuss the unique responses we have seen from individual states and providers while evaluating their impact on the self-funded industry.

• On March 19, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “COVID-19: Latest Updates & Legislation,” where our hosts, Ron Peck and Brady Bizarro discuss the latest developments related to COVID-19, the impact on the self-funded industry, and review the contours of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which guarantees free coronavirus testing for all Americans as well as an expansion of paid sick days for a subset of workers.

• On March 11, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “COVID-19 Preparedness: What Self-Funded Plans Should Be Doing Right Now,” where our hosts, Brady Bizarro and Jennifer McCormick discuss the recent outbreak of COVID-19 (coronavirus), and provide insight into how you should be preparing, what concerns you should have about your benefits documents, and how to navigate applicable law.

• On March 6, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “Debating the Debates,” where our hosts, Ron Peck and Brady Bizarro assess candidates’ (and EX-candidate’s) proposals, and what it all means for our industry.

• On January 31, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “Care Where? Care Everywhere!,” where our hosts, Adam Russo and Ron Peck interview industry legend, Ernie Clevenger, regarding CareHere, LLC, the future of consumer-centric medicine, technology – and most importantly – the MyHealthGuide newsletter!

• On January 24, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “Taking the Stage in 2020,” where our hosts, Ron Peck and Brady Bizarro discuss the first Democratic debate of 2020 and the latest ruling from a federal appeals court on Obamacare.

• On January 3, 2020, The Phia Group presented, “Free Health Benefits at Phia,” where our hosts, Adam Russo and Ron Peck discuss the different tactics used to offer Phia's employees FREE health benefits!

Be sure to check out all of our latest podcasts!

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The Phia Group’s 2020 Charity

At The Phia Group, we value our community and everyone in it. As we grow and shape our company, we hope to do the same for the people around us.

The Phia Group's 2020 charity is the Boys & Girls Club of Metro South.

The mission of The Boys & Girls Club is to nurture strong minds, healthy bodies, and community spirit through youth-driven quality programming in a safe and fun environment.

The Boys & Girls Club of Metro South (BGCMS) was founded in 1990 to create a positive place for the youth of Brockton, Massachusetts. It immediately met a need in the community; in the first year alone, 500 youths, ages 8-18, signed up as club members. In the 25 years since, the club has expanded its scope exponentially by offering a mix of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) nationally developed programs and activities unique to this club. Since their founding, more than 20,000 Brockton youths have been welcomed through their doors. Currently, they serve more than 1,000 boys and girls ages 5-18 annually through the academic year and summertime programming.

Youth of the Year

Each year, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South holds a competition to award the most prestigious honor that a teenager can receive as a member of their local Boys & Girls Club. The Youth of the Year award is the Boys & Girls Club signature effort to foster a new generation of leaders, fully prepared to live and lead in a diverse, global and integrated world economy.

One of these lucky kids will be awarded a $5,000 scholarship and a new laptop, courtesy of The Phia Group. Good luck to all of these amazing students and we wish you the very best in your future endeavors!

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The Stacks

Utah Goes To Mexico - A First For The Drug Importation

By: Brady Bizarro, Esq. – March 2020- Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

Much ink has been spilled about prescription drug importation as a strategy for combating America’s exorbitant drug prices. Despite this practice being technically illegal, many self-funded plans have engaged in it for years without facing any repercussions. With Congress and the Trump administration still unable to agree on a drug pricing reform bill, these programs will almost certainly become more widespread. As they proliferate, they are likely to attract more scrutiny from the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), which, although it has rarely enforced the law in this area, has recently taken action against vendors engaged in drug importation. One large insurer, the state of Utah, has become the first to deliberately adopt a type of drug importation program which is much less likely to attract the attention of the FDA and might serve as a roadmap for other self-funded plans in search of relief.

Click here to read the rest of this article

A Case Study In Savings: How The Phia Group is Offering Employees Free Healthcare

By: Philip Qualo, J.D. – February 2020 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

The Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Phia Group, LLC, Adam V. Russo, Esq., made an announcement at our most recent Christmas party that caused a reaction that could be heard all throughout the New England region. An overwhelming explosion of applauses, screams, and in some cases, tears and sobs, shook the entire venue as the CEO described a major milestone that made Phia history. What was this groundbreaking announcement? The Phia Group has joined the ranks of only a handful of employers in the United States that offers free healthcare… yes… FREE… healthcare coverage to their employees! Despite astronomical increases in healthcare and prescription drug costs throughout the nation, and soaring insurance premiums, Phia now offers free healthcare coverage to all employees who have been enrolled in the group health plan for a period of time. We did this without raising out-of-pocket costs or employee contributions!

Click here to read the rest of this article

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Get to Know Our Employee of the Quarter:
Cindy Monfils

In addition to her daily tasks, Cindy has been coming into the office to handle all faxes & outgoing mail to ensure the company is functioning as normal. In addition to helping with the annual Phia Forum, she helps to manage all aspects of The Phia Group’s office. Cindy comes in on weekends and helps with other tasks such as painting and putting together chairs. Cindy goes out of her way to make Phia a great place to work. She is a phenomenal asset to the company, and The Phia Group’s transition into working remotely would not have gone so seamlessly if it weren’t for her.

Congratulations Cindy, and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

Phia News

Celebrating 20 Years of Empowering Plans!

On February 10, 2020, The Phia Group celebrated 20 years of being in business! The Phia Group was founded in Adam Russo’s basement in February of 2000. Since that time the company has grown beyond any dream that Adam could have imagined. It is hard to believe how fast 20 years have passed, but we are looking forward to many more years of success!

The PACE Certification program will educate you using 3 distinct chapters of information:

Chapter One
Explore the ins and outs of self-funding while learning about its risks and rewards. This chapter will transform any individual into a self-funding pro.

Chapter Two
Take a deeper dive into the laws that apply to self-funded plans. We cover it all, from federal preemption to adverse benefit determinations and appeals.

Chapter Three
Explains what PACE is, what PACE does, and how it's obtained, implemented, and utilized.

The PACE Certification Program is free of charge and will create immense value for your organization. By going through the Certification program, you, or a select person, or team, within your organization, can become PACE Certified. Once PACE Certified, the Program participant(s) will become highly educated PACE business owners and will serve to assist your organization in growing your PACE business, enhancing your PACE revenue, and assuring your appeals processes are the most compliant and best in the industry. Those who complete the Certification will also receive a PACE Certification Fact Sheet, providing an easy to understand summary of the content and best practices covered, which will allow you to maximize the lessons learned within your business.

Additionally, the PACE Certification program provides education on self-funding in general, claims and appeals regulatory education, and overall best practices surrounding fiduciary duties, claims, and appeals.

Please see the PACE Certification flyer, as well as this video for more information.

Please contact Michael Vaz (mvaz@phiagroup.com) for more information.

Job Opportunities:

• Plan Drafter

• Case Investigator

• Claim Recovery Specialist III

• Consulting Attorney

• Claim and Case Support Analyst

See the latest job opportunities, here: https://www.phiagroup.com/About-Us/Careers

Promotions

• Zachariah John has been promoted from Manager, Applications Development to Sr. Manager, Applications Development

• Igor Senic has been promoted from Accounting Administrator to Senior Accounting Administrator • Ulyana Bevilacqua has been promoted from Supervisor, PGC to Manager, Drafting Services

• Andrew Fine has been promoted from Intake Specialist to Team Lead, Intake

• Cara Carll has been promoted from Manager of Claim Evaluation to Manager of Claim & Case Support

• Lisa Decristoforo has been promoted from Team Lead of Case Evaluation to Team Lead of Case Evaluation and Customer Service

• Ashley Hoey has been promoted from Team Lead of Customer Service & Claim Analysis to Team Lead of Claim Analysis and Claim & Case Support

• Kelly Dempsey has been promoted from Director, Consulting and ICE Services to Vice President, Consulting

• Kelsey Dillon has been promoted from Claim and Case Support Analyst to Senior Claim & Case Support Analyst

• Ulyana Bevilacqua has been promoted from Supervisor, Drafting Services to Manager, Drafting Services

• Lauren Radley has been promoted from Manager, Drafting Services to Director, Drafting Services

New Hires

• Rebekah McGuire-Dye was hired as the VP, Client Solutions and Account Management

• Josh Jones was hired as a Claim Recovery Specialist IV - BI

• Timothy Pope was hired as a Provider Relations Attorney

• Jessica Riley was hired as a Sr. Administrative Assistant

• Hollan Holm was hired as an Attorney I

• Laura Pickett was hired as a Sr. Claims Recovery Specialist

• Julia Goyette was hired as a Legal Intern

• Nick Frederick was hired as a Claim Recovery Specialist IV - BI

• Daniel Scalzi was hired as a Case Investigator I

• Brad Tramontozzi was hired as a Manager of Talent Acquisition

• Kori Watkins was hired as a VP, Project Management Offices (PMO)

• Mitch Hilbert was hired as a Claims Specialist, Provider Relations

• Larry Moffett was hired as a Claims Specialist, Provider Relations

• Jessica Dunn was hired as a Plan Drafter

Superbowl Festivities

The Phia family held its famous Superbowl Sunday pride party the week before Superbowl Sunday, and we had a great turnout this year! With all of the great gear, our Phia family wore this year, we got a great picture that you can check out below. Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs on their big win!

Candy Heart Contest

We set up a little contest at the front desk for Valentine's Day and asked everyone to guess how many candy hearts were in the jar! The winner was Samantha Cox with a guess of 258 candy hearts. There were a total of 267 candy hearts in the jar. It’s hard to believe that all of those pieces of candy fit into that tiny jar!
 

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I just had a passion to offer more than what was being offered at that time. I was 26, living in my mother’s basement, and basically had nothing to lose. We never got a loan, never had investors, never hired top talent - we couldn’t afford anyone!  What we had was a determination to have fun, disrupt and innovate. What we created after 20 years still boggles my mind.  I want all of you to know how much I appreciate the friendships, the loyalty and the collaboration we have built together. I will never forget where I came from or how I got here - thank you. Happy reading and I hope you all have an amazing 2020.  I know we will. 

We Are Proud to Announce: Free Health Benefits for Phia Employees & Their Families

The Phia Group, LLC is pleased to announce that with the ringing in of the new year, it will be offering FREE HEALTH BENEFITS to employees and their families.  Specifically, plan participants that have been enrolled in the plan for five or more years will be enrolled in January of 2020 and have zero contribution or premium; 100% of the cost of their and their families’ membership is paid for by The Phia Group. Further, no plan participant’s contribution rate will increase in 2020.

This remarkable achievement is made possible thanks to the application and utilization of cost containment measures developed and provided by The Phia Group to the self-funded health benefits community, and proactive efforts on the part of its own plan membership to be educated, and cost-conscious “consumers” of healthcare.

Adam V. Russo, remarked – in response to those that believe cost-shifting the burden of rising healthcare costs onto employees is inevitable – that, with the right tactics in place, health benefits can be affordable and employees do not need to bear the burden of an inefficient health plan.  “If our approach to health benefits didn’t work,” Adam continued,“… could we afford to maintain our contribution levels, year after year?  Could we continue to offer benefits with no co-pays or deductible?  The answer is no.”

Ron E. Peck, explained, “Our mission is to ensure health benefits are robust and affordable for hard-working Americans.  Very few people work as hard as our own employees, so providing them with the best, most affordable benefits is us living our mission.”

“We are very proud to be able to offer our employees and their families the types of benefits they’d only see at a very small number of businesses, nationwide;” Adam concluded.

Service Focus of the Quarter: Plan Appointed Claim Evaluator® (PACE)

Some years ago, in response to growing industry concerns over fiduciary duties and appeals, The Phia Group created its Plan Appointed Claim Evaluator (PACE) service. PACE is a risk-sharing service for final-level internal appeals. It is designed to help ensure Plans and their TPAs made correct determinations in response to appeals, thereby insulating the health plan from liability and allowing the Plan Administrator to focus on its core business rather than difficult fiduciary determinations.

PACE includes:

• Plan Document and stop-loss policy “Gap Reviews” ensure compliance, eliminate coverage gaps, and ensure PACE readiness;

• Advanced-level webinars exclusively for PACE clients;

• Assessment of eligible final internal appeals resulting in a written directive; and,

• Unsurpassed legal analysis, clinical review, and access to URAC-accredited IROs (and PACE covers all external review costs).

We also now offer complimentary PACE Certification – with which your organization can enhance your PACE business, improve your internal appeals processes, ensure regulatory compliance, and improve your operation as a whole.

Chapter One of PACE Certification explores the ins and outs of self-funding; Chapter Two takes a deeper dive into the laws and regulations applicable to self-funded health plans; Chapter Three explains what PACE is, how it works, and how it can best be utilized.

To learn more, contact Michael Vaz at mvaz@phiagroup.com or 781-884-4971.

Phia Case Study: Claim Negotiation & Signoff (CNS) 

The Phia Group was asked to negotiate a high-dollar claim on behalf of a self-funded health plan sponsored by a non-profit religious order. The charges totaled just over $100,000.00, and repricing yielded a Medicare rate of only $7,500.00 (a mark-up of over 1300% over Medicare). To compound the situation, the plan document had not been updated since the early 1990s, and had very weak language governing payment for out-of-network claims.

One of The Phia Group’s negotiators noted that the hospital bore the same name of the religious order of which the patient was an ordained member. After some investigation, Phia learned that this religious order was the very same that founded the hospital nearly a century ago.

In the initial outreach to the provider, we explained the claim’s metrics and equivalent Medicare rate; it was our hope that even without strong plan language or unloading our newfound argument regarding the member’s relationship to the hospital, the hospital would recognize the importance of settlement. Unfortunately, the provider was largely unresponsive to our efforts. After over a month of constant persistence in the form of calls, e-mails, and faxes, we finally received an offer from the provider to accept 35% off of billed charges. While not the smallest discount, that payment still would have constituted almost 900% of the applicable Medicare rate, and our client was not inclined to accept the offer.

In crafting a response, we got a little creative, and quoted some language directly from the “history” section of the hospital’s website. This patient, we noted, is a member of the religious order that founded this hospital back in 1922, and which transformed it into a hospital for children in 1936. That the hospital was now seeking almost 900% of the applicable Medicare rate from one of its founders seemed unreasonable and disingenuous. We also quoted a study that found that the average charge for an out-of-network claim in the state was 176% of Medicare; through this figure, we were able to base our client’s counteroffer in a concrete metric, even though the plan’s cost-containment language left much to be desired.

Ultimately, the provider agreed to accept our offer of 176% of the Medicare rate, and close its file. By going the extra mile, The Phia Group was able to save its client over $88,000; since the Plan Document didn’t have strong cost-containment language, the Plan would have legally been on the hook for the vast majority of it, had this settlement not been achieved.

Fiduciary Burden of the Quarter: New Denial Reasons on Appeal

It’s not uncommon for health plans to realize, while adjudicating a claimant’s appeal, that the initial denial reason was incorrect or incomplete. That’s one major function of appeals – to let a claimant identify that the denial reason is inapplicable. For instance, if the initial Adverse Benefit Determination denies a claim on the basis that the service is experimental, the claimant may appeal and present evidence that the claim is not in fact experimental. The fiduciary, when reviewing the appeal, may realize “whoops – this claim should have been denied for lack of medical necessity, but we used an experimental code by mistake!”

The result is generally that the fiduciary will still deny the appeal, but write that the claim is denied for medical necessity, rather than being experimental. The appeal is a request for additional benefits, but if additional benefits are not payable for some other reason that was not written in the initial denial, then the appeal should still be denied. Health plans often do not consider this to be a “separate” or “new” denial – but legally, it is.

Considering appeals to have been exhausted despite having provided a new denial reason effectively leaves the claimant with no opportunity to appeal that new denial for medical necessity. Courts have iterated that this is contrary to the intent and requirements of ERISA, which are designed to ensure that claimants are afforded the opportunity to appeal an adverse benefit determination. An appeal denial with a reason not previously given for that particular claim’s denial is therefore considered to be an initial adverse benefit determination all over again, even if given as part of a second-level appeal.

In short, any time a new denial reason is given for an existing claim, the claimant has the right to appeal that denial reason.

This could in theory create an absurd situation where the plan must accept many different appeals for the same claim – but to avoid that, we would suggest that the plan list all its denial reasons in the initial denial, when possible. That way, the plan can ensure that it does not need to respond to multiple unnecessary appeals, and also that a claimant is not strung along with the undue burden to appeal multiple times to try to get a straight answer out of her health plan.

Success Story of the Quarter: Balance-Billing at its Best!

The Phia Group was presented with a balance-billing claim from a client of Payer Compass’ INNOVATE360 service, for which The Phia Group provides back-end balance-billing support. This particular claim was billed at $1.57 million; the health plan allowed 150% of Medicare, which was about $289,000. The balance, billed in full to the patient, was nearly $1.3 million.

The TPA had been told prior to The Phia Group’s involvement that the maximum “discount” the provider would allow was 15%. Understandably, this payor would not accept that, and instead engaged The Phia Group to try to resolve this claim to alleviate the balance-billing. The payor was potentially willing to pay additional money to settle the claim, but certainly not the amount the provider was demanding.

The Phia Group engaged the provider, and right off the bat, attorney Rob Martinez unloaded all the arguments he had in his arsenal. They included arguments based on the ID card, the plan document, the hospital’s financial assistance policy, detrimental reliance, and more – and on a more personal note, the fact that this hospital was sending bills to its supposedly valued patient for $1.3 million.

Amazingly, the hospital conceded that Rob’s arguments were sufficient to extinguish the balance. The account was awarded a zero balance, and poof – just like that – Rob “the Magician” Martinez made a $1.3 million balance-bill disappear.

New Service Offered by Phia: Patient Defender

The Phia Group is proud to introduce its “Patient Defender” program. For a small PEPM fee, every plan participant has access to legal representation against lawsuits targeting patients, or crippling balances being sent to collections, when efforts to amicably resolve these disputes fail, Patient Defender is the ultimate weapon in the battle against abusive balance billing tactics. Best of all, Patient Defender can be coupled with any type of health benefit plan – from reference-based pricing plans to traditional network plans; if and when a patient is threatened by these increasingly aggressive tactics, Patient Defender will be there.

Patient Defender finally plugs the gap that has existed across the industry in relation to reference-based pricing programs and balance billing concerns. With Patient Defender, a small PEPM rate ensures that a trusted law firm is placed on retainer, ready and willing to assist the patient when balance-billing occurs. Health plans, TPAs, and brokers can now contain costs while knowing that patients have a legal advocate standing by.

To learn more about Patient Defender or any of The Phia Group’s services, please contact our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tim Callender, Esq., at 781-535-5631 or tcallender@phiagroup.com.

Phia Fit to Print:

• BenefitsPro – COBRA can be complicated: What to watch for – December 4, 2019

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – ACA Enrollment By The Numbers! Administration's Attempts To Stall The ACA At Work? – December 1, 2019

• BenefitsPro – Trending therapy options: Gene and stem cell therapy for self-funded plans – November 22, 2019

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – ACA Round-Up for 2020: Items Affecting Employer-Sponsored Group Health Plans – November 5, 2019

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – The Tower of Babel-Talking Heads Talking Past Each Other – October 4, 2019

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From the Blogosphere:

• Washington’s “Surprise” Billing Law Goes Into Effect – January 2020. One less surprise you’ll have to worry about.

• New Transparency Rules Released, But Will They Last? A proposed rule to bring transparency to hospitals near you.

• Theories v. Practicality: The Simplest Answer is Often the Best! The easiest path to third party recovery.

• Happy (Almost) New Plan Year! Preparing your plan documents for 2020!

• Battle Lines Drawn over Medicare for All in the Latest Democratic Debate. Is there truly a cure for our healthcare system?

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Webinars

• On December 17, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “A Perfect Vision for 2020,” where we review the issues, topics, and innovations of 2019 that we believe will impact 2020, as well as the strategies you need to implement now to conquer the coming year.

• On November 13, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Plan Language, Rx, and Lawsuits to Watch (and File): Innovation for a Changing Industry,” where we discuss innovative programs to manage vendor fees, balance-bill litigation, Rx manufacturer assistance, and other ideas being proposed by players in the industry.

• On October 17, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “2020 Forecast - Storm Clouds, Clear Skies, and the Issues that will Dominate Next Year,” where we discuss the issues that impacted 2019, and are poised to dominate 2020, including (but not limited to) Mental Health Parity, Paid Leave, Health Insurance Taxes, Drug Prices, Regulations, and Coupons.

Be sure to check out all of our past webinars!

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Podcasts:

Empowering Plans

• On December 19, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Medicare Podcast for All” where our hosts, Ron Peck and Brady Bizarro, pick apart Elizabeth Warren’s Medicare-for-All proposal, and the concept as a whole; the good, the bad, and the really bad.

• On December 11, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Preparing Your Plan Document for 2020,” where The Phia Group’s Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Ron E. Peck, and Senior Vice President of Consulting, Jen McCormick, sit down to discuss the top-rated topic chosen by Phia’s webinar listeners. Make sure you tune in to find out what Ron and Jen have to say about plan documents and learn the do’s and don’ts when it comes to reviewing and updating your plan document in 2020!

• On November 21, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “The Young & The Restless,” where our hosts, Adam Russo and Brady Bizarro sit down with Craig Clemente, Chief Operations Officer at Specialty Care Management and outgoing Chairman of the SIIA Future Leaders Committee, to discuss the future of the committee and the many ways they intend on engaging the younger generation.

Face of Phia

• On November 15, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Shauna Makes a Comeback,” where our hosts, Adam Russo and Ron Peck, sits down with Shauna Mackey, The Phia Group’s Associate General Counsel. Tune in to learn more about Shauna and her experience with both public and private healthcare throughout her pregnancy and delivery.

• On November 4, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Battling Balance-Billing,” where our hosts, Adam and Ron, interview Lyneka Hubbert, a Medical Claim Negotiator here at The Phia Group.

• On October 16, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Reminiscing on Memories with Mrs. Marsh,” where our hosts, Adam and Ron, interview Jen Marsh, our Client Satisfaction & Quality Control Manager.

Tales From the Plan

• On October 24, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Translating Phia’s Benefit Plan,” where our hosts, Adam Russo and Ron Peck, interview The Phia Group’s Human Resources Manager, Linda Pestana. Learn how Linda was able to navigate our health plan and negotiate with a provider to make her son’s hearing aids affordable.

Be sure to check out all of our latest podcasts!

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The Phia Group’s 2020 Charity

At The Phia Group, we value our community and everyone in it. As we grow and shape our company, we hope to do the same for the people around us.

The Phia Group's 2020 charity is the Boys & Girls Club of Metro South.

The mission of The Boys & Girls Club is to nurture strong minds, healthy bodies, and community spirit through youth-driven quality programming in a safe and fun environment.

The Boys & Girls Club of Metro South (BGCMS) was founded in 1990 to create a positive place for the youth of Brockton, Massachusetts. It immediately met a need in the community; in the first year alone, 500 youths, ages 8-18, signed up as club members. In the 25 years since, the club has expanded its scope exponentially by offering a mix of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) nationally developed programs and activities unique to this club.

Since their founding, more than 20,000 Brockton youths have been welcomed through their doors. Currently, they serve more than 1,000 boys and girls ages 5-18 annually through the academic year and summertime programming.

Angel Tree

Each year employees of The Phia Group pick nametags from the Angel Tree that sits in our main lobby. On those tags are names, ages and the wish lists of children from The Salvation Army. This year we had over 130 nametags! The Phia family loves to give back to the community; our greatest joy is providing these children with all of their holiday wishes.

Christmas Came Early

The Phia Group had the pleasure of bringing Christmas joy to the Boys & Girls Club of Metro South. Adam Russo and his helpers passed out hundreds of gifts to over 130 children. We hope these children enjoy their new toys as much as they enjoyed spending time with Santa!

2019 Kennedy Service Award

Adam and Kelly Russo were honored with the 2019 Kennedy Service Award last week at the 2019 Great Futures Gala hosted by The Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro South. Check out the link below to see highlights from this unforgettable night! To learn more about this award, please visit

Thanksgiving Dinner Delivery

The Phia Family was out and about the week of Thanksgiving, delivering Thanksgiving dinners to the families of The Boys and Girls Club of Metro South! Additionally, our Phia Family in Idaho was out and about spreading the same cheer to five families in the Boise area. Check out the great picture we were able to get from that special night! We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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The Stacks

ACA Enrollment By The Numbers! Administration's Attempts To Stall The ACA At Work?

By: Chris Aguiar, Esq. – December 2019 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

With headlines focused on collusion, corruption, impeachment, and a wall being erected in Colorado, much of the political discourse in 2019 has avoided Healthcare Reform. In contrast, 2017 and 2018 featured many headlines with the current Administration doing everything within Its power to make good on a touchstone of Its 2016 campaign platform; President Trump and the Republican Party pushed for repeal and replacement of Barak Obama’s crowning achievement, the Affordable Care Act. When they were unable to garner the votes, the President utilized powers outside the control of Congress to weaken key parts of the Law designed to ensure the viability of the Insurance Marketplace, as well as keeping the American public in the dark regarding enrollment by virtually defunding marketing efforts. Many feared these tactics would encourage disengagement of the young and healthy, demographics crucial to maintaining a balanced risk pool covered by the Marketplace. Did it work?

Click here to read the rest of this article  

ACA Round-Up for 2020: Items Affecting Employer-Sponsored Group Health Plans

By: Corrie Cripps – November 2019 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

During this open enrollment season, plan sponsors of group health plans should be aware of any Affordable Care Act (ACA) changes that may affect the design and administration of their plans.

The case Texas v. United States is the ongoing litigation challenging the constitutionality of the ACA. A decision on this case is expected at any time from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals (“Fifth Circuit”). Any decision appears likely to be appealed to the Supreme Court. Whether or not the Supreme Court will take the case depends on how the Fifth Circuit rules. If the Supreme Court does not take the case, the Fifth Circuit’s decision will remain the law; however, the agencies will most likely need to issue regulatory guidance on how they interpret the decision.

Click here to read the rest of this article

The Tower of Babel-Talking Heads Talking Past Each Other

By: Ron E. Peck, Esq. – October 2019 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

As the 2020 Presidential Election draws closer, the topic of healthcare continues to dominate the airwaves. Be it media or debate, this is one of the (if not the) issue about which everyone is talking; but pay close attention and you’ll notice they aren’t all speaking the same language.

One word everyone can agree upon is “affordability.” The issue, however, is that depending upon whom you ask, what it is that ought to be “affordable” differs. Some people throw the term “access” around, while others seek affordable “care,” whilst still others focus (candidly) on affordable insurance.

Click here to read the rest of this article

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Phia’s 2019 Speaking Engagements:

• 1/9/2019 – FMMA Conference – Austin, TX

• 2/27/2019 – Sunlife 2019 MVP Academy – Denver, CO

• 3/8/2019 – UnitedAg Conference – Anaheim, CA

• 3/19/2019 – SIIA Self-Insured Health Plan Executive Forum – Charlotte, NC

• 3/21/2019 – CGI Business Solutions Seminar – Woburn, MA

• 3/26/2019 – HFTPA Broker Meeting – Tyler, TX

• 4/3/2019 – BenefitsPRO Broker Expo – Miami, FL

• 4/5/2019 – Pareto Conference – Nashville, TN

• 4/7/2019 – Captive Symposium – Cayman Islands

• 4/8/2019 – National Beer Wholesalers Association Legislative Conference – Washington DC

• 4/12/2019 – FMMA 2019 Annual Conference – Dallas, TX

• 4/23/2019 – Johns Hopkins Industry Education Series – Baltimore, MD

• 4/24/2019 – Sunlife 2019 MVP Academy – Kansas City, MO

• 4/25/2019 – BevCap’s Best Practices Workshop – Orlando, FL

• 4/26/2019 – Society of Professional Benefit Administrators Annual Conference – Washington, D.C.

• 5/2/2019 – MassAHU Benefest 2019 Conference – Westborough, MA

• 5/14/2019 – Cypress Unversity – Las Vegas, NV

• 5/30/2019 – Contrarian Captive – Austin, TX

• 6/11/2019 – Leavitt Conference – Big Sky, MT

• 7/16/2019 – HCAA TPA Summit – Dallas, TX

• 7/31/2019 – 2019 MVP Academy – Wellesley, MA

• 8/20/2019 – Pritchard & Jerden Employee Benefits Forum – Brookhaven, GA

• 9/17/2019 – WebTPA Annual Confernece – Dallas, TX

• 9/19/2019 – Employee Benefits Planning Association Conerence – Seattle, WA

• 9/30/2019 – SIIA National Educational Conference & Expo – San Francisco, CA

• 10/27/2019 – 2019 Annual NASP Conference – Washington DC

Phia’s 2020 Speaking Engagements:

• 1/30/2020 – SunLife MVP Academy – San Diego, CA

• 1/31/2020 – 2020 Kairos Risk Management Summit – Phoenix, AZ

• 2/13/2020 – Artex Risk Solutions Conference – Orlando, FL

• 2/18/2020 – HMIG Producer Advisory Counsil – Amelia Island, FL

• 3/9/2020 – CICA Captive Conference – Palm Springs, CA

• 3/12/2020 – SunLife MVP Academy – Kansas City, MO

• 3/26/2020 – TABA Spring Conference – Woodlands, TX

• 4/26/2020 – Berkley Captive Symposium – Caymen Islands

• 6/10/2020 – Leavitt Conference – Big Sky, MT

• 6/18/2020 – SunLife MVP Academy – Kansas City, MO

• 7/14/2020 – HCAA TPA Summit – St. Louis, MO

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Get to Know Our Employees of the Quarter:
Igor Senic & Desireé Erskine

Desireé is always going above & beyond to help everyone in the company. From trying to fix the fax machines & printers, sending out all of the mail when we are short-staffed at the front desk, to setting up a computer at a coworker’s home & driving them to and from work. She does all of these extra things while being the main component of the OP department. Desireé is an extremely hard worker who has passion and truly cares about this company.

Igor has worked so diligently over the past year in Accounting and it is well deserved. He has come up with multiple enhancements to improve and benefit the Accounting department.

A few examples:

(1) He has stepped up and has become someone on the team that the others can come to for assistance, ask questions, and resolve issues. (2) He set up training for the new Kentucky claims recovery specialists to make sure they are more comfortable with the Accounting payment process, along with trainings for the other accounting team members. (3) His knowledge of OP has helped make the OP payment processing more efficient & he was part of updating the OP payment process from processing payments individually to being able to process multiple payments at one time.

Congratulations Desireé (pictured above) and Igor, and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

Get to Know Our Employees of the Year:
Megan Colter & Joanna Wilmot

Megan joined our team as a Consultant in 2018. Since that time Megan’s duties have expanded to include final reviews of plan document checklists, assessments and SBC services. Megan has also been very helpful in training and mentoring new employees. Megan always makes sure the client’s expectations and deadlines are met. She has been staying late and/or working from home and her effort is appreciated. Megan is a pleasure to work with and we are happy she is part of our team!

Joanna is an exceptional example of a model employee. Her kindness, loyalty, enthusiasm, and dedication are only a few of the reasons why she deserves an employee of the year title. She is never short of energy which she selflessly offers to the team, her work product, and our clients.

She is dedicated and hardworking. Over the course of this year she reviewed, audited and revised each process to maximize efficiency and productivity. Specifically, our clients continue to ask for customized approaches, reports, and notifications. Most recently a TPA client requested a tailored notification process for when a mutual client was being onboarded by a partner vendor. Joanna not only went out of her way to build a notification process for this TPA but she also immediately implemented this process for all clients. This is an example of the personal touch and consistency she exemplifies every day. Building a sense of community is important to Joanna as well. For Thanksgiving she organized a team-building and community give back opportunity for PACE. This shows she not only cares about her team, but about her community and the team’s contribution to the community.

Congratulations Joanna & Megan, and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

Phia News

PACE® Certification Is Making Waves

The PACE Certification program will educate you using 3 distinct chapters of information:

Chapter One

Explore the ins and outs of self-funding while learning about its risks and rewards. This chapter will transform any individual into a self-funding pro.

Chapter Two

Take a deeper dive into the laws that apply to self-funded plans. We cover it all, from federal preemption to adverse benefit determinations and appeals.

Chapter Three

Explains what PACE is, what PACE does, and how it's obtained, implemented, and utilized. The PACE Certification program is free of charge and will create immense value for your organization. By going through the Certification program, you, or a select person, or team, within your organization, can become PACE Certified. Once PACE Certified, the Program participant(s) will become highly educated PACE business owners and will serve to assist your organization in growing your PACE business, enhancing your PACE revenue, and assuring your appeals processes are the most compliant and best in the industry. Those who complete the Certification will also receive a PACE Certification Fact Sheet, providing an easy to understand summary of the content and best practices covered, which will allow you to maximize the lessons learned within your business.

Additionally, the PACE Certification program provides education on self-funding in general, claims and appeals regulatory education, and overall best practices surrounding fiduciary duties, claims, and appeals.

Please see the PACE Certification flyer, as well as this video for more information.

Please contact Michael Vaz (mvaz@phiagroup.com) for more information.

Ugly Sweater Contest

The Phia family held its famous ugly sweater contest the week before Christmas, and we had a great turnout this year! With all of the great sweaters, it was a close race for finding the person with the ugliest sweater, but once we tallied up all of the votes, we found a winner. Congratulations to Rob Jolly, who is pictured below in the brown bear getup!

Halloween at Phia

Phia had its annual Halloween costume competition in late October. There were a lot of great costumes on display, but we could only choose one winner. Congrats to Ben Mooney, the homeless man with a passion for healthcare!

Candy Corn Contest

We set up a little contest at the front desk and asked everyone to guess how many candy corn! The winner was Andrew Fine, and the total count was 408. Andrew guessed that there were 402 pieces of candy corn. It’s hard to believe that all of those pieces of candy fit into that tiny jar!

Job Opportunities:

• PACE Specialist

• Administrative Assistant

• Staff Attorney – PGC

• Health Plan Documentation Specialist

• Claims Specialist, Provider Relations

• Manager, Talent Acquisition

• Case Investigator I

• Data / ETL Analyst

• Provider Relations Client Concierge

• Vice President of Client Solutions and Account Management

• Human Resources Compliance Specialist

See the latest job opportunities, here: https://www.phiagroup.com/About-Us/Careers
 

Promotions

• Bethany LaChance has been promoted from Case Investigator to Claim Recovery Specialist III

• Dylan Fry has been promoted from Case Investigator to Senior Claim Recovery Specialist

• Allison Britton has been promoted from Case Investigator to Legal Assistant

• Brenna Jackson has been promoted from Legal Assistant to Senior Claim Recovery Specialist

• Jiyra Martinez has been promoted from Customer Service Representative to Senior Claim Recovery Specialist

New Hires

• Diane Mcauley was hired as an Executive Assistant

• Arianna Hibbard was hired as an Executive Assistant

• Robert Jolly was hired as a Claim And Case Support Analyst

• Jessica Grande was hired as an Intake Specialist

• Alyssa Campbell was hired as a Case Investigator

• Elizabeth Painten was hired as a Human Resources Assistant

• Corey Crigger was hired as a Provider Relations Attorney

• Joshua Farley was hired as a Provider Relations Attorney

• Cole Wagner was hired as an Accounting Assistant

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Service Focus of the Quarter: Unwrapped and CNS

We have all witnessed instances of abusive provider billing. When imposed upon a self-funded health plan, the effects seem most disastrous. To combat this, some groups have migrated to a no-network, full reference-based pricing model. While that is ideal for some groups, it is still a small minority of plan sponsors who are willing or able to bear the risks associated with a full reference-based pricing program.

A more traditional way of combating high claims is one-off claim negotiations. The Phia Group calls this our Claim Negotiation & Signoff service (or CNS). Through this service, The Phia Group puts its legal team and expert negotiators to work, to combine legal expertise with objective cost data to obtain case-by-case negotiations with medical billers. A comprehensive set of data helps determine market-based prices, to put payors on a level playing field with their members’ medical providers, and secure written payment agreements that avoid balance-billing.

The Phia Group proudly boasts a 51% average discount off billed charges on claims within the CNS service. Unlike CNS, however, Phia Unwrapped is anything but traditional. Wrap, extender, and other leased networks offer small discounts and audit restrictions, affording providers nearly unlimited rights. With Phia Unwrapped, The Phia Group replaces wrap network access and modifies non-network payment methodologies, securing payable amounts that are unbeatably low. Phia Unwrapped places no minimum threshold on claims to be repriced or potential balance billing to be negotiated, and The Phia Group attempts to secure sign-off, ensuring providers will accept the plan’s payment as payment in full.

Out-of-network claims run through The Phia Group's Unwrapped program yielded a whopping average savings of 74% off billed charges (three times the average wrap discount in 2018). On average, The Phia Group sees roughly 2% of claims result in some form of balance-billing; these results are similar throughout many different plan types and geographies, proving that this program and these results can be applied nationwide.

Contact our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, attorney Tim Callender, to learn more about CNS or Phia Unwrapped. Tim can be reached by phone at 781-535-5631 or by email at TCallender@phiagroup.com.

Phia Case Study: Frightening ASA Provisions

The broker of a self-funded benefit plan was presented with an Administrative Services Agreement (or ASA), by which the prospective TPA would administer claims for the health plan. The broker presented our consulting division with the Administrative Services Agreement to review, as a matter of ordinary diligence. This review was focused on a holistic approach, rather than any particular provisions that were previously identified as troublesome.

Upon reading the ASA, The Phia Group’s reviewer noticed a provision relating to the network, which provided that the plan would be required to pay certain types of claims despite issues with medical necessity or experimental status. This ASA essentially rendered those important Plan exclusions unusable, which, needless to say, is a problem.

Among other issues to address within the ASA, The Phia Group placed a great deal of emphasis on that provision when providing the client with the review, and the broker was grateful that this matter was brought to light. This is especially important from a stop-loss perspective; it’s tough to know how exactly a given carrier will treat a particular situation without a discussion, and this language within the ASA couldn’t be discussed until it was identified.

With the information provided by The Phia Group, the broker and group were able to discuss the matter with the TPA and reach a resolution favorable to all parties involved – and the plan no longer had to worry that its ASA required it to pay claims that stop-loss would almost certainly deny!

Fiduciary Burden of the Quarter: Ensuring Proper Application of OOP Limits!

The Department of Labor has explained that amounts that must be applied to an individual’s out-of-pocket maximum do not (but may, at the plan’s option) include “premiums, balance billing amounts for non-network providers, or spending for non-covered services.” A claim subject to reference-based pricing, as opposed to one subject to a contract with a provider, necessarily entails an out-of-network claim. Thus, according to the DOL’s original interpretation, balance-billed amounts resulting from non-network reference-based pricing are not included in the individual’s out-of-pocket cost limitations.

Subsequently, however, the DOL got wind of this whole reference-based pricing phenomenon, and altered its stance a bit. According to the regulators:

“…a plan that utilizes a reference-based pricing design (or similar network design) may treat those providers that accept the reference-based price as the only in-network providers and not count an individual’s out-of-pocket expenses for services rendered by other providers towards the MOOP limit only if the plan is using a reasonable method to ensure adequate access to quality providers at the reference price.”

In other words, it’s still the case that a patient’s OOP does not include balance-billed amounts – but that’s only if the plan “is using a reasonable method to ensure adequate access to quality providers at the reference price.” Our interpretation of that has been that reference-based pricing is still alive and well according to the DOL – but a given RBP plan must count balance-billed amounts toward patient OOP unless the plan provides patients options to avoid balance-billing. The DOL has not elaborated on what those options may be, but a reasonable interpretation is that contracts of any kind would work. Some plans choose to use a full PPO and only use RBP for out-of-network claims; other plans use a narrow network; others choose to sign contracts with certain choice facilities to provide their members with safe options; others still opt to sign no contracts whatsoever, but are sure to settle claims on the back-end to avoid balance-billing.

Whatever option you choose for your RBP plan, make sure you’re following the regulations! One important fiduciary duty of a Plan Administrator is to accurately calculate member OOP – and when it comes to reference-based pricing, that can get tricky.

Success Story of the Quarter: Overpayment Recovery

The Phia Group’s overpayment department was presented with a file whereby the TPA identified a claim that was overpaid to a medical provider; the overpayment reason was that Medicare was primary on the claims, but the TPA placed the self-funded health plan as primary in error. The plan had paid $76,000. The TPA knew that the plan would need to pay something as secondary, but certainly not its entire allowable. Further, the TPA had concerns that the group and its broker would hold the TPA responsible if the money couldn’t be recovered.

The Phia Group’s overpayment experts reached out to the provider, and initially were given the cold shoulder. After continuous communication with the provider and making sure to stay on the hospital’s radar, eventually the claim was escalated to the hospital’s CFO. After a series of lengthy discussions, the hospital’s CFO finally agreed to resubmit the claims to Medicare, but only agreed to refund the Plan the portion of the claim that was not in fact payable by Medicare, effectively treating the plan as secondary up to the full, billed charges.

At that point, one of The Phia Group’s attorneys contacted the hospital’s CFO, in an attempt to explain that even though the self-funded health plan pays secondary to Medicare, the health plan’s allowable amount is defined within the Plan Document, and is not the full billed charges. After The Phia Group’s overpayment team went back and forth for many weeks and explained the plan’s language numerous times the CFO seemed to understand.

Ultimately, it was revealed that Medicare paid the claims in question at the rate of $58,000. Because the plan’s allowable was the original $76,000, the plan paid the difference of $18,000 as secondary, but was refunded the $58,000 that Medicare paid as primary.

The moral of this story? If you find that money has been overpaid, The Phia Group can help you recover it! Contact our Vice President of Sales and Marketing, attorney Tim Callender, to learn more about The Phia Group’s overpayment recovery services. Tim can be reached by phone at 781-535-5631 or by email at TCallender@phiagroup.com.
 

Phia Fit to Print:

• Free Market Healthcare Solutions – You Have the Right to Know the Price – March 10, 2019

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – The Self-Funded Case-Back To Basics – March 8, 2019

• BenefitsPro – How close are we to a federal paid family leave law? – March 6, 2019

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – The Profit Motive-A Necessary Evil? – February 5, 2019

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – A Texas Federal Judge Declares The Affordable Care Act Unconstitutional: What Next? – January 16, 2019

• Money Inc. – Texas v. United States: The Events that Followed and the Impact of the Government Shutdown – January 14, 2019

• Managed Healthcare Executive – Top 4 Challenges Healthcare Faces in 2019 – January 11, 2019

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From the Blogosphere:

• Foreign Drugs: Savings Worth Traveling For. A roadtrip that might be worth taking.

• To RBP, or Not to RBP: That is (one) of the Question(s). Reference-based pricing is one of the most mysterious self-funding structures out there.

• Hey, Watch Your Language! Clear language describes what the plan will pay in a comprehensible manner.

• New Action on Drug Pricing: Medicare-Like Rates? From ending pharmacy gag rules to outlawing the use of co-pay coupons.

• Blocking the Birth Control Rule. Coverage of contraceptives for women and the availability of a religious or moral exemption (or an accommodation) has been hotly debated recently.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Webinars

Click HERE to Register!

• On March 14, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Transparency: A Building Block of Self-funding,” where we discussed some emerging and ongoing transparency issues, measures being taken to try to resolve them, and methods you can use to get the data you need in order to lower costs.

• On February 14, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “What We Love About Self-Funding in 2019,” where we discussed what makes self-funding such a great option for so many employers and employees, as well as the incredibly cool new innovations rolling out in 2019.

• On January 16, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “The Affordable Care Act in 2019: A Look Ahead,” where we discussed many legal and political battles that threaten the ACA's existence.

Be sure to check out all of our past webinars!

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Podcasts:Featuring Video Podcasts!

• On March 29, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Breaking News - Federal Judge Blocks Expansion of AHPs,” where Adam and Brady discuss the Department of Labor’s new rules that expanded the sale of association health plans (“AHPs”) violate existing law.

• On March 26, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Employee Takeover: Self-Funded Health Plans from the Member's POV,” where Phia’s Marketing & Accounts Manager, Matthew Painten, and Compliance & Regulatory Affairs Consultant, Philip Qualo, dissect Phia’s very own Self-funded health plan.

• On February 28, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Bigger in Texas,” where Ron and Brady discuss Brady’s recent trip to Austin and presentation at the Texas Association of Benefit Administrators.

• On February 15, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Hail to the Chief!,” where our hosts, Brady and Ron, dissect the President’s State of the Union Address.

• On February 5, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Hospital Transparency!,” where out hosts, Ron and Brady discuss the new legal compliance and regulatory affairs team (“LCARA”) with team member Philip Qualo, and specifically address recent efforts to promote hospital transparency.

• On January 25, 2019, The Phia Group presented “Touchdown!,” how providers – like plan sponsors – are concerned with the state of things and want to identify what’s wrong, what’s right, and how we can collaborate on a new approach that works for us all, as members of a single industry – healthcare.

• On January 10, 2019, The Phia Group presented “Obamacare is Still the Law, Right?,” where Ron and Brady dissect the Texas decision that challenges the legality of the ACA.

• On January 2, 2019, The Phia Group presented “Leather Patches & Pipes,” where our host, Ron Peck sits down with Andrew Silverio and Jon Jablon to discuss the forthcoming master’s degree program in plan development they will be teaching.

Be sure to check out all of our latest podcasts!

Face of Phia

• On February 19, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Taking Account with Lisa T!,” where our hosts sit down with The Phia Group’s Senior Controller, Lisa Tangney.

• On February 8, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “It’s Tomasz Time!,” where our hosts sit down with The Phia Group’s Senior Claim & Case Support Analyst, Tomasz Olszewski.

• On January 30, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Ashley Turco… International Agent of Security!,” where our hosts sit down with The Phia Group’s Director of Compliance, Ashley Turco.

• On January 17, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Tech Talk with Hemant,” where our hosts sit down with The Phia Group’s Vice President of Technology, Hemant Dua.

• On January 14, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Setting the Pace with Tori: Help me Tori!,” where our hosts sit down with a member of The Phia Group’s Client Implementation Coordinator, Tori Pace.

• On January 7, 2019, The Phia Group presented, “Dishing with Delaney,” where our hosts sit down with The Phia Group’s Senior Training & Development Specialist, Katie Delaney.

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The Phia Group’s 2019 Charity

At The Phia Group, we value our community and everyone in it. As we grow and shape our company, we hope to do the same for the people around us.

The Phia Group's 2019 charity is the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton.

The mission of The Boys & Girls Club is to nurture strong minds, healthy bodies, and community spirit through youth-driven quality programming in a safe and fun environment.

The Boys & Girls Club of Brockton (BGCB) was founded in 1990 to create a positive place for the youth of Brockton, Massachusetts. It immediately met a need in the community; in the first year alone, 500 youths, ages 8-18, signed up as club members. In the 25 years since, the club has expanded its scope exponentially by offering a mix of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) nationally developed programs and activities unique to this club.

Since their founding, more than 20,000 Brockton youths have been welcomed through their doors. Currently, they serve more than 1,000 boys and girls ages 5-18 annually through the academic year and summertime programming.

A Special Delivery from the Phia Family

The Phia Family loves to show their Patriots Pride! In anticipation of the Super Bowl, we channeled our excitement to raise over 2,000 hygiene items and $1,400 for the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton! As a thank you to the kind, thoughtful, giving members of the Phia Family, we decided to reward everyone at the office with a late opening the day after the Super Bowl.

Youth of the Year

Our favorite time of the year has arrived and we get the opportunity to choose our Youth of the Year. A member of the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton has been chosen by The Phia Group’s CEO, Adam Russo, to receive the prestigious award of Youth of the Year. This member will receive a $5,000 college scholarship and a brand new laptop that will help them through the four years of college. We are proud to announce that Julieth Nwosu was chosen to receive this prestigious award! Congratulations, Julieth, and best of luck in college!

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The Stacks

The Self-Funded Case – Back To Basics

By: Tim Callender, Esq. – March 2019 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

Without a plan document, what is a self-funded plan, truly? It is a nebulous financial instrument, or bizarre oral contract slightly memorialized by HR emails and broker notes that exists without clear guidance or application. Yet this plan is still subject to incredible responsibility and liability. Needless to say, not only is having a plan document a good idea (if not required, depending on how you read the law) but it is an even better idea to have a well-written and understandable plan document. As discussed above, many plan sponsors become enamored with new and innovative solutions, ranging from specialty Rx cost control to a medical tourism program filled with plan member incentives. These are wonderful solutions that may yield outstanding results – but what if the plan document does not properly support and outline the specialty Rx program? What if the plan document fails to provide clear instruction to the plan member on how he/she can take advantage of the beneficial medical tourism program? Not only does the plan sponsor run the risk of implementing benefit structures that may cause legal problems, since they are not outlined in the plan document, but the plan sponsor will most surely lose out on gaining the benefit of these innovative solutions. Not to mention paying claims outside the terms of the plan’s stop-loss policy. Without a well-written and understandable plan document, the it is pointless to pursue more complex solutions and the goals of cost containment and rich benefits will surely never be met.

Click here to read the rest of this article

The Profit Motive – A Necessary Evil?

By: Andrew Silverio, Esq. – February 2019 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

Working in the self-funded healthcare industry, it can be easy for us to develop tunnel vision and focus on cost containment and affordability at all costs, losing sight of other valid interests within and relating to the healthcare market. Quality of care is an obvious one – if not done properly, reductions in cost can come at the expense of quality (of course, this isn’t always the case in healthcare, a product which so often has a great deal of inefficiency built in). But there are other, less directly related interests which we should keep in mind when we zoom out and look at the broader system, for example in forming policy decisions. The healthcare market is an ecosystem, and like in any ecosystem, one organism becoming too powerful can ultimately be a bad thing for everyone. A super-predator in an isolated system can quickly hunt its own prey out of existence and starve.

Click here to read the rest of this article

A Texas Federal Judge Declares The Affordable Care Act Unconstitutional: What Next?

By: Brady Bizarro, Esq. – January 2019 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

On February 26, 2018, eighteen state attorneys general and two Republican governors filed suit in a Texas district court against the federal government over the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”). While Texas v. United States is not the first serious legal challenge brought against the Obama administration’s signature healthcare law (see, e.g., King v. Burwell, 135 S. Ct. 2480 (2015); see also National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, 567 U.S. 519 (2012)), it is the first in which the executive branch broke with tradition and declared that it would not defend the ACA in court. The case has certainly represented the most serious threat to the ACA since the GOP’s legislative efforts to repeal the healthcare law failed last summer. As it turns out, this threat should have been taken more seriously by industry analysts. On December 14, 2018, Judge Reed O’Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas found that the ACA was unconstitutional.

Click here to read the rest of this article

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Phia’s 2019 Speaking Events:

Phia’s Speaking Engagements:

• 1/9/2019 – FMMA Conference – Austin, TX

• 2/27/2019 – Sunlife 2019 MVP Academy – Denver, CO

• 3/8/2019 – UnitedAg Conference – Anaheim, CA

• 3/19/2019 – SIIA Self-Insured Health Plan Executive Forum – Charlotte, NC

• 3/21/2019 – CGI Business Solutions Seminar – Woburn, MA

• 3/26/2019 – HFTA Broker Meeting – Tyler, TX

• 4/3/2019 – BenefitsPRO Broker Expo – Miami, FL

• 4/5/2019 – Pareto Conference – Nashville, TN

• 4/7/2019 – Captive Symposium – Cayman Islands

• 4/8/2019 – National Beer Wholesalers Association Legislative Conference – Washington DC

• 4/12/2019 – FMMA 2019 Annual Conference – Dallas, TX

• 4/23/2019 – Johns Hopkins Industry Education Series – Baltimore, MD

• 4/24/2019 – Sunlife 2019 MVP Academy – Kansas City, MO

• 4/25/2019 – BevCap’s Best Practices Workshop – Orlando, FL

• 4/26/2019 – Society of Professional Benefit Administrators Annual Conference – Washington, D.C.

• 5/2/2019 – MassAHU Benefest 2019 Conference – Westborough, MA

• 5/14/2019 – Cypress Unversity – Las Vegas, NV

• 5/30/2019 – Contrarian Captive – Austin, TX

• 6/11/2019 – Leavitt Conference – Big Sky, MT

• 7/15/2019 – HCAA TPA Summit – Dallas, TX

• 7/31/2019 – 2019 MVP Academy – Wellesley, MA

• 8/24/2019 – Well Health Workshop – Chicago, IL

• 10/27/2019 – 2019 Annual NASP Conference – Washington DC

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Get to Know Our Employee of the Quarter:
Andrew Fine

Congratulations to Andrew Fine, The Phia Group’s Q2 2019 Employee of the Quarter!

When Andrew first started at The Phia Group in 2017 as an intake specialist, it was clear that he was a perfect fit for not only his role, but for The Phia Group. Andrew is currently the Lead Intake Specialist for Phia’s Consulting department. Andrew has a great work ethic and maintains a positive attitude. The Consulting department can always rely on him to stay on top of client requests, as he is very efficient and organized.

Congratulations Andrew, and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

Phia News

Exceptional Business Award

The Phia Group is proud to announce that we have been presented with an Exceptional Business Award at the 11th Annual Mentor Recruitment Rally & Celebration! We take tremendous pride in our community and the youths of the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton - Allowing the young people of our community opportunities and platforms in which they can succeed has been rooted in our everyday business functions, leading to a promising future and a caring environment for all those involved.

Valentine’s Day at Phia

The Phia family celebrated Valentines Day with a guessing game! Everyone in the office was tasked with guessing how many candy hearts were in the glass jar… But we didn’t stop there… We challenged our followers on LinkedIn to join in on the fun. After an entire day of guesses being collected, we finally counted out the candy hearts. There were a total of 2,329 candy hearts in the glass jar! Congratulations to Jeff Hanna, of The Phia Group, who guessed 2,303. We would also like to congradulate Diana Denzin, who had the closest guess on our LinkedIn page, with a guess of 2,621.

Job Opportunities:

• Intake Specialist

• Attorney I

• Overpayments Recovery Assistant

• Health Benefit Plan Drafter

• Case Investigator I

• Provider Relations Client Concierge

See the latest job opportunities, here: https://www.phiagroup.com/About-Us/Careers

Promotions

• Ron Peck has been promoted from Sr. VP and General Counsel to Executive Vice President and General Counsel

• Julie Martin has been promoted from VP, Recovery Services to Sr. Vice President, Recovery Services

• Jen McCormick has been promoted from VP, Consulting to Sr. Vice President, Phia Group Consulting

• Chris Aquiar has been promoted from Director, Recovery Services to Vice President, Legal Recovery Services

• Hemant Dua has been promoted from Sr. Director of IT to Vice President of Technology

• Brady Bizarro has been promoted from Director, Healthcare Attorney to Director of Legal Compliance & Regulatory Affairs (LCARA)

• Andrew Silverio has been promoted from Health Benefit Plan Admin - Attorney III to Compliance & Oversight Counsel

• Philip Qualo has been promoted from HR Compliance Specialist to Compliance & Regulatory Affairs Consultant

• Sean Donnelly has been promoted from Corporate Counsel to Associate General Counsel

• Cara Carll has been promoted from Senior Team Lead to Manager of Case Evaluation, Customer Service & Claim Analysis

• Amanda Lima has been promoted from Provider Relations Team Lead to CEO Executive Assistant and Manager of Provider Relations

• Cindy Monfils has been promoted from Account Coordinator/Paralegal to COO Executive Assistant/Paralegal

• Jamie Johnson has been promoted from Team Lead, Sr. Recovery Team to Team Lead, Bodily Injury

• Rose Jardim has been promoted from Team Lead of Accounting to Supervisor of Accounting

• Ekta Gupta was promoted from Coordinator, Data Services Group to Manager, Data Services Group

• Erin Hussey has been promoted from Attorney I to Attorney II

• Andrew Fine has been promoted from Intake Specialist to Lead Intake Specialist.

New Hires

• Robyn Sullivan was hired as an Executive Assistant

• Robert Martinez was hired as an Attorney in the Provider Relations Department

• Robyn Cleaves was hired at a Team Lead in Accounting

• Shawndell Dias was hired as a Case Investigator

• Scott Byerely was hired as the Vice President, Operations and Total Quality Management

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• Toussaint Anderson
• Ulyana Bevilacqua
• Brady Bizarro
• Amanda Grogan
• Garrick Hunt
• Amanda Lima
• Maribel McLaughlin
• Victoria Pace

These fine people will represent our company at SIIA’s first foray into ensuring the future of self-funding. I would encourage all of you to identify the future leaders of your organization and send them to SIIA as well. Happy reading!

Register for The Phia Group's Next Webinar

4 Horsemen of the Plan-pocalypse

Nostradamus? Miss Cleo? The Phia Group? In a psychic feat of foresight, The Phia Group’s team has gazed into their crystal ball and identified four issues that may not presently be keeping you up at night, but will certainly be disturbing your slumber very soon. From being forced to pay for surrogate pregnancy and births, to the IRS actively issuing letters notifying employers of 2015 tax year penalties; from a new wave of fraud, errors, and abuse leading to heretofore unseen overpayments, to case law addressing the rights of plans to utilize reference based pricing – you’ve been warned! We predict this complimentary webinar, taking place at 1pm (EST) on April 19, 2018, will open your eyes. Miss this webinar at your own peril… You’ve been warned!

Click HERE to Register!

Service Focus of the Quarter: Plan Appointed Claim Evaluator® (PACE)

Making determinations on medical claim appeals is a frightening prospect. The process can involve complex factual, legal, and medical issues, and can distract an employer plan sponsor from its ordinary business functions, posing a significant resource drain. The PACE service allows the plan sponsor to shift fiduciary duty away, onto the PACE, for final, internal claim appeals. With PACE, plan sponsors and TPAs assign the riskiest fiduciary duty (that is, the power to make payment decisions in response to final, internal appeals), to The Phia Group. This authority carries with it the most risk, because it is this final payment directive that may be scrutinized upon external review or in the courtroom.

Self-funding veterans and novices alike will benefit from PACE. Groups that are moving from fully-insured or ASO arrangements can use PACE as a valuable tool to aid in the transition; these groups have never before been faced with such fiduciary liability - with the PACE, that daunting responsibility can be delegated to a neutral and capable third party. In addition to having a third party expert analyze all final, internal appeals, before they reach an external review, the PACE also ensures that legally mandated independent review organizations (IROs) are in place, and the PACE handles facilitation of external appeals with these IROs. Regardless of whether the PACE upholds or reverses a denial, the PACE's service continues to apply. This includes coordinating efforts with stop-loss, plan sponsors, brokers, and TPAs whenever these partners do not align. PACE is a way for the employer to be able to focus less on the complexities of its health plan, fiduciary duties, and stop-loss concerns, and more on what matters - its business. PACE is also a way for the payor to rest easy knowing that it is not unwittingly assuming fiduciary duties on final, internal appeals.

For years, self-funded plan sponsors and TPAs have asked how they can avoid the risks inherent in self-funding, while still enjoying the benefits of that plan structure. According to The Phia Group's CEO, Adam Russo, "With a PACE in place, we're taking a giant step in the right direction. It's a game changer." Contact Tim Callender at tcallender@phiagroup.com or 781-535-5631 to learn more about how PACE can help you.

Phia Case Study: Overpayment, Schmoverpayment!

The Phia Group was presented with a situation in which a TPA had processed a claim in error. The issue was one of eligibility; the TPA processed the claim as usual, without realizing that the member had in fact termed the prior week. The TPA had the information, but through a fairly common record update delay, the claim was paid at the appropriate out-of-network rate - but for a termed member.

The group's broker contacted the TPA and was somewhat upset at the erroneous claim processing. The TPA explained the circumstances - and the TPA's Administrative Services Agreement did not hold the TPA responsible - but the broker expressed interest in pursuing the matter, given the sizeable amount of money involved. The broker was also looking into having the group switch TPAs.

When this matter was brought to the attention of The Phia Group's consulting team, our first two actions were to try to diffuse the situation between the broker and TPA, and to try to recoup the overpayment to keep both sides happy.

As it happened, The Phia Group's dedicated overpayment team had a prior relationship with this particular provider, and our overpayment recovery specialists were able to recover $40,000.00 of the $42,000.00 erroneous payment. That recovery satisfied the broker and the group, and the TPA agreed to credit the group the remaining $2,000.00 as a gesture of good faith (and a smart business decision to boot).

The recovery obtained by The Phia Group's overpayment team not only salvaged $40,000.00 for the group, but it avoided a feud between a TPA and broker, and also helped the TPA keep a valuable block of business that it would otherwise have lost.

Fiduciary Burden of the Quarter: Following the Plan Documents…Unless…

Generally, it is fairly simple to comply with the duty to follow the terms of the plan documents. That important duty, however, applies only "insofar as such documents and instruments are consistent with the provisions of [ERISA]." In other words, you must follow the plan documents, unless the plan documents violate ERISA, in which case you must follow ERISA instead. The powers that be have interpreted this as applying not just to ERISA, but to all federal laws. The result is that federal law "overrides" any conflicting terms of the plan documents - so Plan Administrators are sometimes forced to ignore the terms of the plan documents in favor of following federal law.

So what does this mean? Well, if the plan documents have provisions that violate federal law, the fiduciary duty morphs from one requiring the fiduciary to comply with the terms of the plan documents to one requiring the fiduciary to comply with the law instead of the plan document.

An example we have seen are the new regulations promulgated under ACA Section 1557 regarding transgender surgery. There is a certain amount of legal discord at the moment surrounding the interpretation of these regulations, but the status quo is that self-funded health plans are not permitted to exclude transgender surgery, or they risk violation of the Affordable Care Act. Many employers, however, have taken a stance against this mandate, by excluding transgender surgery within their plan documents. This is a textbook instance where the fiduciary duty would change: if following the terms of the plan document would be noncompliant with other federal laws, then the fiduciary is required to follow those federal laws instead.

This can be a very tricky situation, and it emphasizes the notion that the plan documents should always be as compliant and current as possible to avoid having to analyze situations like this. As always, if you have questions about your plan documents, fiduciary duties, or how to reconcile the two, please contact PGCReferral@phiagroup.com.

Success Story of the Quarter: The Phia Group Saves an Employer Thousands of Dollars

The IRS has recently been enforcing the Employer Shared Responsibility Mandate (“employer mandate”) by sending letters to employers implicating that they may have violated the employer mandate rules and may owe a substantial penalty called an Employer Shared Responsibility Payment (“ESRP”). This employer mandate was put in place by the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”). The ACA requires Applicable Large Employers (“ALEs”) who have 50 or more employees to (1) provide minimum essential health coverage to all full-time employees and their dependents (or the employer will face a subsection (a) penalty); or (2) offer eligible employer-sponsored coverage that is “affordable” and meets “minimum value” (or the employer will face a subsection (b) penalty). Employers who receive these letters may have to pay the ESRP, but have a chance to respond to the letter before the penalty is mandated.

A client was presented with one of these letters from an employer. The employer was facing over $50,000.00 dollars in penalties if they did not respond to the letter properly and explain why they were/were not at fault. The IRS has specific guidelines of how to respond to these letters. This can become very daunting and confusing for employers facing these high penalties. The client reached out to The Phia Group for consultation. Attorneys Krista Maschinot and Erin Hussey analyzed the situation and explained what the employer may or may not have done wrong to receive this large employer mandate penalty, and with their consultation, the employer was able to identify their mistake and properly respond to the IRS letter. After the employer explained their mistake and properly responded to the IRS letter, the IRS sent a second letter to the employer which lowered their penalty to less than $2,500.00, saving the employer thousands in penalties.

Disclaimer: As these forms are heavily based in IRS regulations and taxation, we strongly recommended to the broker that the employer should discuss this with their tax advisor and/or the entity that assisted in preparing their tax forms.
 

Phia Fit to Print:

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. - Buyer Beware - No Good Deed Goes Unpunished - January 3, 2018

• Money Inc. - Too Good to Pass Up: How we Over Come the Loss of the Individual Mandate - January 24, 2018

• Money Inc. - The Best of Times and the Worst of Times… How Imperfect Regulatory Action May Still Create Opportunities for Self-Funding - February 22, 2018

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. - Trump Tax Bill Signals the Swan Song for Obamacare's Individual Mandate - March 4, 2018

• Money Inc. - Freedom Blue: Why the Trump Administration Picked Obamacare over Idaho - March 29, 2018

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From the Blogosphere:

• Contraceptive Update - Appeals and Intervenors There is a process that must be followed before a party can intervene.

• What do All These New Paid Sick Laws Mean for Employers? The regulations vary by state (and city).

• Even the Best Plans can Backfire! It's very important in subrogation cases to consider all options.

• Your Plan isn't a Cadillac …Yet. The ACA Health Insurance Provider Tax is applicable for fully-insured plans

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Webinars

4 Horsemen of the Plan-pocalypse

Nostradamus? Miss Cleo? The Phia Group? In a psychic feat of foresight, The Phia Group's team has gazed into their crystal ball and identified four issues that may not presently be keeping you up at night, but will certainly be disturbing your slumber very soon. From being forced to pay for surrogate pregnancy and births, to the IRS actively issuing letters notifying employers of 2015 tax year penalties; from a new wave of fraud, errors, and abuse leading to heretofore unseen overpayments, to case law addressing the rights of plans to utilize reference based pricing - you've been warned! We predict this complimentary webinar, taking place at 1pm (EDT) on April 19, 2018, will open your eyes. Miss this webinar at your own peril… You've been warned!

Click HERE to Register!

On March 20, 2018, The Phia Group presented, "Transparency: Using it to Your Advantage," where we discussed the need for, and effects of, contractual and price transparency on the self-funded industry - and how health plans, TPAs, and brokers can use transparency to their advantage.

On February 27, 2018, The Phia Group presented, "Evolve or Dissolve - Responding to Today's Tax Law to Save the Health Benefit Plan Industry Tomorrow," where we discussed what you need to know about the new law, and how to navigate the treacherous path that lies ahead.

On February 22, 2018, The Phia Group presented, "Keeping it Under Wraps: What the Networks Don't Advertise," where we discussed how the importance of cost-containment is at an all-time high.

On January 30, 2018, The Phia Group presented, "Plan on Saving by Saving Your Plan - Applying Lessons Learned to Create the Perfect Plan Document," where we discussed The Phia Group's Flagship Template.

On January 18, 2018, The Phia Group presented, "A Taxing Time: The Tax Bill's Impact on Self-Insurance," where we discussed the latest tax law.

Be sure to check out all of our past webinars!

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Podcasts:

•On March 23, 2018, The Phia Group presented, “Loopholes, Untouchables, and An Unlikely Ally,” where Adam, Ron, and Brady went around the horn discussing a few hot button topics.

•On March 16, 2018, The Phia Group presented “Partners in Empowerment – A Prescription for Savings,” where Ron and Brady were thrilled to interview LG Hanzel of Rx Results.

•On March 1, 2018, The Phia Group presented “Red Cross Blood Drive Special Episode,” where The Phia Group in partnership with the Red Cross hosted an on-site blood drive. Ron Peck interviewed members of The Phia Group staff and Red Cross regarding personal experiences, the Phia event, and the ever present need for donors.

•On February 26, 2018, The Phia Group presented “3 Scoops of Knowledge,” where Adam, Ron and Brady celebrated the forthcoming change in seasons and warming weather, by each selecting a unique topic that was bugging them, and offered their opinions regarding how we should react.

•On February 16, 2018, The Phia Group presented “Fireside Chat with The President,” where our first Empowering Plans guest, the Self-Insurance Institute of America’s CEO and President, Michael Ferguson, sat down with Adam, Ron and Brady to discuss everything – from past wins and losses, to plans for 2018.

•On February 7, 2018, The Phia Group presented “Disruption or Not?,” where our hosts discussed the recent announcement that Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan are looking to collaborate on “health care.”

•On January 29 2018, The Phia Group presented “Game-changers” where our hosts discussed Adam’s recent travels and review events.

•On January 22, 2018, The Phia Group presented “Mandate? We don’t need no stinking mandate,” where Adam, Ron, and regular co-host – Brady Bizarro – addressed the new tax law, elimination of the individual mandate, and how it may impact benefit plans of all types.

•On January 10, 2018, The Phia Group presented “Lightning Strikes Twice – Top 2017 Issues Impacting 2018,” where the “Phia Group Boys” freestyled as they shared the issues they felt defined 2017 and are likely to influence 2018.

Be sure to check out all of our latest podcasts!

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The Phia Group’s 2018 Charity

At The Phia Group, we value our community and everyone in it. As we grow and shape our company, we hope to do the same for the people around us.

The Phia Group's 2018 charity is the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton.

The mission of The Boys & Girls Club is to nurture strong minds, healthy bodies, and community spirit through youth-driven quality programming in a safe and fun environment.

The Boys & Girls Club of Brockton (BGCB) was founded in 1990 to create a positive place for the youth of Brockton, Massachusetts. It immediately met a need in the community; in the first year alone, 500 youths, ages 8-18, signed up as club members. In the 25 years since, the club has expanded its scope exponentially by offering a mix of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) nationally developed programs and activities unique to this club.

Since their founding, more than 20,000 Brockton youth have been welcomed through their doors. Currently, they serve more than 1,000 boys and girls ages 5-18 annually through academic year and summertime programming.

On Thursday, February 8th, CEO of The Phia Group, Adam Russo, invited 50+ children from The Boys & Girls Club of Brockton to a Seussical play at the Inly School in Adam's hometown of Scituate, MA. It was truly a pleasure to see the look on their faces while watching the play.

The Phia Group invites its staff to donate various items for the benefit of The Boys and Girls Club of Brockton. For more information or to get involved, visit www.bgcbrockton.org.

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The Stacks

Trump Tax Bill Signals the Swan Song for Obamacare's Individual Mandate

By: Sean Donnelly, Esq. - March 2018 - Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

The "tax" bill that Congress passed in late December was somewhat of a wolf in sheep's clothing from a health care perspective. It certainly overhauled the tax code and instituted tax cuts for corporations and many American taxpayers, but it also doubled as a thinly veiled health care bill through its repealing of Obamacare's individual mandate. Authors of the tax bill postulated that such a repeal could save the federal government more than $330 billion over the next decade, as fewer Americans will end up receiving subsidies or Medicaid, savings that could then be used to finance the bill's tax cuts and lower tax rates. The tax bill was not the complete eradication of Obamacare that the Trump administration had set its sights on during the first year of Trump's presidency, but the dismantling of the individual mandate marks the first removal of a key pillar in the Obamacare foundation.

Click here to read the rest of this article

The Best of Times and the Worst of Times… How Imperfect Regulatory Action May Still Create Opportunities for Self-Funding

By: Jen McCormick, Esq. - February 2018

Regulators have been busy over the course of the past few months. Between the issuance of executive orders, a tax bill, and state regulatory action, employers are scrambling to understand the implications. And while regulatory action has been quick, it has not necessarily been thorough, creating possibilities and opportunities for self-funded health plans. Upon review of the various regulations, it seems new incentives for the creation of self-funded employer plans now exist. Employers may investigate taking advantage of this environment to form, create, or modify their self-funded benefit plans. Let's examine certain recent regulatory developments.

Click here to read the rest of this article.

Buyer Beware - No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

By: Ron E. Peck, Esq. - January 2018 - Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

Employers and their advisors may soon find themselves accused of breaching their fiduciary duty if they continue to allow their benefit plans to pay inflated rates for medical services, without any justification for the excessive prices. Blindly paying fees that are not revealed until after the service is provided, to practitioners who cannot explain why their rates are many times more than comparable providers of equal or greater skill, is not a prudent use of plan assets and does violate one of the core tenets of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA") and fiduciary law.

Click here to read the rest of this article.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Phia’s 2018 Speaking Events:

Adam Russo’s 2018 Speaking Engagements:

• 1/23/18 - Q4 Intelligence Conference - Tampa, FL
• 2/2/2018 - Benefit Intelligence School District Conference - Phoenix, AZ
• 3/7/2018 - SIIA Self-Insured Health Plan Executive Forum - Charleston, NC
• 3/9/2018 - CGI Business Solutions Seminar - Manchester, NH
• 3/14/2018 - Pareto StructuRE Meeting - Park City, UT
• 4/12/2018 - Caprock Health Care Forum - Dallas, TX
• 4/25/2018 - Berkley Captive Symposium - Grand Cayman Islands
• 4/26/2018 - Innovative Risk - Grand Cayman Islands
• 4/30/2018 - World Health Care Congress - Washington, DC
• 5/17/2018 - Prairie States Broker Event - Chicago, IL
• 6/21/2018 - GBSI Conference - Springfield, MO
• 6/26/2018 - Leavitt Annual Event - Big Sky, MT

Ron Peck’s 2018 Speaking Engagements:

• 1/25/2018 - HealthFirst TPA Client Conference - Tyler, TX
• 3/6/2018 - SIIA National Conference - Charleston, SC
• 3/7/2018 - CGI Business Solutions Seminar - Manchester, NH
• 3/23/18 - Health Rosetta - Module 5: Next-Gen Plan Design - Boston, MA

Tim Callender’s 2018 Speaking Engagements:

• 2/14/2018 - BevCap Captive Group, 10th Anniversary Meeting - Kona, HI
• 4/25/2018 - Cypress University - Las Vegas, NV
• 5/7/2018 - UBA Spring Conference - Chicago, IL
• 5/16/2018 - Sun Life MVP Forum - Kansas City, KS
• 5/24/2018 - Pareto Captive Services, Contrarian Re Captive Meeting - Nashville, TN
• 6/25/2018 - Leavitt Conference - Big Sky, MT
• 7/17/2018 - HCAA TPA Summit - Minneapolis, MN

Jen McCormick’s 2018 Speaking Engagements:

• 4/17/2018 – Texas Association of Benefit Advisors – Dallas, TX
• 5/16/2018 – IOA RE – Indianapolis, IN

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Get to Know Our Employee of the Quarter: Catherine Dowie

Congratulations to Catherine Dowie, The Phia Group's Q1 2018 Employee of the Quarter!

When we think of passion, we think of Catherine. Not only is she working full time, but she is also going to law school full time at night. Even with all the work she has from attending law school, she still manages to find time at night, after school and on weekends, to work. Anyone can always go to her with a question on case law, and if she does not have an answer right away, she is always able to find an argument on the Plan's side.

Congratulations Catherine and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

Phia News

2017 Community Partner of the Year Award!

The Phia Group and Adam Russo were recently awarded the "2017 Community Partner of the Year Award" in Easton, Massachusetts, on March 1, 2018. The Community Partner of the Year Award is presented annually to a company, foundation, or community organization that has made significant contributions to advance the work of the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton. In 2017, The Phia Group gave more than just financial support to propel the programs forward, and their employees and leadership gave generously of our time and talents to create special, lasting memories for the boys and girls throughout the year.

The American Red Cross Visits Phia!

The American Red Cross came to visit The Phia Group and 18 of our employees successfully donated a pint of blood. With those 18 donations, we were able to save 54 lives. We take great pride in knowing the impact this can have. To learn more about the American Red Cross and how you can help save a life, make sure you check out The American Red Cross website.

Job Opportunities:

• Health Benefit Plan Administration - Attorney
• Consultant I

See the latest job opportunities, here: https://www.phiagroup.com/About-Us/Careers

Promotions

• Brady Bizarro was promoted from Staff Attorney to Director, Healthcare Attorney

• Amanda Lima was promoted from Medical Bill Negotiator to Team Lead, Provider Relations

• Ulyana Bevilacqua was promoted from Consultant I to Supervisor, PGC

• Jillian Painten was promoted from Claim Recovery Specialist IV to Team Leader

• Toussaint Anderson was promoted from Project Manager, PGC to Manager, PDM

• Kelly Dempsey was promoted from Staff Attorney to Director, Independent Consultation & Evaluation (ICE)

• Sabrina Centeio was promoted from Case Investigator to Claim Recovery Specialist III

• Amanda Grogan was promoted from Sr. Claim Recovery Specialist to Team Lead

• Kerri Sherman was promoted from Team Lead, CI / BI to Sr. Team Lead, CI / BI

• Cara Carll was promoted from Team Lead, Recovery MPC/WC to Sr. Team Lead, CA/CSR

• Lisa Tangney was promoted from Manager, Accounting to Controller

• Rose Jardim was promoted from Accounting Administrator to Team Lead, Accounting

• Hemant Dua was promoted from Dir. Applications & Business Intelligence to Sr. Director of Technology

• Garrick Hunt was promoted from Sales Executive to Sales Manager
 

New Hires

• Grace Barron was hired as a Customer Care Representative

• Jacob Falkof was hired as a Customer Care Representative

• David Clasby was hired as an IT Technologist

• Cindy Royle was hired as a Legal Assistant
 

Fun at Phia:

The Phia Family is one good-looking group of footballers! Our Superbowl Party was a hit and we thank all those who participated. Although we did have fans from both teams in the office that day, there were no casualties; and that in itself was a huge success!

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The Book of Russo: From the Desk of the CEO About six months ago I decided to start a project at The Phia Group focusing on how we can ensure the future viability of my company. The strategy for doing this was based on focusing on the young professional, also known as the millennial population, and attempting to figure out what makes them tick. How can I attract these folks to join Phia and make them want to stay with us throughout their career? The first thing that we did was survey the many young professionals that we have here at Phia in order to identify their thoughts, and what we found out truly opened my eyes. These workers want to understand why our company exists and not just what it is that we do. Ron Peck, Matt Painten, and I spent months just getting back to the basics. After many focus groups and back-and-forth, I believe that we figured it out. This is the core essence of Phia and how we will attract, obtain, and retain not only employees, but clientele as well. I would love your feedback on what we came up with, so here it is:

The Problem
Health care costs too much and the price is increasing; employers are forced to offset costs onto employees through higher co-pays and deductibles.

The Phia Group’s Purpose
To make health benefits affordable for employers and employees

Why is this The Phia Group’s Purpose?
Hard working Americans deserve access to high quality, affordable health care.

What does it mean to “Empower Plans?”
To help employers maximize benefits, minimize costs, and take control of their own plans.

How do we “Empower Plans?”
We start by promoting and educating employers about self-funding. Then, we invent and implement cost containment services while delivering custom solutions to meet specific client needs.

I truly hope that 2018 is an amazing year for you and yours.  Happy reading my friends.
 

Service Focus of the Quarter: Plan Document/Summary Plan Description Risk Assessment

In case you hadn’t heard, a new tax bill has been signed into law. Amongst other things, it appears the individual mandate ushered in by the ACA (aka ObamaCare) is being eliminated. The initial impact will be on the individual market, but we foresee healthy (low risk) individuals performing a cost benefit analysis and eventually choosing to drop out of their employer’s group health insurance. The first people likely to drop from such plans are likely those who are paying an arm and a leg to be enrolled in expensive, traditional, “fully funded” insurance. Yet, we fear that – soon after – the most desirable lives (healthy, low risk lives) will drop from their employers’ self funded plans… leaving only high risk / high cost lives. No plan – fully funded or self funded – can withstand losing those lives. It therefore behooves every self funded plan sponsor to figure out ways to offer more for less, and thus make plan enrollment attractive for all members – low and high risk, healthy and unhealthy alike. To do this, you must innovate and implement new benefits and cost containment tools. To do that, start with the plan document.

One of the benefits of self-funding is that the employer has the freedom and flexibility to design a benefit plan that truly meets the needs of its employees; making it attractive to the low risk healthy lives we need to fund the plan, and to whom we need to make the plan attractive (now that they aren’t “required” to enroll). The employer also has the ability to structure the plan so as to prudently manage the assets of the plan; this can be done, in particular, through innovative plan language meant to proactively tackle potential issues such as risk and cost.

Our Plan Document/Summary Plan Description Risk Assessments will identify areas the employer may want to consider for additional review, as well as provide a brief explanation of why certain items are important.

Once completed, plan sponsors can implement new measures to make their plans very attractive to even the healthiest folks. Things like new payment methodologies of out of network claims, medical tourism, and more can result in benefit plans offering more for less – and thus remaining a “must have” for those important healthy participants – even when enrollment is optional – but it all starts with the plan document.

Contact Tim Callender at tcallender@phiagroup.com or 781-535-5631 to learn more about how a Plan Document/Summary Plan Description Risk Assessment can help you.

Protect Your ASA: Update Your Agreements Today!

The Phia Group is privileged to work with so many different players in the self-funded industry and health insurance field in general. As a result, we often see issues developing and devise solutions before they have a chance to seriously impact our allies.

One such issue that has become a bigger problem of late, negatively impacting third party administrators, plan sponsors, brokers and stop-loss carriers, occurs when a self funded benefit plan or their broker-advisor wishes to utilize a stop-loss carrier that the TPA has neither vetted nor placed. Despite the fact that the TPA played no role in selecting the carrier, that TPA - more often than not - is still targeted by the plan sponsor if and when the carrier subsequently refuses to reimburse the plan or some other conflict arises.

For those TPAs utilizing The Phia Group's best-in-class template administrative services agreement (ASA), language is included that generally addresses this issue, but as the problem has escalated - it now requires special attention. With that in mind, The Phia Group has developed a form, which is signed by the plan sponsor and TPA, and is added to existing ASAs as an exhibit.

This addendum can be revised to fit with any ASA. Please contact Garrick Hunt at ghunt@phiagroup.com or call him at (781) 535-5644 to learn how you can obtain access to this very important form.

Cutting back on Questionnaires:

It is The Phia Group’s mission to reduce the cost of healthcare through the use of innovative legal techniques and the most sophisticated technology. In keeping with this goal The Phia Group is always taking steps to improve all of our services, including our earliest: subrogation. Recent upgrades to The Phia System™ and advancements in our investigational techniques have led to faster identification of third party liability claims and quicker engagement by The Phia Group’s team, without relying upon or otherwise communicating with the plan participants. These new resources allow us to identify opportunities more often and more effectively, while at the same time reducing the volume of accident questionnaires we send to plan participants. While accident questionnaires are still a useful tool when investigating and collecting accident details – they are no longer the only tool. As such, we are pleased to now provide all of our subrogation clients with the ability to increase, decrease, or cease the use of plan participant accident questionnaires. Clients can also opt to utilize their own letters, or have the employer communicate directly with plan participants. The choice is yours!

The Phia Group is committed to ensuring you and your clients are provided with nothing but the highest quality service, best-in-class performance, and a member first approach. That is why we are continuously improving our services to provide the best performance (and most options) possible.

To discuss these new customization capabilities, or our other services, please contact Trevor Schramn at tschramn@phiagroup.com or call (781) 535-5692.

Phia Group Case Study: Retroactive Plan Amendments

A self-funded group’s broker approached The Phia Group’s consulting department (via PGCReferral@phiagroup.com) and asked us to help respond to a provider’s appeal of a large dialysis claim. The provider was out-of-network, so thankfully there were no PPO contract concerns – but at the time the services were rendered, the SPD defined its payment rate as the prevailing charge in the area. One month after receiving the final claims for which the Plan was responsible, the Plan chose to effect an amendment that limited payment for all dialysis claims to 145% of the Medicare rate, and the amendment was back-dated to the beginning of the year (before the member began dialysis treatments).

The Plan desired to use its new carve-out amendment to reprice the existing claims, but had received negative feedback on that proposition from its TPA, since the TPA felt that the language in the SPD at the time the claims were incurred is the language that must be adhered to. The broker asked The Phia Group for advice, and our advice was identical to that of the TPA – that a retroactive carve-out is not a valid way to price the already-incurred claims. Regardless, the Plan chose to pay all past claims based on that new amendment, despite the language not being in the SPD when the services were rendered.

As expected, the provider pushed back against the lower-than-expected reimbursement, and commenced a lawsuit over the balance of $500,000. The Phia Group provided the Plan assistance with settling the claims to avoid litigation, since litigation almost certainly would have resulted in the Plan paying the prevailing charges in the area…plus interest…plus penalties.

The moral of the story is that self-funded plans, their TPAs, and their brokers should be proactive in making sure the SPD contains the proper protections – since once a claim comes in, it is sometimes too late to contain costs. In other words, if you think you may need to carve out high dollar claims (like dialysis) in the future, fix your plan document now! Don’t wait, until it’s too late; (The Phia Group’s Phia Document Management service – including the Flagship Template – can help make sure that SPDs say what you need them to say).

Fiduciary Burden of the Quarter: Strictly Following the Plan Document!

Plan Administrators owe a fiduciary duty to strictly follow the terms of the governing plan documents. The SPD is the “supreme law of the land” for a health plan, and violating even one minor exclusion is technically a violation of the Plan Administrator’s considerable fiduciary duty. Since we’ve been warning the industry about this for years, it didn’t shock us when we heard that the Department of Labor had filed a lawsuit against a benefit plan for paying claims based on Medicare rates, without having included the proper language within the SPD.

We understand that Plan Documents are complex, and amending them is not exactly an enjoyable process. But if the health plan wants to implement procedures to save money, there are some deal-breakers – such as making sure the SPD affords the Plan the right to do what the plan is going to do.

ERISA empowers a plan sponsor to put almost any language of its choosing into its SPD. That’s a great thing, and plans that take advantage have experienced novel savings and have had remarkable self-funding experiences. If a benefit plan wants to pay claims differently from what is currently in the SPD, it can certainly do so – but not until the SPD reflects it, and not until the SPD is altered at the appropriate time.

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Phia Fit to Print:

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – The Future of Self-Funding - An Insider's Take – October 3, 2017

• Money Inc. – Self-funding Amid Obamacare Uncertainty – November 2, 2017

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – Interim Final Rules Update – November 4, 2017

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – Managing Plan Communication During a Time of Legislative Uncertainty – December 1, 2017

• HealthLeaders Magazine – Insurers Facing Impossible Scenario: Cover Everyone, But No Individual Mandate – December 13, 2017

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From the Blogosphere:

• An Appealing Option. Facing a final appeal.

• Phia Undercover: Two Chargemasters at Addiction Centers. Dealing with a high rate biller.

• Welcome to the Fiduciary Jungle! The writing is on the wall; what will you do about it?

• Sacrificing the Individual Mandate on the Alter of Tax Reform. The glue holding all of Obamacare together.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Webinars

Plan on Saving by Saving Your Plan

On January 30, 2017, The Phia Group will present “Plan on Saving by Saving Your Plan,” where our legal team will explain the Flagship template, differences from the existing template, and why the Flagship may be right for you.

Click HERE to Register!

On January 18, 2018, The Phia Group presented “A Taxing Time: The Tax Bill’s Impact on Self-Insurance,” where we discussed the latest tax law.

On December 19, 2017, The Phia Group presented “With Great (Cost-Containment) Power Comes Great (Fiduciary) Responsibility,” where we describe various ways to cut costs, what must be done to ensure that fiduciary duties are being met, and what happens if they are not.

On November 14, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Living in the Now: Prepare for 2018,” where we discussed where the market is heading and what you need to do to keep up with it.

On October 17, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Best Practices for Today's Plan Documents,” where our legal team discussed best and worst plan document practices, provide some creative ideas for plan formation, and suggest some concepts to help perfect plan document drafting.

Be sure to check out all of our past webinars!

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Podcasts:

• On December 21, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Breaking Down the GOP Tax Bill and How It Affects You,” where The Phia Group's CEO Adam Russo and Attorney Brady Bizarro discuss the new GOP tax bill in depth.

• On December 18, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Protect Your ASA,” where Adam Russo, Ron Peck, and Jen McCormick discuss the rising trend in stop-loss insurance being placed by entities other than the TPA, yet the TPA is held responsible if things go sour.

• On December 6, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Plans and Conspiracy,” where our legal team discussed the recent news regarding CVS purchasing Aetna, as well as a new opportunity to customize plan document reviews to address different levels of need.

• On November 21, 2017, The Phia Group presented “The Biggest Threats to Self-Funding: A Lightning Round,” where Adam Russo, Ron Peck, and Brady Bizarro discuss the biggest threats to the self-funded industry.

• On November 3, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Planning for Stormy Seas Ahead,” where Adam Russo, Ron Peck, and Jennifer McCormick discuss all of the many issues creating waves as it relates to benefit plan documents, and what steps we can all take to safely navigate those waters – including setting sail on The Phia Group Flagship Template!

• On October 19 2017, The Phia Group presented “Trumping Costs and Climbing the Hill,” where Adam Russo, Ron Peck, and Brady Bizarro discussed discuss the wild and crazy happenings in DC.

• On October 13, 2017, The Phia Group presented “The Man with the Plan,” where Adam Russo and Ron Peck discuss the often overlooked but – in their opinion – all important plan document.

• On September 28, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Responsibility - Beyond the Contract,” where Adam Russo and Ron Peck discuss trends impacting health plans, employers, and employees.

Be sure to check out all of our latest podcasts!

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The Phia Group’s 2017 Charity

At The Phia Group, we value our community and everyone in it. As we grow and shape our company, we hope to do the same for the people around us.

The Phia Group's 2018 charity is the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton.

The mission of The Boys & Girls Club is to nurture strong minds, healthy bodies, and community spirit through youth-driven quality programming in a safe and fun environment.

The Boys & Girls Club of Brockton (BGCB) was founded in 1990 to create a positive place for the youth of Brockton, Massachusetts. It immediately met a need in the community; in the first year alone, 500 youths, ages 8-18, signed up as club members. In the 25 years since, the club has expanded its scope exponentially by offering a mix of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) nationally developed programs and activities unique to this club.

Since their founding, more than 20,000 Brockton youth have been welcomed through their doors. Currently, they serve more than 1,000 boys and girls ages 5-18 annually through academic year and summertime programming.

On Wednesday, December 21st, CEO of The Phia Group, Adam Russo, made a special visit to The Boys & Girls club of Brockton. During his visit, Adam handed out over 200 gifts that were purchased and wrapped by The Phia Group. It is truly a pleasure to see the look on their faces when Santa brings them exactly what they asked for on their wish list.

The Phia Group invites its staff to donate various items for the benefit of The Boys and Girls Club of Brockton. For more information or to get involved, visit www.bgcbrockton.org.

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The Stacks

Managing Plan Communication During a Time of Legislative Uncertainty

By: Corrie Cripps – December 2017 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

While the congressional efforts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2017 have failed, the Trump administration is now taking executive and regulatory action to modify various aspects of the ACA. In addition, other guidance that may affect group health plans in 2018 is still pending. The following is a summary of the recent regulatory actions that will affect self-insured plans in 2018.

Click here to read the rest of this article

Interim Final Rules Update

By: Krista Maschinot, Esq. – November 2017 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.
 

On October 6, 2017, the Trump Administration issued two Interim Final Rules (IFR) related to the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) contraceptive mandate. These rules apply to all employers and create additional considerations for employers sponsoring self-funded plans and their third-party administrators (TPAs).

Click here to read the rest of this article.

The Future of Self-Funding-An Insider's Take

By: Adam V. Russo, Esq. – October 2017 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

According to the 2016 Milliman Medical Index, the typical family of four costs $25,826 annually in premium and out of pocket expenses and 57% of costs are borne by the employer. Self-funding the right way can reduce these figures significantly and we as an industry must focus on this. At our company, a single employee pays $127.62 for health insurance a month. This compares to the $554 average in the state of Massachusetts, based on the 2017 UBA survey.

Click here to read the rest of this article.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Phia’s Q4 Speaking Events:

Phia’s Speaking Engagements:

Adam Russo’s 2018 Speaking Engagements:

• 1/23/18 – Q4 Intelligence Conference – Tampa, FL

• 2/2/2018 – Benefit Intelligence School District Conference – Phoenix, AZ

• 2/7/2018 – CGI Business Solutions Seminar – Manchester, NH

• 3/7/2018 – SIIA Self-Insured Health Plan Executive Forum – Charleston, NC

Ron Peck’s 2017 Speaking Engagements:

• 1/25/2018 – HealthFirst TPA Client Conference – Tyler, TX

• 3/6/2018 – SIIA National Conference – Charleston, SC

• 3/7/2018 – CGI Business Solutions Seminar – Manchester, NH

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Get to Know Our Employee of the Quarter:
Brady Bizarro

Congratulations to Brady Bizarro, The Phia Group’s Q4 2017 Employee of the Quarter!

Brady joined The Phia Group, LLC as an attorney in early 2016. As a member of The Phia Group's in-house legal team, he focuses on contract review, ERISA, ACA, and HIPAA compliance, claim negotiation, and providing general consultative advice on matters involving the health insurance industry and employee benefits law.

Congratulations Brady and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

Get to Know Our Employees of the Year: Amanda Grogan & Hemant Dua

Amanda: An attorney’s office sent the following to Amanda’s manager: “I wanted to take a moment to tell you what a professional, courteous, knowledgeable, and helpful employee Amanda Grogan is. Besides her helping me with a very difficult file she understands how her industry and her desk works, including the language we need in order to do these files and that is something that should be applauded.”

Hemant: “What more can be said about the man that came to our company and within 3 months deployed a brand new claims system that was in development for 2 years, within 6 months rewrote 75% of the logic code to ensure proper processing of our clients’ claims data in TPS, within 9 months stabilized TPS and pioneered ground breaking performance improvements that were unfathomable with EZD and most recently trained Zach, our new Principal Developer, and on-boarded our new offshore development team, Hitachi. He has been an integral part to this year’s success and his drive to resolve every issue for the TPS users is commendable. He has been a great mentor to many Phia employees that have been with the company for years, showing his business acumen to learn our processes quickly and apply them. His ability to provide solutions, teach the user how the solution was achieved and encourage the user to utilize the newly learned skills in their future endeavors makes Hemant a true sensei. Phia is lucky to have such an amazing individual working to make Phia great again!”

Congratulations Amanda & Hemant and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

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Phia News

• Rock Stars of Health Award o The Phia Group was recently awarded the “Rock Stars of Health GOLD Award” during The Rock Stars of Health Summit held in Missoula, Montana on September 29, 2017. The award recognizes innovation in the implementation of employee health initiatives that unify expertise in wellness, employee health, safety, risk management, and employee benefits.

• Year Up at Phia! o The Phia Group has been beyond thrilled with our talented, dedicated members who have come to us through Year Up. Sheyla and Josh have become such essential members of our team – we feel truly blessed to call them a part of the Phia Family. We sat down with them to hear their thoughts and experiences. Find out what they had to say!

Job Opportunities:

• Consultant I

• Health Benefit Plan Administration – Attorney

• IT Technologist

• Administrative Assistant – Recovery

• Case Analyst

See the latest job opportunities, here: https://www.phiagroup.com/About-Us/Careers

Promotions

• Keith McMahon was promoted from Claim Recovery Specialist IV – WC to Claim Recovery Specialist IV – BI

• Casey Balchunas was promoted from Claim Recovery Specialist III to Claim Recovery Specialist IV

• Joseph Bacon was promoted from Legal Assistant to Claim Recovery Specialist

• Sabrina Centeio was promoted from Case Handler to Claims Recovery Specialist III

• Jillian Painten was promoted from Claim Recovery Specialist IV to Team Leader

• Cori DeCristoforo was promoted from Customer Service to Case Evaluation

• Jiyra Martinez was promoted from a part-time employee to a full-time employee
 

New Hires

• Harry Horton was hired as an Attorney

• Rea Kostopulos was hired as a Talent Acquisition Specialist

• Dixie Hayenga was hired as a Consultant

• Kerry Brennan was hired as a Legal Assistant
 

Fun at Phia:

Our Phia Family is so festive! Our “Ugly Sweater Day” was a hit and we thank all those who participated; congratulations to Josh (pictured below sporting a little red number, complete with a reindeer puppy, plus bells and ornaments) for winning “Ugliest Sweater”!

How great are these costumes? This year the Phia Halloween Costume Contest was truly a nail-biter. Who would win? The Cowardly Lion? The clown? The fan favorite “Orange Blob,” bravely worn by Sheyla ultimately took home the gold. Thank you to all who participated, you truly made it a stellar Halloween!

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Service Focus of the Quarter: The Phia Group Flagship Template

Our plan document can now be yours in a fraction of the time. Taking the guesswork out of best practices and utilizing optimal provisions, The Phia Group Flagship Template offers an unrivaled plan document, with time and cost effectiveness in mind.

Let us make your life easier and your plan document drafting experience more accurate. With minimal time or monetary investment, you can now take advantage of the industry's most thorough yet efficient plan document production tool. Despite having 75% fewer questions than any other customizable plan document template, The Phia Group Flagship Template is both compliant with federal law, as well as innovative in its use of cost-containment tools and participant incentivizing provisions.

It should therefore come as no surprise that following in-depth review and assessment, The Phia Group Flagship Template is supported by many leading stop loss carriers.

Contact Garrick Hunt at ghunt@phiagroup.com or 781-535-5644 to learn more about how The Phia Flagship Template can help you.

New Services and Offerings:

New Phia Tableau Reporting Portal Tool now available:

At The Phia Group, we value transparency and customer satisfaction above all else. In recognition of those priorities, we routinely improve our client facing reports and reporting capabilities. To that end, we are proud to announce that we will be further expanding our reporting service features. Through the use of Tableau (https://www.tableau.com/), reports will now offer a new level of customization, enabling you and The Phia Group to collaborate like never before. These features are not only available to our Subrogation and Third Party Claim Recovery clients, but also customers utilizing any of our Provider Relations services (such as Phia Unwrapped, Balance Bill Support, and Claim Negotiation and Signoff).

For more information regarding the new Phia Tableau Reporting Tool and pricing, please contact Garrick Hunt at ghunt@phiagroup.com or call him at (781) 535-5644

Cutting back on Questionnaires:

It is The Phia Group’s mission to reduce the cost of healthcare through the use of innovative legal techniques and the most sophisticated technology. In keeping with this goal The Phia Group is always taking steps to improve all of our services, including our earliest: subrogation. Recent upgrades to The Phia System™ and advancements in our investigational techniques have led to faster identification of third party liability claims and quicker engagement by The Phia Group’s team, without relying upon or otherwise communicating with the plan participants. These new resources allow us to identify opportunities more often and more effectively, while at the same time reducing the volume of accident questionnaires we send to plan participants. While accident questionnaires are still a useful tool when investigating and collecting accident details – they are no longer the only tool. As such, we are pleased to now provide all of our subrogation clients with the ability to increase, decrease, or cease the use of plan participant accident questionnaires. Clients can also opt to utilize their own letters, or have the employer communicate directly with plan participants.

The Phia Group is committed to ensuring you and your clients are provided with nothing but the highest quality service, best-in-class performance, and a member first approach. That is why we are continuously improving our services to provide the best performance (and most options) possible.

To discuss these new customization capabilities, or our other services, please contact Garrick Hunt at ghunt@phiagroup.com or call (781) 535-5644.

Phia Group Case Study:

The Phia Group was presented with a case where a self-funded health plan paid a claim based on a network rate; the billed charges were $211,500, and the network rate was 51% of billed charges – netting payment of $107,865. When submitted to stop-loss the group’s carrier denied a portion of the claim paid, citing the stop-loss policy exclusion of all amounts in excess of Usual and Customary amounts, as determined by the carrier.

The kicker: that was all the stop-loss policy’s exclusion said - Usual and Customary was not defined anywhere within the policy.

The carrier was of the opinion that 150% of the Medicare rate was Usual and Customary, and upon that basis allowed only $22,000 – denying reimbursement of nearly $87,000 that the Plan paid pursuant to its PPO contract. The group attempted to appeal the denial, but the carrier stood firm; the group was all but ready to give up the fight, when the group changed brokers and the new broker’s first order of business was to consult The Phia Group.

The Phia Group got in touch with the stop-loss carrier on the group’s behalf and attempted to explain the group’s position. The existence of the PPO contract and required payment amount combined with the carrier’s lack of explicit, supporting policy language in the stop-loss policy (along with other arguments – legal and common sense) formed the basis of our position. After many rounds of discussions, the carrier agreed to reimburse the entire claim paid except for $2,073 in “ineligible” charges.

The plan’s liability for the denied stop-loss claim was $87,000, and The Phia Group’s intervention helped save $85,000.

Fiduciary Burden of the Quarter:

Traditionally, we have discussed fiduciary burdens in terms of companies that perform “plan” functions– such as repricing claims or administering appeals – but this quarter has seen certain instances in which those that perform “settlor” functions (most prominently a broker placing stop-loss or network coverage) have encountered some fiduciary issues. For example: a recent dispute between a plan, its broker, a network administrator, and stop-loss carrier in which the broker apparently placed inadequate or insufficient stop-loss coverage to support a network’s standard policies. The issue is that the network contract required payment of claims that the carrier did not cover; caught in the cross-fire is the broker, who placed this business, and who allegedly should have been aware of the potential discrepancy.

The allegation? That the broker simply provided bad guidance regarding the choice of which network/carrier combination the plan should use. It is a very easy mistake to make and one that can potentially be made by anyone placing business. Our advice to brokers, TPAs, and other advisors, is to make sure you are as diligent as possible when making decisions for, or even making suggestions to, your clients. Self-funded plan sponsors and plan administrators rely heavily on their advisors; when they are given questionable advice, the backlash can be huge – and it can be unexpected.

Our popular services: plan document review, stop loss policy review, and Gap-Free Analysis  (which compares the stop-loss policy to a plan document, network contract, or other materials), can help identify issues and potential “gaps” in coverage before they happen. This can mean the difference between spending $120,000 on a new Maserati, and spending $120,000 to indemnify your client from an unexpected stop-loss denial.

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Phia Fit to Print:

• Money Inc. – “Affordable” Health Insurance Is Not “Affordable” Health Care – May 11, 2017

• Boston Voyager – Meet Ron E. Peck of The Phia Group in Braintree – August 7, 2017

• Money Inc. – All Against One and One Not for All: A Case Against a Single Payer System – August 21, 2017

• Bloomberg – Employers Taking Action to Control Health-Care Costs – September 5, 2017

• California Broker Magazine – Even as “Repeal and Replace” Falters Self-funding Remains Strong – September 7, 2017

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – State-mandated Continuation of Coverage and ERISA Preemption: What Self-funded Employers Need to Know – August 4, 2017

• Self-Insurers Publishing Corp. – Taking Health Care International - The Growing Trends of Importing Care and Exporting Patients – July 3, 2017

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From the Blogosphere:

• Stop Loss and My Infinite Sadness. You get what you pay for.

• Uncertainty Prevails in the Health Care Debate. The dog days of summer have come and gone.

• Reverse Medical Tourism. US patients are seeking services abroad to obtain services and care at more affordable rates.

• Spinning the Web of the Plan Document. No, this isn’t about spiders.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Webinars

Best Practices for Today's Plan Documents

On October 17, 2017, The Phia Group will present “Best Practices for Today's Plan Documents,” where our legal team will discuss best and worst plan document practices, provide some creative ideas for plan formation, and suggest some concepts to help perfect plan document drafting.

Click HERE to Register!

On September 21, 2017, The Phia Group presented “It’s Time To Renew – Revisiting Stop Loss Trends,” where we discussed understanding procedures preemptively, reviewing a plan document side-by-side with the stop loss policy, and agreeing upon language interpretations.

On August 22, 2017, The Phia Group presented “A True Impact on the Bottom Line – Identifying Current Issues, Implementing Solutions & Seeing Results,” where we discussed the biggest issues impacting the health benefits industry today.

On July 13, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Consulting Headlines – The Hottest Topics in Benefit Plan Administration,” where our legal team discussed how laws are changing, regulations are shifting, and benefit plans are scrambling to keep up.

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Podcasts:

On September 11, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Cutting Out Conflict,” where our legal team explained what plan administrators can do to cut out conflict and tie up loose ends before they suffer a costly loss.

On August 21, 2017, The Phia Group presented “In Reference to reference Based Pricing,” where Adam Russo and Ron Peck picked apart the method for containing costs, identified the pros and cons of an “RBP” plan, and discussed options to customize such a program.

On August 11, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Stopping the Bleeding,” where The Phia Group’s CEO, Adam Russo and Attorney Brady Bizarro interviewed Garrick Hunt, Phia’s Sales Executive.

On August 7, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Repeal & Replace Fails: What’s Next,” where The Phia Group's CEO, Adam Russo, Sr. VP, Ron Peck, and Attorney Brady Bizarro discussed the dramatic events on Capitol Hill and the shocking failure of Senate Republicans to repeal and replace Obamacare.

On July 17, 2017, The Phia Group presented “Your Friendly Neighborhood Provider,” where Ron Peck, Jon Jablon and Andrew Silverio shared stories and examples of providers working with payers to preserve the private employer based group health plan industry.

On July 10, 2017, The Phia Group presented “The Cost of Care,” where The Phia Group's CEO, Adam Russo and Sr. VP, Ron Peck, interviewed Attorney Jon Jablon - Director of Provider Relations

Be sure to check out all of our latest podcasts!

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The Phia Group’s 2017 Charity

At The Phia Group, we value our community and everyone in it. As we grow and shape our company, we hope to do the same for the people around us.

The Phia Group's 2017 charity is the Boys & Girls Club of Brockton.

The mission of The Boys & Girls Club is to nurture strong minds, healthy bodies, and community spirit through youth-driven quality programming in a safe and fun environment.

The Boys & Girls Club of Brockton (BGCB) was founded in 1990 to create a positive place for the youth of Brockton, Massachusetts. It immediately met a need in the community; in the first year alone, 500 youths, ages 8-18, signed up as club members. In the 25 years since, the club has expanded its scope exponentially by offering a mix of Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) nationally developed programs and activities unique to this club.

Since their founding, more than 20,000 Brockton youth have been welcomed through their doors. Currently, they serve more than 1,000 boys and girls ages 5-18 annually through academic year and summertime programming.

On Friday, August 24th, employees of The Phia Group participated in the annual volunteer day at The Boys & Girls club of Brockton. Employees of The Phia Group hosted a number of activities that all of the children truly enjoyed. This year, The Phia Group collected and donated $4,500 to help keep this program running and enjoyable for years to come!  

The Phia Group invites its staff to donate various items for the benefit of The Boys and Girls Club of Brockton. For more information or to get involved, visit www.bgcbrockton.org.

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The Stacks

Aid-in-dying Laws and the Implications for Self-Funded Plans

By: Maribel E. McLaughlin, Esq. – September 2017 - Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

Two years ago, a woman close to my mother was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. Along with her two daughters, she went through the various treatment options presented to her and determined that she was going to try all of them. She wanted to put her best foot forward for her daughters and her granddaughter, and she found the strength to fight the cancer with every cell in her body.

Click here to read the rest of this article

State-mandated Continuation of Coverage and ERISA Preemption: What Self-funded Employers Need to Know

By: Brady Bizarro, Esq. – August 2017 - Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

According to one prominent health law attorney, “Although in its text ‘hospital’ appears only once and ‘physician’ not all, ERISA may be the most important law [prior to the Affordable Care Act] affecting health care in the United States.” William Sage, “Health Law 2000”: The Legal System and the Changing Health Care Market, 15(3) Health Aff. 9 (Aug. 1996). Understanding the intricacies of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1973 (“ERISA”) and its preemption clause can be a challenge for even the most assiduous attorney. The statute supersedes any and all state laws insofar as they “relate to” any employee benefit plan. It also contains a “savings clause” which preserves the state’s traditional role of regulating insurance. That clause is then qualified by the “deemer clause,” which acts as a kind of escape hatch through the savings clause. For employers, that escape hatch is key because it allows them to avoid state insurance regulations by self-funding their health plans rather than by purchasing health insurance. Increasingly, however, states are testing the limits of preemption by passing leave laws which mandate that employers continue health insurance coverage for eligible employees out on leave.

Click here to read the rest of this article.

Taking Health Care International – The Growing Trends of Importing Care and Exporting Patients

By: Andrew Silverio, Esq. – July 2017 – Self-Insurers Publishing Corp.

Esteemed physicist Richard Feynman is remembered by many for the phrase “If you think you understand quantum mechanics, you don’t understand quantum mechanics.” This sentiment rings true for the continually evolving landscape of our healthcare system as well, and the problems facing all of us, particularly as insurers, employers, and patients. For those of us within the healthcare or health risk industries, the more we learn about the problems we face and what is causing them, the more we realize just how complex the landscape is and what an impossible task it would be for any single solution to reel in the cost of care.

Click here to read the rest of this article.

To stay up to date on other industry news, please visit our blog.

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Phia’s Q4 Speaking Events:

Phia’s Speaking Engagements:

• 7/12/17 – Montana Captive Conference – Whitefish, MT “High Performing Self-Insured Health Plans – The Key to Successful Stop-loss Captive Programs”

• 8/9/17 – NAHU Region 1 Meeting – Stamford, CT “The Best gets Better: Getting the Most out of Your Self-Funded Plans”

• 9/19/17 – Custom Design Benefits – Cincinnati, OH “The Top 10 Innovations in Self-Funding”

• 9/27/17 – TABA’s 2017 Fall Conference and Membership Meeting - The Woodlands, TX “Gap Traps: Avoiding Variances between the Employee Handbook and the Plan Document”

• 10/3/17 – NHAHU – Bedford, NH “Top 10 Do’s & Don’ts of Self-Funding”

• 10/4/17 – Hewitt Coleman Broker Meeting – Greenville, SC “The Future of Self-Funding & Reference Based Pricing”

• 10/16/17 – Captivated Health Membership Meeting – Woburn, MA “Empower & Engage Through Your Handbook”

Ron Peck’s 2017 Speaking Engagements:

• 9/19/17 – CIC-DC 2017 Annual Conference – Washington, D.C. “Cost Containment Strategies”

Tim Callender’s 2017 Speaking Engagements:
• 7/17/17 – Health Care Administrator’s Association TPA Summit – St. Louis, MO “Conference Emcee”

• 8/17/17 – FMMA 2017 Annual Conference – Oklahoma City, OK “Critical Strategies in Self-Funding to Promote the Free Market”

• 9/21/17 – Metro Detroit Association of Health Underwriters, Annual Conference – Troy, MI “The Real Causes of High Healthcare Costs & True Cost-Containment Strategies to Combat Cost.”

• 10/10/17 – SIIA, National Educational Conference & Expo – Phoenix, AZ “Through the Looking Glass – a Non-Vendor Take on Reference Based Pricing”

Brady Bizarro's 2017 Speaking Engagements:
• 7/18/17 – HCAA TPA Summit 2017 – St. Louis, MO “Ethics”

• 8/9/17 – TPAC 2017 Conference – Philadelphia, PA “Most Common Mistakes Employers Make in Their Plan Documents.”

• 9/26/17 – TABA’s 2017 Fall Conference and Membership Meeting - The Woodlands, TX “Gap Traps: Avoiding Variances between the Employee Handbook and the Plan Document”

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Get to Know Our Employee of the Quarter:
Kerri Sherman

Congratulations to Kerri Sherman, The Phia Group’s Q3 2017 Employee of the Quarter!

“Kerri consistently goes above and beyond to help all of us when help is needed. Kerri is always around to provide assistance and help out wherever she can! Whether it be training, or making sure we have all the tools we need to complete our work. She has been in the training room at times working with new people, but always keeps us informed of where she will be and what she is doing, so if any issues arise, we know how to proceed. We think she is a fantastic multi-tasker and is always supportive. She always provides quick feedback if something requires immediate attention and always provides detailed explanations of everything that needs to be done in order to solve the issue. We have appreciated all the hard work she has done to help me keep my case load at bay especially while we were preparing to go on vacation. We think she has been phenomenal and we are happy to have her on our team. She is reasonable and fair, while maintaining professionalism.”

Congratulations Kerri and thank you for your many current and future contributions.

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Phia News

Catherine Dowie’s Latest Win

We would like to congratulate Catherine Dowie on her latest win! Phia’s own Catherine Dowie won a $25,000 prize in the Philip Shawe Scholarship Competition, tying for second place in a pool of 240 applicants who submitted briefs to the crowd sourcing contest. We are proud to have you on our team. Get all of the details in recent article published by Suffolk University Law School.


Job Opportunities:

• Customer Service Representative

• Claims Specialist

• Medical Bill Negotiator

• Health Benefit Plan Consultant I

• Health Benefit Plan Administration – Attorney II

• Product Development Manager

See the latest job opportunities, here: https://www.phiagroup.com/About-Us/Careers

 

Babies

• Jamie Johnson gave birth to Miles and Kaia on 7/10/2017


Promotions

• Ulyana Bevilacqua was promoted from Consultant to Supervisor, PGC

• Elizabeth Pels was promoted from Legal Assistant to Claim Recovery Specialist

• Joseph Bacon was promoted from Legal Assistant to Claim Recovery Specialist

• Vourneen O’Donovan was promoted from Legal Assistant to Claim Recovery Specialist

• Cheyenne Fonseca was promoted from Legal Assistant to Claim Recovery Specialist



New Hires

• Joseph Bacon was hired as a Legal Assistant

• Naveen Omkar was hired as an IT Technologist

• Trevor Schramn was hired as a Sales and Accounts Coordinator

• Jeff Booth was hired as a Training and Development Manager

• Jen Montalto was hired as a Case Investigator/Stop Loss

• Mike Mears was hired as a Claim Analyst

• Gordon Glenn was hired as an IT Technologist

• Olesya Avramenko was hired as a Consultant I

• Michelle Rowland was hired as a Consultant I

• Alexandra Simboski was hired as a Consultant I

• Patrick Ouellette was hired as a Juris Doctor

• Andrew Fine was hired as an Intake Specialist

• Erin Hussey was hired as an Attorney I

• Catina Griffiths was hired as a Case Investigator

• Samad Khan was hired as a Contract Administrator

• Zackery McLaren was hired as a Case Investigator

• Kaley Dennison was hired as a Case Investigator

• Ekta Gupta was hired as an ETL Specialist

• Kathy baker was hired as a Claim Recovery Specialist IV-WC

• Annie Heskin was hired as a Talent Acquisition Specialist



Fun at Phia:

Solar Eclipse of 2017






Rock Star Recognition:

The Phia Group was recently awarded the “Rock Stars of Health GOLD Award” during The Rock Stars of Health Summit held in Missoula, Montana on September 29, 2017.



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