Employer-Paid

Six out of 10 employers hope Congress will repeal health care reform while seven in 10 employers do not believe the legislation will alleviate health care costs, according to Health Care Reform 360, a national study by Market Strategies International.

More than 40 percent of employers say they are likely to pass along cost increases to workers, and about half of workers expect their health benefit costs to go up whether directly or indirectly related to the PPACA.

Nonprofit National Business Coalition on health has launched a value-based purchasing guide website to support employers, purchaser-led coalitions, health plans and other health care entities.

The IRS recently released final guidance for small employers eligible to claim the new small business health care tax credit for the 2010 tax year.

In a recent survey, employers say they are not likely to drop health care once state-run insurance exchanges take effect in 2014, finds consulting firm Mercer.

The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) slammed pharmacy benefit managers for pursuing profit over client interests after a report from AARP found retail prices of brand-name drugs skyrocketed in 2009.

Almost all (90 percent) of U.S. companies surveyed recently by Hewitt Associates say they anticipate losing their grandfathered health plan status by 2014, with the majority expecting to do so within the next two years.