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Risk Manager Newsletter April/Spring 2008
April/Spring 2008 Our Diverse Products and Services Portfolio Gives You Many Choices by: By Thomas A. Witkowski, President As your association member specialist, we understand the importance of offering a wide array of products and services for your office. We continue to pride ourselves in our partnerships with financially sound insurance companies and experts in complex lines of insurance. Our programs include: - Group and individual health insurance including Health Savings Accounts, Health Reimbursement Arrangements and Flexible Spending Accounts offered through all the major insurance companies including WPS, Anthem, Humana, United HealthCare and Assurant - Ancillary benefits including group life, short & long term disability, office overhead expense disability and dental insurance - Individual life and disability advanced product sales through MetLife utilizing Mr. Mike Dow, CPA, as our advisor. - Individual long term care insurance through John Hancock; Melissa Coppage advisor - Professional liability, business owner’s and Workers Compensation insurance through trusted names like CNA, Philadelphia, West Bend Mutual, Pennsylvania Manufacturers and GenStar - Auto, homeowners, motorcycle, RV, boat and snowmobile/ATV coverage through West Bend Mutual - Risk management services provided by CNA HealthPro In the future, watch for a human resources program, identity theft products, health care advocacy, wellness initiatives and equipment financing. We’re your agency and we’re here for you. back to top Accountants! If the numbers just aren’t adding up when it comes to your Professional Liability insurance, contact the dedicated staff at Professional Insurance Programs, Inc. for a review. 800-637-4676 * 414-277-0154 or via email at pip@execpc.com. back to top The Top 10 Causes of Malpractice Suits Against Attorneys 1. Missed Deadlines 2. Lack of Professionalism 3. Stress & Substance Abuse 4. Conflicts of Interest 5. Poor Client Relations 6. Substantive Legal Errors 7. Ineffective Client Screening 8. A Malpractice Counterclaim in Response to a Suit for Fees 9. Inadequate Documentation of Work 10. Coming Technology Traps back to top COBRA or STATE CONTINUATION? by: By: Christine K. Bachmann, PIP Senior Account Representative Many business owners are unaware of the laws that govern the right of an employee to continue their health coverage after terminating their employment. Under federal law; which applies to employers of 20 or more employees “COBRA” must be offered, versus state law, which applies to employers with less than 20 employees and is referred to as “State Continuation”. Under State Continuation a person may continue group coverage until: • Residence outside Wisconsin is established • Premiums are not paid • The person becomes eligible for similar coverage under another group policy • In the case of a divorced person who is continuing under a former spouse’s coverage, the former spouse loses eligibility for the group policy • 18 months of continued group coverage elapse • An employee must have been continuously covered for at least three months for the right to continue coverage Please note that dependent children losing coverage because of age are not eligible for State Continuation. (If coverage for a dependent student is terminated, you may contact our office to inquire about a Short Term medical plan.) Keep in mind it is the responsibility of the employer to notify terminating employees of their right to continue coverage. If coverage terminates, the aggrieved party may have a basis for a civil action against the employer or former spouse Where to Go For Help! For questions about Wisconsin State Law, contact: Office of the Commissioner of Insurance 1-800-236-8517 www.oci.wi.gov For questions about Federal Law, private employers may contact: U.S. Department of Labor 312-353-0900 www.dol.gov/ebsa back to top Attention Paralegals! The Wisconsin State Bar group health plan is available not only to Attorneys and Law Firms, but to Independent Paralegals as well. For more information, please contact your Account Representative at 414-277-0154, 800-637-4676 or visit PIP’s website at www.insuranceformembers.com. back to top Graduating Seniors & Insurance Students graduating in the near future may need insurance during a probationary period through an employer or coverage until they find a job. Search no more, simply call your Account Representative at the Professional nsurance Programs at 414-277-0154 or 800-637-4676 for more information. back to top Got Your Dot? Got Your Dot? Right now there are nearly 100,000 men, women, and children aross the country wiating for a healthy organ to replace a failing kidney, heart, lung, liver, or pancreas. Every day, 18 die waiting. Join WPS Health Insurance in their ORGANize to Save Lies campaign - a statewide effort to sign up one million new organ/tissue donors by 2010. Participation in the campaign is easy. Let your employees know about this issue and make organ donation stickers for their driver's licenses available. WPS has created easy-to-use campaign materials that you can download from their Web site - WPS Home Page back to top Tell Us What You Think by: Mara T. Roberts, Vice President To gain a better understanding of what the members of the various professional associations we serve expect in terms of the products and services we are currently providing or should be providing in the future, we have hired the Chamness Group out of Milwaukee to conduct a market research survey beginning in late April. This survey will include both indepth telephone conversations and an email survey which participants can complete on-line at their convenience. We appreciate that your time is valuable and limited therefore we have made a concerted effort to minimize the length of these surveys while still allowing us to gather important insights from the participants. If you are not contacted but would like to participate, a link to the on-line survey will appear in the Documents section of our website in late April. Thank you in advance for helping us better serve you back to top Past Issues January/Winter 2008 October/Fall 2007 July/Summer 2007 April/Spring 2007 Oct/Fall 2006 July/Summer 2006 April/Spring 2006 Jan/Winter 2006 Oct/Fall2005 July 05 RM April05RM 4th Quarter 2004 3rd Quarter 2004 2nd Quarter 2004 1st Quarter 2004 2nd Quarter 2003 1st Quarter 2003 4th Quarter 3rd Quarter 2002 Oct/Fall 2005 1st Quarter 2002 3rd Quarter 2003 2nd Quarter 2002 4th Quarter 2003 |
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