Meg Seybold – Page 2 – WisMed Assure

2021: New Year New Goals

January 8, 2021January 8, 2021

If you hate setting annual goals, relax, you’re not alone!

By Shawna Bertalot, CIC, ACI – WisMed Assure President

In an article titled “10 Top New Year’s Resolutions for Success and Happiness”, INC. Media added this subtitle: “Studies show that about 60 percent of us make New Year’s resolutions each year—sadly, only about 8 percent of us achieve them.”

If your employer requires you to set annual goals, but it feels tedious, overwhelming, and not very meaningful to you, relax, you’re not alone!

Because we’re on a mission to protect and accelerate your success, we asked our team to share their secrets for successfully achieving the goals they set. And, we’ve kept it simple by selecting the Top Three:

Make your goals SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound). Here’s the best part; if you are required to set work goals you can actually make them personally meaningful by making them specific and relevant. And, by defining how you will measure results and setting a time deadline, you set yourself up for success.
Write it down! A Google search reveals many studies that conclude you are 42% more likely to achieve your goals when you write them down. And, success is increased when you share your goals with others… some of whom may actually hold you accountable.
Don’t set more than three major goals. Big goals always have sub-parts, objectives and tactics; business and life coaches agree, more than three is too many.

While you are at it, why not set use these three rules when you set personal goals?

We have two members on our team who are truly Goal-Achieving Champions and they have agreed to share their personal goals.

Kathy Mueller just celebrated 25 years as an insurance advisor with WisMed Assure. She credits her success in large part to setting and achieving professional and personal goals every year. Kathy’s 2020 Personal Goals were:

Annual wellness physical plus two dental check ups
Walk 10,000 steps a day measured and tracked by a Fitbit
Do three additional workouts (cardio, Pilates, etc.) each week

Laura Jacobs is the Director of Communications and Marketing for Wisconsin Medical Society. She excels at project management and, no surprise, at goal setting. Laura’s 2020 Personal Goals were:

Read one book per month
Win 5 Fitbit “workweek hustle” challenges
Connect Kindle to our digital public library system

Good luck achieving your goals in 2021!

shawna.bertalot@wismedassure.org

608-442-3738

Long Term Care: What You Need to Know

December 4, 2020January 11, 2021

By Kathy Mueller, CLU, ChFC, FIC, LUTCF – WisMed Assure Insurance Advisor

We all know the importance of figuring out how much we will need to live on in retirement and being able to save enough money to generate what we need.

However, one thing most Americans don’t even think about is the cost of long term care. Even though 70% of people 65 and older will need some form of long term care in their lifetime, less than 15% of adults age 50 and over have a long term care policy in place.

Today’s cost of an assisted living facility average about $45,000 per year… and you can double that for nursing home care!

Why is there such a coverage gap? Mostly, it comes down to a genuine lack of awareness and understanding of what long term care insurance is, how it works, and what it costs. Many people think Medicare pays for long term care… bad news; it doesn’t. While a few wealthier people can pay for long term care out of pocket, but most of us will not be able to do so.

What is the solution? It’s long term care planning. And, one of the key components of a sound plan is a long term care policy to cover some of the costs. There’s good news, today’s long term care insurance looks quite different than it did 20 years ago. Many of today’s modern contracts pay out a life insurance benefit to your beneficiaries if you die without using all of your long term care benefits.

Here’s the bottom line: to be most effective, your retirement and financial planning has to include long term care. We can help you discover if and how long term care fits in your future. For more information, please click here.

Cyber Security in 2020

October 27, 2020October 27, 2020

Our partner insurance carrier Tokio Marine HCC published a 2020 Cyber Digest: Analysis of 2019 Cyber Claims Data. The following excerpts are particularly relevant to physician’s offices, and other healthcare-related facilities:

If there was a theme for 2019 cyber claims, it would be the growth of phishing attacks * on small to mid-size businesses. Ransomware and ﬁnancial fraud claims were up across the board vs 2018 and, largely, initiated through phishing attacks. Though the larger cyber incidents at Facebook, Citrix, and Capital One grab the headlines, the rampant attacks on small and mid-sized businesses are devastating as most SMBs don’t have sufficient resources to prepare nor defend themselves. A recent Fundera study reports that “3 out of 4 small businesses don’t have the personnel to address IT security.”

* ”phishing” is a technique used to gain access to your company email so criminals can impersonate a co-worker, manager or other trusted business partner to steal sensitive data and money.

While the cybercriminals continue to increase the frequency and sophistication of their attacks, business owners are also becoming more knowledgeable and prepared to defend themselves and their organizations. While cyber insurance is one effective means of mitigating risk, there are new tools, processes and technologies that small businesses can employ to protect themselves.

For best practices to ﬁght cybercrime, download the Tokio Marine HCC Ransomware & BEC Fact Sheet.

For more information about Cyber Liability Insurance solutions, please click here

For more information about this 2019 Cyber Claims Digest please visit our partners online at tmhcc.com/cyber

Fall 2020 Issue

September 15, 2020June 30, 2025

More options available even while insurers brace for uncertainty

By Shawna Bertalot, CIC, ACI, President WisMed Assure

While insurance companies continue to assess what their products cover and the cost of coverage, governments are introducing new laws that can directly and indirectly impact risk and insurance. It is a constantly evolving situation which we are closely monitoring.

To better serve the medical profession, our team has sought out alternative carriers and products to ensure you have the greatest amount of choice possible. Some of the new options we provide are directly related to the changes care givers have had to make due to the coronavirus. (E.g.: Retired physicians returning to work have new options. Physicians who have increased their telemedicine activity have new options.)

Look Out! Open Enrollment is Upon Us!

By Chris Noffke, GBDS – VP of Employee Benefits

November is coming and so too are your updated employee health plan costs… if the carriers are up to speed!

Regardless, it is time to start thinking about and planning for open enrollment. In addition to being prepared so that employees have the time, information, and support they need to select a plan that best fits their needs, here are some important changes you need to know.

Financial Success Requires Offense and Defense

By Tom Strangstalien, Financial Protection Advisor

Offense, financially speaking, is focused on growth. Defense is focused on keeping what you have. Pretty simple concepts all-in-all. However, each has nuances that vary depending on your tolerance for risk, age, retirement goals, current and future lifestyle goals, and of course, income.

Income itself is one of your offensive tools. This includes the income you earn from working and passive income earned by investments. The other form of offense shows up in investment portfolio design and is generally about choosing assets or combinations of assets that have a high probability for growth… and generally, a greater degree of risk. And, of course, you can also play defense in your portfolio by choosing assets that are slower growing and less risky. The proportion of offense and defense in your portfolio is dependent on the variables mentioned above. This is where the advice of a professional investment advisor who understands your current situation, along with your goals and desires, is essential to your success.

Income Driven Repayment Plans

By Rufus Sweeney

Looking forward to residency also means looking forward to repaying your student loans.

Sounds like fun… doesn’t it?

OK, perhaps not a lot of fun, but unavoidable. So, to reduce your stress and feel good about your financial progress, you need to make the best choice. And, making the best choice for how to repay your student loans takes a little thinking.

Before we look at the different types of repayment plans here are two important things to remember:

Winter 2020 Issue

January 31, 2020June 30, 2025

Play Defense and Offense to Win the Medical Liability Game

This is the final instalment of a three-part series on changes in the Wisconsin MPL insurance market.

By Shawna Bertalot, CIC, ACI – WisMed Assure President

Three of every four primary care physicians will be sued by a patient during the course of their career. The numbers are even worse for specialties.

Which is why physicians as a whole are not willing to take the chance they will be among the lucky few who never get sued. To guard against the financial impact of a law suit, they purchase Medical Professional Liability (MPL) insurance. But, as Wisconsin physicians begin to experience rising MPL premiums along with greater underwriting scrutiny, the question becomes, “How can I get the coverage I need and avoid paying too much

Term Life Insurance

By Dave Serena

“How much can I get for how little?”

This is the usual question from a potential buyer of “Term” Life insurance.
But for our Residents, Fellows, and young Physicians who want to protect their life and their family, it’s an incomplete question.
The better question is, “How can I inexpensively protect my family from bad consequences while we buy time for our assets to grow to a point where we won’t need Life Insurance anymore?”

Dave Serena has been an Insurance Advisor with Wisconsin Medical Society Insurance Services since 1995. Working exclusively with Physicians – he has more than 800 active clients – Mr. Serena provides guidance for income and asset protection. He is dedicated to working with Residents, Fellows, and practicing Physicians and their families. Mr. Serena is a member of the National Association of Life Underwriters and the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors. He is the recipient of the National Association of Life Unerwriters’ prestigious National Quality Award.

Physician Wellness Matters

New course battles financial stress and physician burnout

by Christopher Rufus Sweeny

The survey says… wait, that’s wrong. Start again: 42 percent of all surveyed physicians say that they are burned out. And that number is steadily rising.
My research shows that financial anxiety is one of the primary drivers of physician depression, burnout, and suicide. When asked why, physicians say it’s because of their job. But, when asked what would reduce burnout, their first answer is increased compensation to avoid financial stress.
But, think about this: getting a higher salary is often not something you can directly control. On the other hand, you do have direct control of how you manage your salary. You can control what you have.

Ask for more – it never hurts to try.

November 27, 2019

When negotiating employment contracts – always ask for more. Ask for a signing bonus or higher salary or money for relocation or more money for CME. Better benefits are often easier to negotiate than salary so even negotiating for more paid vacation per year is an option. It never hurts to ask and in mot cases you’ll be surprised that the answer is ‘Yes.’ And then make sure it is in writing!

Wendy M.

Fall 2019 Issue

November 16, 2019June 30, 2025

Keeping Wisconsin Safe: Why it’s the Best Place to Practice Medicine

There’s a reason Wisconsin is one of the safest places to practice medicine; it’s long been a haven for affordable medical professional liability (MPL) insurance. Which, among many other reasons, also makes it a great state to be a patient in. But now, as the rest of the country feels the impact of increased MPL premiums, it may only be a matter of time before Wisconsin physicians see similar increases.

What are the Timing Rules for Employer and Employee HSA Contributions? What Should be Done if HSA Contributions are Submitted Late?

It’s Time to Jump Start Your 2020 Employee Benefit Process

Open enrollment season is upon us! We created a list of important items you should consider to ensure your employee benefit program for 2020 is implemented without a hitch.

Check it out here.

What are the timing rules for employer and employee HSA contributions? What should be done if HSA contributions are submitted late?

November 11, 2019January 17, 2020

There are some general rules pertaining to timeliness of HSA account contributions. While employer contributions to an HSA don’t have a particular “due date,” the employer should sufficiently follow the plan terms. So if an employer communicates to employees that employer contributions will be contributed at a specific interval (such as per pay period), the employer should contribute based on that timetable. As an outside compliance limit, the IRS generally allows employers to contribute to employees’ HSAs through the tax filing deadline for the year in which the HSA contributions were due.

On the other hand, participant contributions withheld from employee paychecks, including employee-deferred HSA contributions, are subject to the DOL’s plan asset regulations governing welfare and pension benefits. Specifically, participant contributions become plan assets “as of the earliest date on which such contributions can reasonably be segregated from the employer’s general assets, but in no event later than 90 days after the payroll deduction is made.” This generally means the outside limit for submitting contributions is 90 days, but this is not to be considered a safe harbor because contributions should nearly always be segregated in a matter of days rather than weeks.

This deadline applies to participant contributions coming into an employer’s possession under the welfare benefit plan, including personal checks used to pay COBRA contributions, premiums during FMLA leave, retiree premiums, salary reductions under a cafeteria plan, and HSA contributions. As such, employers should contribute employee-deferred HSA contributions to their accounts as soon as the funds can be separated from the employer’s general account. In this way, the deadline for forwarding HSA contributions is similar to the deadline for forwarding employee 401(k) deferrals.

Keep in mind, though, that there is a safe harbor for small employers for this purpose. Employers with fewer than 100 participants can utilize a DOL “safe harbor” that gives them up to seven business days to deposit plan assets (including HSA contributions) to an employee’s account.

When an employer has failed to forward participant contributions on a timely basis, there are procedures available to correct both the fiduciary breach and the prohibited transaction that has occurred. There is a DOL correction program available to employers that commit this failure. The Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP) allows employers to correct failures (such as failure to forward HSA contributions on a timely basis) by submitting an application for the program and filing a Form 5330, acknowledging the prohibited transaction. However, as with any compliance failure, an employer that fails to timely forward contributions should consult with legal counsel.

Source: NFP Benefit Partners Compliance and Regulatory Frequently Asked Questions; October 1, 2019

It’s Time to Jump Start Your 2020 Employee Benefits Process

November 11, 2019November 15, 2019

Open enrollment season is upon us. Here is a list you can use to ensure your employee benefit program for 2020 is implemented without a hitch.

Has your advisor:

Requested a census?
Reviewed alternative carrier market options?
Presented a plan level review of your benefits (i.e. deductibles)?
Discussed Open Enrollment and your employee forms?
Provided a Benefit Booklet for your employees?
Updated your Summary Plan Description (SPD)?
Reviewed the legally required group health plan notices for employees? *

If any item on this list causes you concern, or you have any questions about how to make your 2020 employee benefits plan the best ever, we can help.

Contact our director of group benefits, Chris Noffke, GBDS.

608.442.3734 direct

Chris.Noffke@wismedassure.org

*2020 Required Group Health Plan Notices for Employees Download

2020 Employee Benefits Annual Limits Download

Follow your passion, even if it’s risky.

October 23, 2019

With regard to financial and personal/professional satisfaction

After taking on the risk of two residencies in Primary Care/Family Medicine and then Internal Medicine, I initially felt it would negatively impact the return over my professional journey. But I was given a greater return than I expected. Following my passion has paid off, helped me feel more competently trained and built a lifelong network of colleagues/ friends.

Albert M.