What’s the actual experience of dealing with the workplace while undergoing cancer treatment? At the 2018 Employers Cancer Care Summit, one woman told her story, and it wasn’t a particularly positive one from the perspective of the workplace role. Mei-Lin Yee was 45 years old in 2009 when she learned of her diagnosis with Stage […]
Ontario’s New Democratic leader unveiled parts of her platform at a campaign event on Saturday, saying the party will offer universal pharmacare and dental care for all Ontarians if elected. The party’s five policy points — which also include lowering wait times for health-care services, raising taxes on corporations and the wealthiest Ontarians and converting […]
Sun Life Financial Canada is adding virtual health-care services to its group and individual insurance plans. Its virtual care referral networking will initially include three third-party providers: Toronto-based mobile health-care platform Akira Medical Ltd.; Montreal-based virtual health-care provider Equinoxe LifeCare; and online doctor, health and prescription company Maple Corp. Read: A look at video health-care visits as an option for […]
Global health service provider Cigna Corp. is acquiring Express Scripts Holding Co. in a deal valued at $67 billion. The stock and cash transaction includes Cigna’s assumption of about $15 billion in debt held by Express Scripts. Upon closing, Cigna shareholders will own about 64 per cent of the combined company and Express Scripts shareholders will own […]
As the workplace undergoes rapid transformation amid automation and technological advancements, plan sponsors will need to re-imagine the crossroads between new technology and employee benefits. The issues will be a key focus of panel discussion at Benefits Canada’s 2018 Benefits and Pension Summit on April 16, 2018, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Toronto. “I think what we’re trying to […]
B.C. plan sponsors will have lots of questions to consider as the provincial government prepares to introduce a new employer health tax. “It’s going to be interesting, because the employers, obviously, are going to be looking at that employer health tax as a cost of doing business,” says Avinash Maniram, a partner and senior consultant at PBI […]
Nearly three-quarters (73 per cent) of American employers offered telemedicine services to their employees in 2017, a rise from just 49 per cent in 2016, according to a new survey by WorldatWork. Alison Avalos, director of research and certification at the U.S.-based human resources association, noted the dramatic increase is likely due to employers’ efforts to manage […]
From brain fog to fatigue, cancer patients face a range of challenges when it comes to staying at or going back to work. And with a significant number of cancer diagnoses happening to people during their prime working years, employers do have a role in supporting employees in dealing with their conditions, a speaker at Benefits Canada‘s […]
The 2018 budget has confirmed the federal government is creating an advisory council on the implementation of a national pharmacare program. Marc-André Gagnon, associate professor at Carleton University’s School of Public Policy and Administration, believes the budget’s wording around implementation, rather than consultation, marks a real commitment to moving forward on this issue. “The advisory council is really […]
British Columbia is introducing a new employer health tax as it moves to fully eliminate medical services plan premiums. During the province’s 2018 budget announcement on Tuesday, Finance Minister Carole James said the government will eliminate premiums by Jan. 1, 2020. The government estimates the move will save people up to $900 a year and families up to $1,800 a year. Read: Seven […]