AUDIT COMMITTEE: QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR AUDITOR, PART 4

Posting by John Merchant

If you have been appointed to an Audit Committee, you may be wondering what information the auditors will normally provide and what questions you should ask.

There are certain “required communications” that an auditor should routinely provide to the Audit Committee as part of an audit conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards (GAAS). These communications were established in Statement on Auditing Standards No. 114. In addition to these required communications, there are questions that you […]

March 6, 2015 Audit Read more...

2015 ACA Reporting Requirements Summary for Employers

Shelby Hammond

W-2 Reporting of health care premiums paid by employers:

Who must report?

Employers who issued at least 250 W-2s for the preceding calendar year.
Union employees in a multiemployer union plan count in determining whether or not you issued at least 250 W-2s in the prior calendar year, BUT you are not required to report the cost of health care that was provided through the multiemployer union plan as W-2 premium reporting is suspended indefinitely for employers […]

February 25, 2015 Accounting, Audit, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

AUDIT COMMITTEE: QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR AUDITOR, PART 3

Posting by John Merchant

If you have been appointed to an Audit Committee, you may be wondering what information the auditors will normally provide and what questions you should ask.

There are certain “required communications” that an auditor should routinely provide to the Audit Committee as part of an audit conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards (GAAS). In addition to these required communications, there are questions that you should ask to help assure your understanding of the audit process. […]

February 18, 2015 Audit Read more...

AUDIT COMMITTEE: QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR AUDITOR, PART 2

Posting by John Merchant

If you have been appointed to an Audit Committee, you may be wondering what information the auditors will normally provide and what questions you should ask.

There are certain “required communications” that an auditor should routinely provide to the Audit Committee as part of an audit conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards (GAAS). In addition to these required communications, there are questions that you should ask to help assure your understanding of the audit process. […]

February 11, 2015 Audit Read more...

Managing Health & Welfare Plan Costs with a Claims Audit: A Case Study

Linh Crider, CPA, CFE

Health & welfare plan administrators are facing increasing costs and complexities. Reviewing your plan’s claims processing is often a helpful tool for understanding current costs incurred, ensuring accurate claims processing and payment, and managing health plan costs. We recently performed an audit for a client to help understand what contributed to an unexpected and significant dollar increase in medical claims costs. This post details the claims audit process and the insights gleaned.

Obtain the Data
Just as the […]

February 11, 2015 Accounting, Audit Read more...

2014 Form 5500 Released to the Public

Mark Buckberg, CPA, CFE, CFF

The 2014 Form 5500 has been released to the public. There are only a few revisions from the prior year to the form itself. Here are the changes to note:

The attachment concerning M-1 filing compliance that welfare plans were required to submit last year is no longer necessary. Instead, a new third page has been added to the 5500 that asks three questions that cover the information that was previously included on the attachment.
[…]

December 17, 2014 Accounting, Audit, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

Fighting Fraud with a Health Claims Audit

Linh T. Crider, CPA, CFE, Senior Manager

Health claims audits are essential tools for preventing and detecting fraud in health & welfare plans. Additionally, these audits can help to uncover inefficiencies and find opportunities to streamline operations. Ineffective or inaccurate claims processing can lead to significant losses and, with the sheer volume of plan claims, fraud can often go on undetected for quite some time.

Our forensic accounting team is frequently called on to perform health claims audits and investigations for […]

March 5, 2014 Accounting, Audit, Forensic Accounting Read more...

Conducting a Health Claims Audit for Your Plan

Linh Crider, CPA, CFE

When do you need to have a health claims audit performed for your plan? Hint: the answer is not “never.” Audits can be one of several tools in Plan management’s arsenal to assist in analyzing cost and utilization anomalies. It is a very effective way to find out what has happened in a specific time period. All you need are reliable claims paid data and a knowledgeable audit team.

Here are some trends you may see in […]

January 28, 2014 Accounting, Audit Read more...

Preparing for a Compliance Audit: A Guide for Labor Unions and Employee Benefit Plans

Larry Beebe, CPA

In addition to your financial statement audit, your union and/or benefit plan may be selected for an audit by the Department of Labor (DOL), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), or the Employee Benefit Security Administration (EBSA). While these audits originate from different governmental departments, they often review and scrutinize many of the same areas.

Before we look at how to prepare for a compliance audit, let’s look at the different types:

Union Compliance Audits
The Office of Labor Management Standards […]

January 9, 2014 Accounting, Audit, Benefit Plan Accounting Read more...

Measuring Investment Performance: Understanding Market Indices

Larry Beebe, CPA

New trustees for multiemployer benefit plans can be overwhelmed by the investment knowledge that must be quickly acquired to function effectively in their new roles.  This series provides in-depth information about plan investments to assist new trustees in their fiduciary duty of managing plan assets.

Understanding market indices is essential for properly evaluating your plan’s investments and investment strategy. There are a number of indices you can reference, and understanding their underlying frameworks will help you select the correct […]

November 4, 2013 Accounting, Audit Read more...