How to Start a Business in China

December 22, 2016, 2:18 pm

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China presents a challenge in starting a business as a foreign firm seeking market share there. The business environment for Western-based companies is different from the typical international climate encountered elsewhere. One would be well-served to work with a Chinese consulting firm. Such consulting firm will help navigate the complex Chinese business system. The legal structure is unique, and various business models take into account the maturing nature of Chinese law.Each of the potential Chinese business models accepted by the People's Republic of China (PRC) has its distinct advantages and disadvantages.One must evaluate their ability to meet corporate goals and financial objectives while minimizing risk. Here is a summary description of the two primary models: Sales Office via Labor Dispatch and the Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise (WFOE).

*Sales Office via Labor Dispatch Business Model*

*What is it?*

A sales office via labor dispatch is a cost-effective solution for businesses that lack a local structure in China. This kind of service is provided by companies known as a Professional Employment Organization. A PEO can act as a subsidiary in China.The PEO provides the legal, fiscal and administrative requirements structure most companies lack when operating in China. This allows businesses to overcome many of the legal hurdles and delays in establishing a presence in China and leaves the company to operate and focus on strategy and marketing freely.

Foreign companies benefit from the fact that there is no direct employment relationship between the foreign company and their "dispatched" employees.The employee works under a contract signed with the PEO, and the foreign company enters into a contract with the PEO. This meets all the requirements of Chinese Labor Law.

The PEO usually provides a full HR and benefits package that covers: visas, payroll administration, expenses management, tax compliance, office rental (including real estate agent fees), and health insurance in compliance with Chinese labor law.

*Advantages*
· No need to establish a local structure, saving time and money· Not limited by changing labor laws, visas, or other administrative hurdles· Allows a company to focus 100% on the business strategy togain market share in China· The most cost-effective ways to enter the Chinese market· Lower taxes as there isn't any local structure to be taxed. That burden is on the PEO.· Outsourcing of HR, fiscal and administrative procedures to the PEO, but remain with full control of the company
*Disadvantages*
· All PEO's are not created equal. Finding a good labor dispatch partner is not easy.· Cannot request a credit bank
*Time and Cost*
· The onboarding process varies depending on the dispatched employee's nationality. The process takes from 1 to 2 months.· The cost of labor dispatch is the dispatched employee's salary and expenses, plus the PEO monthly fee. That fee will vary according to the level of service chosen for the PEO. Issues to consider include office rental, insurance, etc.
*Taxation*
· Social Security of dispatched Chinese employees. The Interim Regulations provide that all active Chinese employees must be enrolled under the government's social security system. The tax imposed is approximately 25% of the employee's salary.· Medical insurance must be provided for any foreign dispatched employees.· Income Tax is paid by the employer and not the employee as is common in most Western companies
*Wholly Foreign -Owned Enterprise (WFOE)*

*What is it?*

From the Chinese government perspective, companies that are 25% or more controlled by foreign investors is a Foreign Invested Enterprise (FIE).The most common FIE is the Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise (WFOE), which is a limited liability company. The original intent of the WFOE structure was to encourage the export of technology-driven manufacturing activities. However, in practice, it has primarily been used to set up management and consulting services for foreign companies looking to get a quick start in the Chinese economy. It is important to note that the capital used by the registered WFOE Company should be solely contributed by wholly foreign investors and not by a WFOE that already has branches established in China.

*Advantages*
· Total independence in defining the business strategy· Makes protecting intellectual property easier· Can convert with ease earnings from RMB to EUR/USD/etc.
*Disadvantages*
· The process of establishing a WFOE is complicated and long because of the need to develop a local structure within China.· Limits the company to a particular business scope· There are high capital requirements for certain kinds of WFOE's· Subject to all applicable Chinese taxes (Value Added Tax or VAT, Corporate, Dividend, and Income)
*Time and Cost*
· The time required to process the WFOE application is not indicative of the total time to get it approved. Typically, it can take a year to complete the process.· A recent change to the Chinese WFOE regulation and resulting policy stipulates that there is no minimum registered capital required for WFOEs whose scope of business is consulting, trading, retailing, IT, etc. However, there is a minimum amount of registered capital that is obligatory for some industries, such as Banking, Forwarding, real estate agents etc.
Also, one must understand that the sector of activity doesn't require a minimum registered capital, but an initial capital investment is still required to be registered, as these funds are the ones used until the WFOE may become self-sufficient. A mistake in the calculation, may significate an extra capital injection, involving a complicated procedure and an additional taxation.

The potential benefits of competing in the Chinese market are vast. However, it takes patience, commitment, and investment to make it happen. If you're not prepared to stay the course and learn how to compete with Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOE), reconsider your business strategy.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 3 days ago.

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Festivus 2016: Here Are Some Of The Grievances We're Airing This Year

December 23, 2016, 3:24 am

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’Tis the season for gift giving, cookie eating and, if you observe Festivus, complaining about everything that annoyed you this year.

The classic “Seinfeld” holiday is celebrated on Dec. 23. As 2016 comes to close, we can’t help but note that this year has been particularly aggravating. So in the spirit of holiday, let’s gather around the Fesitivus pole and air our grievances together.

*President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks*

After Trump was won the election last month, political commentators across Twitter and on cable TV urged skeptics to “wait and see” before making judgments on his presidency. Well, we waited, and so far we’re not impressed. Trump’s cabinet picks are especially worrisome. For secretary of energy, he chose Rick Perry, the former Texas governor who once vowed to axe the department. For secretary of state, he picked an oil executive with links to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The president-elect also tapped a climate change denier to run the Environmental Protection Agency and a man who opposes the minimum wage for Labor Secretary. Incoming White House chief strategist Steve Bannon has ties to white nationalists and Ben Carson, who will run Housing and Urban Development, has referred to a major anti-discrimination policy as a “mandated social-engineering scheme.”

Trump's cabinet is literally the Jay Z verse from "Monster." pic.twitter.com/Uw3bYEpwpo

— Kevin Nguyen (@knguyen) December 14, 2016

*The Republican Party is still hell-bent on killing Obamacare*

Millions of people have health insurance thanks to President Barack Obama’s. signature health care law. The insured rate has reached an all-time low and the country has even seen some indirect benefits like better emergency care. Despite this, Republicans, who have been trying in vain for years to repeal the legislation, have promised to “repeal and replace” it as soon as Trump takes office. Even though they’re not even completely sure how they’d replace it. As The Huffington Post’s Jeff Young notes:

The party still doesn’t know what it wants the health care system to look like, even though it’s been over six years since the Affordable Care Act became law. Second, Republicans are willing to hold the entire health care industry and 22 million people hostage while they try to solve a riddle that has always eluded them.

This seems like it’s going to work out great for everyone.

*Brexit happened*

The United Kingdom voted to leave the EU, the culmination of a worldwide drift toward nationalism and against the idea of European unity. Since then, the pound has tanked, xenophobic attacks have increased and far-right parties have gained support across the continent. But perhaps the most frustrating aspect of the European Union referendum was that its leaders admitted to fudging the numbers on some of the main things they promised. The extra £350 million that former London Mayor Boris Johnson bragged Brits would save from giving up their EU dues didn’t taken into account the money the country gets back in grants and subsidies. *The planet reached several alarming climate change milestones*

This year about to become the hottest on record. Arctic sea levels have reached historic lows. Climate change was even responsible for the extinction of an Australian rodent species. All in all, a pretty terrible year for Planet Earth.

On the bright side, with some of the world’s most powerful countries and corporations joining forces, it looks like we might actually see some progress in the months and years to come.

*Bill O’Reilly aired one of the most racist things we’ve seen on TV*

The below video, starring Fox News correspondent Jesse Watters, will undoubtedly go down as one of the most offensive things we saw all year. Watters visited New York City’s Chinatown to mock Chinese-speaking elderly people, reference several outdated racist stereotypes and take karate lessons (even though karate is a Japanese martial art.)

In summation: Good riddance, 2016. You won’t be missed.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 2 days ago.

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Trump Will Make America Nuke Again

December 23, 2016, 10:45 am

≫ Next: Don't Forget The Progressive Victories That Came Out Of An Otherwise Crappy Year

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President-elect Donald Trump made a little tweet yesterday about how great nuclear weapons are, and how sad it is we aren't making more, they make such a pretty boom! Luckily, today he clarified his comments, telling Morning Joe host Mika Brzezinski that he doesn't just want the United States to cuddle their nuclear weapons and tell them how shiny they are. "Let it be an arms race," he said, according to MSNBC. "We will outmatch them at every pass and outlast them all." After all, why worry about people getting mad about you taking away their health insurance when you can just vaporize their bodies instead? [ more › ] Reported by Gothamist 2 days ago.

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Don't Forget The Progressive Victories That Came Out Of An Otherwise Crappy Year

December 23, 2016, 11:58 am

≫ Next: How Reluctant Trump Voters Can Reply To Their Critics

≪ Previous: Trump Will Make America Nuke Again

There’s a reason Merriam-Webster named “surreal” as 2016’s word of the year.

The year’s political events were unpredictable and, at times, unbelievable. Despite all the negative twists, 2016 had its important progressive moments.

Here’s a look at some of the year’s biggest progressive breakthroughs.

A Few States Nixed The Tampon TaxNew York, California, Connecticut and Illinois made progress protecting menstrual and feminine-hygiene products from being taxed. In July, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed a bill ending the “tampon tax” in his state, which will save women in New York an estimated $10 million a year.

Other states passed similar bills to end what is known as an unfair “pink tax.”

Marijuana Restrictions Were Relaxed In Additional StatesIn November, eight states approved measures to roll back longstanding restrictions on marijuana.

California, Nevada, Massachusetts and Maine voters approve recreational use of the drug. Florida, Arkansas, North Dakota and Montana voted to allow medical marijuana.

Voters Elected A Record Number Of Women Of ColorIn January, when the new class of congressional representatives is sworn in, there will be 38 women of color serving in Congress ― a record number. Of that group, 35 are Democrats and three are Republicans.

Cortez Masto (D) will be the nation’s first Latina senator. California’s current attorney general, Kamala Harris (D), will be the country’s first Indian-American senator, and the second black woman ever elected to the Senate.

Ilhan Omar, the first Somali-American Muslim woman elected to a state legislature, won big in Minnesota’s state House race in November.

More Americans Have Health Insurance Than Ever More than 90 percent of Americans have health insurance, according to a survey published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in November. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, 20 million previously uninsured people have signed up for health insurance since the president’s law was enacted in 2010.

More Cities Taxed Soda To Curb ObesityObesity, especially among children, has been a nationwide epidemic. Some local lawmakers have focused on deterring people from consuming sugar-sweetened drinks by taxing soda.

Philadelphia became the first big city to pass a soda tax. It was followed by Berkeley, California; Boulder, Colorado; and three cities in California’s Bay Area.

Affirmative Action Was Upheld By The Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutionality of race-sensitive admission policies in higher education, also known as affirmative action. The court, in what was seen as a victory for diversity in higher education, rejected a challenge to the affirmative action program at the University of Texas in a 3-4 decision in June.

Climate Change Legislation In California Moved ForwardIn September, California took steps to extend its plan to drastically cut carbon emissions for an additional 10 years under a pair of bills signed by Gov. Jerry Brown (D). The new legislation will significantly increase the state’s reliance on solar power, offering rebates for electric cars and placing stronger regulations on businesses.

Strict Voter ID Laws Were Struck Down In Some StatesNorth Carolina, Texas, Wisconsin, Kansas and North Dakota saw laws requiring voters to have a specific form of identification struck down by courts.

In July a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned North Carolina’s strict voter ID law, which included sweeping voting restrictions, such as shortening the early voting period and banning same-day registration. In the month that followed, a federal judge in North Dakota blocked a law requiring photo ID for voters, ruling that the law unfairly burdens Native Americans.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 2 days ago.

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How Reluctant Trump Voters Can Reply To Their Critics

December 23, 2016, 1:10 pm

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Dear Reluctant Trump Voters,

You voted for Trump despite serious misgivings about a certain issue or issues. Perhaps it was Trump's dog whistles to racist groups. Or perhaps it was his willingness to make blatantly false statements. Or maybe it was some aspect(s) of his personality (e.g. his sexism). These are just examples; there are other possibilities.

Now your friends (and relatives) are accusing you of enabling a racist, a liar, a narcissist, etc. Worse yet, they are calling you a racist, a dupe, and an authoritarian.

Relax! This article is a safe-space for you. I am not going to accuse you of anything, or call you anything nasty just because Trump's defects were not deal-breakers for you. Unlike some liberals, I understand your position. Indeed, I am going to help you defend yourself against your critics.

*Why these accusations are misguided
*
Different people have different views about what defects in a candidate should be deal-breakers. Some people consider a pro-life or pro-choice stance to be a deal-breaker. Others won't vote for a flip-flopping candidate or a dogmatic candidate. Yet others take gun regulation or gun non-regulation to be deal-breakers. Different people have wildly different views about what is crucial in a candidate.

But your dispute with your friends was not a dispute over what constitutes a deal-breaker. You agree with them about deal-breakers. You were seriously worried about the same set of Trump's drawbacks that worried your friends. That is why you were a reluctant Trump voter.

Why then did you vote for Trump when your friends voted against him? You thought he was the best viable candidate despite these drawbacks because you thought these drawbacks were not so bad. You disagreed with your friends about the likely consequences of these drawbacks.

You and your friends might disagree about multiple drawbacks, but for the sake of simplicity I'll work through one example. Suppose you were bothered by Trump's racist remarks. Yet after some consideration, you decided that his remarks only seemed racist, or were only marginally racist. Or perhaps you allowed that they were very racist, but predicted that they would be ignored by everyone, or that he would repudiate these remarks when elected. You would never have said such things, yourself, and you regretted having to vote for someone who said such things, but in one way or another, you expected that they would have no significant bad effects.

Alternatively, maybe you thought Trump's racist remarks really would have a significant bad effect (e.g. a major increase in hate crimes). But you acknowledged that they are part of the package which is Trump. You rightly recognized that in every election, from dogcatcher to president, the best available candidate is not a perfect candidate. Every vote is a moral compromise. Every voter has dirty hands. In particular, every election benefits some people and harms others. We should opt for candidates who are overall-beneficial to the country even though their policies will surely hurt some people (so long as huge numbers of people are not horribly hurt). So you said to yourself, "It is very unfortunate that Trump's racism will hurt people of color, but the harm won't be terrible, and Trump will be overall beneficial for the country, so I'll vote for him, anyway."

These are not racist lines of thought. Getting to Trump in either of these ways does not, by itself, justify your friends' accusation of racism. Without some other evidence of racism, you should be presumed innocent. The worst you could be accused of is having unrealistic expectations about the future, and the jury is still out on that accusation.

*Your worried response to name-calling*

In light of this, you are naturally angry at the accusations leveled by your friends. You would like to fend off the accusation. Maybe you would even like to turn it back against your accusers and accuse them, in turn, of unfairly jumping to blame you without evidence. You would like to accuse them of prejudice against Trump voters.

But something is holding you back from defending yourself or launching a counter-attack. Or perhaps you have been asserting your innocence, but with a nagging worry in the back of your mind.

You are still worried about certain problematic aspects of Trump. You were a reluctant Trump voter, after all. You were willing to vote for Trump because you thought that Trump would not have terrible effects. But what if you were wrong and your friends were right? What if Trump's drawbacks do have terrible effects?

Let me offer you a two-part suggestion about what to say to your critical friends.

*Place your bets*

People don't want to think of themselves as closed-minded pessimists. So begin by offering your critics a deal. If the predicted terrible effects do come to pass, you will admit that your vote for Trump was a mistake, and seriously consider joining the anti-Trump opposition. On the other hand, if the terrible effects don't come to pass, your critics will admit that they were wrong and seriously consider joining the pro-Trump team.

The problem with bets like this is that they seldom get cashed out because the endpoint of judgment is in the far future, and because the terms of the bet are vague. We tend to forget about such bets. And even if we remember, we can't agree about who won because we never settled on what counts as winning in the first place. Because the criteria are not specified up front, the goalposts tend to migrate. What would have counted as terrible at first comes to seem acceptable as time goes on. Or vice versa.

*Technology to the rescue*

Luckily, these problems have easy fixes.

For example, your friends predicted that Trump's racist remarks would cause a significant spike in hate crimes, and you agreed that this would be a terrible result. It so happens that the FBI reports hate crimes every November for the previous year, and the Southern Poverty and Law Center also keeps track. You and your friends can check these websites in December 2017. Compare the statistics for hate crimes in 2015 and 2016 (while Trump's campaign was in full swing) with the statistics for 2013 and 2014. If the incidence of hate crimes spiked while Trump was campaigning, then your friends were right. You need to consider voting for Democrats in 2018. If there was no spike, then you were right. Your friends owe you an apology and Trump a serious second look.

Another example: You and your friends agreed that the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) needed improvement. However, you thought that Trump would improve the availability, quality, and cost of health insurance, while your friends thought he would make things worse. Of course, whatever changes Trump makes will be evaluated by numerous partisan groups, but objective evaluations will be available, too. For example, The New England Journal of Medicine, a premier medical journal, evaluated the ACA in 2015, and will probably evaluate any changes or replacement programs, too. You might use The New England Journal of Medicine's evaluation as a basis for deciding whether you or your friends were right about Trump's changes to health insurance in the USA.

These are just examples, but you can adapt them to whatever disputes you and your friends had over Trump. Talk to your friends now, before the inauguration. Agree on the terms and end point of the bet. Put a reminder on your phone specifying when and how you will settle the bet.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 2 days ago.

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Santhigram Kerala Ayurveda Opens One More Midwest Location at Naperville, Illinois

December 24, 2016, 12:08 am

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Santhigram Kerala Ayurvedic Company of US proudly announces the launching of its 5th Ayurveda Wellness Center in the Midwest after successful operation of its other Midwest Centers in Milwaukee, Chicago, Houston, and Dallas, at 664 S Route 59, Naperville, IL.

Naperville, IL (PRWEB) December 24, 2016

Santhigram Kerala Ayurvedic Company of US proudly announces the launching of its 5th Ayurveda Wellness Center in the Midwest after successful operation of its other Midwest Centers in Milwaukee, Chicago, Houston, and Dallas, at 664 S Route 59, Naperville, IL (Phone: 630-453-5656/57).

The Grand Opening of the Center, which was the 12th one in the US, was Celebrated by lighting of the traditional lamp and ribbon cutting and a discussion on the increasing popularity of Complementary and Alternative Medicines like Ayurveda in the US and the mission of Santhigram in fulfilling this need. The Chief Guest was Congressman Mr. Bill Foster of the 11th District of Illinois, and the Guest of Honor was Mr. Rick Guzman, Chief of Staff from the Mayor’s Office, City of Aurora.

During the occasion, after the welcome speech by the Center Partner Mr. Vinoz Chanamolu, the Founder Chairman of Santhigram Wellness Dr. Gopinathan Nair expressed his confidence in taking forward Santhigram Ayurveda to greater heights. “The main hurdle we faced at Milwaukee, Chicago, Houston, Dallas and now in Naperville was to get the trained manpower in Ayurveda and Panchakarma Therapies,” he said. In order to meet the shortage of trained manpower in Ayurvedic and Panchakarma Therapies which will help Santhigram to grow faster, he has narrated his plans to launch Ayurveda Training Schools in East, Midwest and West as early as possible. The first such School will be operational in North Brunswick, New Jersey by January 2017, where the State approval for the School has already been received. This will also meet its social obligation of providing skilled jobs to the unemployed or underemployed youth during its expansion plans. Dr. Nair has also mentioned about his efforts to lobby for the health insurance coverage for the Ayurveda Treatments similar to other Complementary and Alternative Medicine Practices like Chiropractors and Acupuncturists. This will pave the way for more and more people to choose these side-effect-free specialized holistic treatments for taking care of many of their chronic ailments. He also said that the demand of Ayurveda products are also increasing and Santhigram plans to manufacture many Ayurveda products in US itself instead of importing from India.

The Chief Guest Congressman Mr. Bill Foster congratulated Santhigram for its mission to spread holistic medicine in US and for opening the Ayurveda Facility in Naperville. After interacting with our Chief Consultant Dr. Ambika Nair about the goodness of the Ayurvedic system, he has expressed confidence that such Holistic treatments are very much required in the US and promised to provide necessary support in its mission. The Guest of Honor Mr. Rick Guzman, Chief of Staff from the Mayor’s Office in the City of Aurora, in his speech expressed his happiness for Santhigram’s decision in opening such a holistic wellness center in Naperville area and promised to provide all support for Santhigram’s great mission of spreading Ayurveda. Ms. Sangeetha Sridharan, Partner of Santhigram Coppell (Dallas) Center, who was present during the occasion, talked about her experience when she found so many satisfied clients who took treatments in their center gave excellent feedback about taking care of their health problems. Mr. Benny Vachachira, President of FOMAA (Federation of Malayalee Associations of Americas), who was also present during the occasion, extended his felicitation and best wishes for the New Venture of Santhigram in Naperville. The Center Director Mr. Lingaiah Manne has given the vote of thanks and assured the audience to provide excellent services at Naperville Center.

The Wellness Center celebrated its Grand Opening with an open house for two days, offering Ayurveda consultations by the renowned Holistic physician Dr. Ambika Nair, assisted by Dr. Greeshma Varghese, an experienced Ayurveda Doctor from Kerala, India.

Santhigram Kerala Ayurveda Wellness Centers were established in India nearly two decades ago and are an ISO 9001:2008 certified provider of Authentic Kerala specific Ayurvedic & Panchakarma therapies for total body rejuvenation, detoxification and for alleviation of many chronic ailments. Panchakarma therapies have preventative health benefits in otherwise healthy subjects. The unique services provided by Santhigram Wellness help to reduce stress, enhance skin luster, correct metabolism, improve immunity, remove hormonal imbalance and recharges the body and mind. The Santhigram wellness Centers are staffed by trained Ayurveda professionals who offer Ayurvedic consultation, Panchakarma therapies, and recommendations on diet, herbal remedies and healthy lifestyle. Ayurveda and yoga are time tested ancient systems of medicine that help to maintain healthy body and mind. Santhigram Wellness Centers offer therapies to alleviate several chronic conditions, ward off the middle age syndrome and stimulate unlimited curative powers of body and mind. Customized Panchakarma therapies help to alleviate specific health problems like back pain, neck pain, sports injury, frozen shoulder, sinusitis, migraine, joint pain, arthritis, hemiplegia, insomnia, asthma, diabetes, thyroid, infertility, migraine, excess weight gain, mental disorders like depression and skin disorders like psoriasis & eczema.

Santhigram has cut out an ambitious plan of setting up a series of Ayurvedic Wellness Centers in various cities / states in the US in the coming years. In order to meet the shortages of the trained manpower for its expansion plan, Santhigram is also in the process of establishing Training Schools in East, Mid-West and West in the near future. This will also help to provide job opportunities to many as and when more Centers are launched. Santhigram also plans to establish a manufacturing facility for manufacturing the specialized herbal products required for its various centers.

Santhigram is also looking forward to get due recognition in the US for its services as a Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) practice as being provided to Chiropractors and Acupuncturists so that the Health Insurance benefits can be availed by its clients for their Ayurveda and Panchakarma Treatments.

For further details please contact:
Santhigram Wellnes Kerala Ayurveda
1503 Finnegan Ln., North Brunswick, NJ 08903
Phone: +1-732-915-8814, Email: info(at)santhigramusa(dot)com
http://www.santhigramusa.com, http://www.ayurvedasanthigram.com Reported by PRWeb 2 days ago.

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IRS Begins Releasing Requests for Employer Reporting for the 2015 Tax Year in Mid-December 2016

December 24, 2016, 8:04 am

≫ Next: CIA Troll Food - 10 ways to spot a Russian Spy

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Recently the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has begun to mail out Notice letters to large employers all over the country who have not yet filed their 2015 Affordable Care Act Reporting. These letters are serving as a final effort to inform large employers of their need to file informational returns or face a steep penalty. ACAReportingService offers an expert opinion on what to do next.

Greenville, SC (PRWEB) December 24, 2016

Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 6056 requires employers that are ALE’s (50 or more FTEs) to file information returns with the IRS and provide statements to their full-time employees relating to the health insurance coverage. ALEs meet these requirements by using form 1094-C and form 1095-C.

Any employer who receives these notice letters from the IRS is required to fill out associated documents and return them to the IRS within 30 days. These documents indicate whether or not the employer has received the notice in error.

The IRS is requiring large employers to provide applicable reporting under Section 6056 no less than 90 days from the date of notice. If employers fail to provide the appropriate informational returns within 90 days they will be assessed penalties under IRC Section 6721. These penalties include:· Penalty of $250 for each informational return not filed on time.
· Penalty of $500 per for each informational return “intentionally” not filed.
· Maximum Penalty charge of $3,000,000.00 per year for failure to file.

In addition to the penalties above, employers may also face both 4980H(a) and 4980H(b) penalties for failure to provide the right type of health coverage at the right type of cost.

If you are a large employer and received this notice ACAReportingService can help. As a full service provider, we are able to assist with all of your reporting needs, even for the 2015 tax reporting year.

View Notice Here Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.

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CIA Troll Food - 10 ways to spot a Russian Spy

December 24, 2016, 12:43 pm

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CIA Troll Food - 10 ways to spot a Russian Spy

*The CIA is using an army of internet Trolls as a form of PsyOps in the information war that's raging since the loss of their establishment candidate. Here's a pocket guide how to spot a *real* Russian spy (not the CIA trained 'fake spies' pretending to be Russian Spies')*

Now that Putin has officially communicated with Trump in typical elegant communique fashion (contrary to popular belief, Putin’s role in Russia is more of international statesman than domestic dictator), the anti-Russian propaganda machine is in overdrive, re-tasking all available resources for this one purpose: drive a wedge as deep as possible in the new power paradigm coming to DC by maxing out on the existing percentage of controlled zombie consumers that can be remotely manipulated via TV & internet media. The coup failed, which should be a shame for the CIA considering the amount of successful coups that have been engineered in foreign countries, but now it’s time to maximize the ground taken, even if small, in the war for minds that has been established as a base foothold (they read Sun Tzu, too). It’s time for the establishment to retreat into their bunkers and behind their defense lines; for soon they will lose their power in the richest most powerful country in the world.

Although Russia and America are 2 superpowers with much in common, 80 years of Soviet rule changed Russian culture and the gene pool more than any other part of the Caucasian world. By the way, the ‘Caucasian’ race is named for the ‘Caucus’ mountains from which they came, which are in Russia. The Russians made the only real successful social revolution against their Elite aristocratic overlords; the Romanovs. Although it’s a lot less publicized than similar revolutions in France and other places, it was in fact the only such revolution in a major country that resulted in 80 years of real social change – for better or worse. In France, the outcome of the French Revolution was the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte; in America – after a period of relative independence and freedom, America would once again be dominated by the oppressor class from which it fought to be free from. And Russia seems to have the same fate now; after 80 years of something different, the rise of Capitalism and the oligarch class is leading Russia down a path not much different from America’s, just a few decades behind.

If you're not aware of how the CIA is controlling the internet to manipulate the population, checkout a few reference articles:

Revealed: US spy operation that manipulates social media | Technology | The Guardian

CIA Agents To Troll Alternative Media Sites In Huge Propaganda Program - Your News Wire

Yes, There Are Paid Government Trolls On Social Media, Blogs, Forums And Websites » Alex Jones' Infowars: There's a war on for your mind!

Government Trolls Are Using "Psychology-Based Influence Techniques" On YouTube, Facebook And Twitter | Zero Hedge * BEST RECOMMENDED

*For a pocket guide to make you a global political Genius, checkout Splitting Pennies for only $6.11 on Amazon Kindle. If you just want to profit from people's lack of understanding of how the world works, checkout Alpha Z Advisors Managed Accounts Program and Alternative Investment fund for QEPs.*

*Here’s 10 ways to spot a *real* Russian Spy in America:*

1) Superior use of the English language, with a thick accent, failure to use articles such as ‘the’ and ‘a’ – such as ‘take shower’ instead of ‘going to take a shower.’ Russian Language is far more complex but more logical and efficient in use of letters, speech, and writing. Russian natives who master English typically have a large vocabulary, and will use proper tenses and complex grammatical structures because they studied it, and will likely leave out slang such as ‘you know’ and ‘like.’ (Until of course, they live here for 10 years)

2) Never smiling. Russians do not smile unless they are laughing at a joke, and maybe in some rare cases when something funny happens. Even in this case, their dark sense of humor is something they enjoy on the inside. It’s not polite to walk around Moscow smiling. If you do, someone may call the police (as if you have gone mad).

3) Seems to be rude – never says ‘please’ or ‘thank you’ – Russians do not have a concept of why you should say ‘thank you’ to a stranger who just took $50 from you for your groceries. How has this person really helped you or brightened your day? Isn’t it their job? Should you say ‘thank you for doing your job’ as if it’s a miracle?

4) Does not wear shoes in his home, he has a foyer where when he enters his house takes off all coats, scarves, hats, shoes and other ‘outdoor’ wear and puts on fuzzy house slippers or just wears socks.

5) Constantly pays with physical cash. Although some Americans do this anyway who are not necessarily Russian – nearly ALL Russians use 100% physical Rubles for everything from paying rent, health insurance, doctors visits, buying a car, buying groceries, or investing. The electronic economy hasn’t taken hold in Russia – and partly because they are ‘paranoid’ that if they put their money in a bank, the bank will seize it or bankrupt.

6) Never will open a door for a stranger, or move out of the way if you are in his walking vector, in fact he may knock over any passersby like bowling pins if they are in the way; and certainly will never say ‘excuse me.’

7) Always well dressed, even to go grocery shopping – maybe keeps a pocket comb even if his hair is only 2 cm long. Russians don’t have a concept of wearing sweat suits or pajamas to the grocery store. When they go out even if just to run to the corner store for a milk.

8) Weary to use air conditioner. In Russia very few buildings have A/C – in the summer months when it’s hot, it is still cool at night, when most open windows and enjoy a nice breeze. Modern buildings of course have the conveniences of A/C but those who are older or who grew up in older buildings do not have A/C – only heat. Therefore, they aren’t used to cranking up the A/C year round like the blue hairs in Sunny Florida. If they are hot they are more likely to take a walk or open the windows.

9) Not likely to find Russians in paid public events unless they are formal. Russia has a well-developed public system of parks and other free public use systems and they aren’t used to paying a few dollars to enter a public park, see Christmas lights, or $1 to view through binoculars along side the highway. Paying $250 for theater tickets is different – they aren’t cheap people, they are just not used to being nickeled and dimed when outside their homes, because in Russia it’s all free.

10) Strange tippers. In Russia they don’t use the ‘tipping’ system, if you eat in a café or bar you may leave your spare change for example, if the bill is $9.50 you may leave the additional $.50 – or if you have a few extra dollars you may leave it – or not. The majority of cafes, restaurants, bars, and other establishments only expect tips from tourists. And if a Russian does leave a tip, it’s likely to be very small (not 10%!!).

There you have it! There are many cultural differences between USA and Russia, although there are too many similarities. In this series of articles, we’re spreading the facts about Russia – the great unknown Bear.

*Putin and Trump will certainly bring USA-Russia relations to a 'qualitatively' new level.*

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*For a pocket guide to make you a global political Genius, checkout Splitting Pennies for only $6.11 on Amazon Kindle. If you just want to profit from people's lack of understanding of how the world works, checkout Alpha Z Advisors Managed Accounts Program and Alternative Investment fund for QEPs.* Reported by Zero Hedge 1 day ago.

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Over 4m Dubai residents have health insurance; do you?

December 25, 2016, 5:14 am

≫ Next: Assam rolls out ambitious health insurance scheme

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The Dubai Health Insurance Law No 11 of 2013 was adopted under the directives of His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Reported by Khaleej Times 9 hours ago.

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Assam rolls out ambitious health insurance scheme

December 25, 2016, 9:37 am

≫ Next: Americans Support Just 3 Health Insurance Benefit Mandates, New Survey Shows

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"The health assurance scheme will cover all individuals in eligible families with annual income below Rs 5 lakh, both BPL and APL," an official release said. Reported by Zee News 4 hours ago.

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Americans Support Just 3 Health Insurance Benefit Mandates, New Survey Shows

December 25, 2016, 11:20 am

≫ Next: Jesus Was A Socialist

≪ Previous: Assam rolls out ambitious health insurance scheme

Some minimum essential benefits tied to Obamacare health plans aren't too popular. Reported by Motley Fool 3 hours ago.

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Jesus Was A Socialist

December 25, 2016, 2:23 pm

≫ Next: See which local industries soared and which tanked in the stock market in 2016

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As people around the world celebrate Christmas, it is worth remembering that Jesus was a socialist. Of course, he was born long before the rise of industrial capitalism in the 19th century, but his radical ideas have influenced many critics of capitalism, including many prominent socialists and even Pope Francis.

Pope Francis has consistently criticized the human and spiritual damage caused by global capitalism, widening inequality, and corporate sweatshops. Last week, he blamed the "god of money" for the extremist violence that is taking place around the world. A ruthless global economy, he argued, leads marginalized people to violence.

In 2013, he released a remarkable 84-page document in which he attacked unfettered capitalism as "a new tyranny," criticized the "idolatry of money," and urged politicians to guarantee all citizens "dignified work, education and healthcare."

"Today we also have to say 'thou shalt not' to an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills," Pope Francis wrote. "How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points?"

During the last year, as Senator Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign gained momentum, the word "socialism" generated lots of media attention because Sanders described himself as a "democratic socialist." In November, Americans elected a staunch capitalist, Donald Trump, as president, but a majority of Americans - and even many of those who voted for Trump - disagree with his policy ideas.

Few Americans call themselves socialists, but many of them share socialists' critiques of American-style capitalism, including the widening gap between the rich and the rest, the greed of the super-rich, the undue influence of Wall Street and big business in politics, and the persistence of widespread poverty and hunger in our affluent society.

The idea of Christian socialism has a long and proud tradition. As capitalism emerged in the mid-1800s, many of its fiercest critics based their ideas on Jesus' teachings.

"No one can serve two masters," Jesus says in Matthew 6:24. "Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." I

In Luke 12:15, Jesus says, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.'"

Jesus not only urged people to be kind to others in their everyday lives. He was also talking about those in government who ruled over others, including the priests who ruled Judea for Rome and the rulers of the Roman empire.

Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903) -- often called the "workers' pope" -- echoed similar ideas. His 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum ("On the Condition of Labor") focused attention on the dehumanizing conditions in which many workers labored. He affirmed workers' rights to just wages, rest, and fair treatment, to form unions, and to strike if necessary. He called on governments to promote a more equal distribution of resources and said, in particular, that the poor "have a claim to special consideration." He did not espouse socialism, but his attacks on capitalism for its endorsement of greed, its concentration of wealth, and its mistreatment of workers had a major influence on the emerging socialist movement in Europe and America.

Francis Bellamy (1855-1931), an American Baptist minister, was a leading Christian socialist. Like Pope Leo, he championed the rights of working people and a more equal distribution of wealth and income, which he believed reflected Jesus' teachings. In 1891, Bellamy was fired from his Boston pulpit for preaching against the evils of capitalism and describing Jesus as a socialist. But he's best known as the author of the "Pledge of Allegiance," which he wrote in 1892 as an antidote to Gilded Age greed, misguided materialism, and hyper-individualism, reflecting in those radical words "with liberty and justice for all." (Ironically, Bellamy did not include the words "under God" in the original Pledge. They were added by Congress in 1953 at the height of the Cold War).

Many of America's leading socialists -- including labor leader Eugene Debs, settlement house founder Jane Addams, Rev. Walter Rauschenbusch, and Helen Keller -- rooted their views in their Christian faith, which became known as "social gospel." Indeed, many of the leaders of America's socialist movement, including Norman Thomas (1884-1968) -- who ran for president five times on the Socialist Party ticket and was often called "America's conscience" -- were Protestant clergy.

Throughout American history, some of the nation's most influential activists and thinkers, such as philosopher John Dewey, sociologist W.E.B. DuBois, scientist Albert Einstein, poet Katherine Lee Bates (who wrote "America the Beautiful"), muckraking writer Upton Sinclair, labor leaders A. Philip Randolph and Walter Reuther, civil rights crusader Martin Luther King, feminists Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Gloria Steinem, Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sander, and Dorothy Day (founder of the Catholic Worker movement) embraced democratic socialism.

In the early 1900s, socialists led the movements for women's suffrage, child labor laws, consumer protection laws and the progressive income tax. In 1911, Victor Berger, a socialist congressman from Milwaukee, sponsored the first bill to create "old age pensions." The bill didn't get very far, but two decades later, in the midst of the Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt persuaded Congress to enact Social Security. Even then, some critics denounced it as un-American. But today, most Americans, even conservatives, believe that Social Security is a good idea. What had once seemed radical has become common sense.

Much of FDR's other New Deal legislation -- the minimum wage, workers' right to form unions and public works programs to create jobs for the unemployed -- was first espoused by American socialists. Socialists have long pushed for a universal health insurance plan, which helped create the momentum for stepping-stone measures such as Medicare and Medicaid in the 1960s.

Socialists were in the forefront of the civil rights movement from the founding of the NAACP in 1909 through the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

King believed that America needed a "radical redistribution of economic and political power." In October 1964, he called for a "gigantic Marshall Plan" for the poor -- black and white. Later that year, after he he traveled to Oslo to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, he told friends that the U.S. could learn much from Scandinavian "democratic socialism." In fact, he told his staff, "There must be a better distribution of wealth, and maybe America must move toward a democratic socialism."

During the Cold War, many Americans confused democratic socialism with communism. In fact, democratic socialists opposed the totalitarian governments of the Soviet Union, China and their satellites. That's because democratic socialism is about democracy -- giving ordinary people a greater voice in both politics and the workplace.

Sanders' version of democratic socialism is akin to what most people around the world call "social democracy," which seeks to make capitalism more humane.

This is why Sanders often said that the U.S. should learn from Sweden, Norway and Denmark -- countries with greater equality, a higher standard of living for working families, better schools, free universities, less poverty, a cleaner environment, higher voter turnout, stronger unions, universal health insurance, and a much wider safety net

Sounds anti-business? Forbes magazine ranked Denmark as the #1 country for business. The United States ranked #18.

European social democracies put greater emphasis on government enterprise, but even most Americans favor government-run police departments, fire departments, national parks, municipally-owned utilities, local subway systems and public state universities.

Today's democratic socialists believe in private enterprise but think it should be subject to rules that guarantee businesses act responsibly. Banks shouldn't engage in reckless predatory lending. Energy corporations shouldn't endanger and planet and public health by emitting too much pollution. Companies should be required to guarantee that consumer products (like cars and toys) are safe and that companies pay decent wages and provide safe workplaces.

Democratic socialism also means reducing the political influence of the super rich and big corporations, increasing taxes of the wealthy to help pay for expanded public services like child care, public transit, and higher education, reducing barriers to voting, and strengthening regulations of business to require them to be more socially responsible in terms of their employees, consumers and the environment. That means a higher minimum wage, paid sick days and paid vacations, and safer workplaces.

Although the word "socialism" has often been demonized, public opinion polls show that a vast majority of Americans agree with these ideas. For example, 74% think corporations have too much influence; 73% favor tougher regulation of Wall Street; 60% believe that "our economic system unfairly favors the wealthy;" 85% want an overhaul of our campaign finance system to reduce the influence of money in politics; 58% support breaking up big banks; 79% think the wealthy don't pay their fair share of taxes; 85% favor paid family leave; 80% of Democrats and half the public support single-payer Medicare for all; 75% of Americans (including 53% of Republicans) support an increase in the federal minimum wage to $12.50, while 63% favor a $15 minimum wage; well over 70% support workers' rights to unionize; and 92% want a society with far less income disparity.

There's a great deal of pent-up demand for a candidate who articulates Americans' frustrations with the status quo. Trump exploited those frustrations with a campaign based on racism, intolerance, and xenophobia. But a candidate who can channel those frustrations is a way that inspires hope rather than fear can build on the long tradition of Christian socialism and social democracy.

*Peter Dreier is professor of politics at Occidental College and author of The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame (Nation Books, 2012).*

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 1 day ago.

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See which local industries soared and which tanked in the stock market in 2016

December 26, 2016, 5:16 am

≫ Next: Analysis: GOP vexed by factions on replacing health law

≪ Previous: Jesus Was A Socialist

Two companies in the health insurance business and one of the area’s largest community banks outperformed all other local public companies in 2016. The worst performers were two specialty finance firms, and a retailer that’s navigating a challenging environment. Tampa Bay Business Journal looked at the stock price performance between Jan. 4 — the day the market opened in 2016 — and Dec. 23, for 24 publicly traded companies headquartered in Tampa Bay for the full year of 2016. Only companies… Reported by bizjournals 9 hours ago.

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Analysis: GOP vexed by factions on replacing health law

December 26, 2016, 6:46 am

≫ Next: Latest ez1095 ACA Software Goes Green With PDF Form Feature This 2017 Tax Season

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans are united on repealing President Barack Obama’s health care law, but ideologically and practically speaking, they’re in different camps over replacing it. Getting the factions together won’t be easy. Some Republicans would revise and rebrand “Obamacare,” junking unpopular provisions like its requirement that most Americans carry health insurance, while preserving well-liked […] Reported by Seattle Times 7 hours ago.

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Latest ez1095 ACA Software Goes Green With PDF Form Feature This 2017 Tax Season

December 27, 2016, 1:02 am

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Ez1095 2016 Affordable Care Act software offers business owners ACA Form PDF feature for a more environmentally friendly option. Download and try it at no obligation by visiting http://www.halfpricesoft.com.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) December 27, 2016

The latest ez1095 ACA 2016 (Affordable Care Act) software from Halfpricesoft.com has just been released with a PDF option. This will accommodate business owners concerned with the environment and going green. Also available are both print and mail as well as efiling features. With the flexibility and cost of this application, business owners are filing with peace of mind.

“ez1095 2016 software from Halfpricesoft.com is now available PDF form feature.” said Dr. Ge, the founder of Halfpricesoft.com.

Customers can easily efile (additional cost) or print and mail forms depending on how soon the forms need to be sent out. With the new guidelines for the healthcare law, all employers with 50 or more full-time employees or equivalents are required to file an annual return in 2016 reporting health insurance they offered employees.

ez1095 software is compatible Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista, XP and other Windows systems. Potential customers can download and try this software at no obligation by visiting http://www.halfpricesoft.com/aca-1095/form-1095-software-free-download.asp

The new quick start guide offers the following step by step instructions-

1. How to Print Form 1095-C and 1094-C

2. How to Import 1095 C Data

3. How to Print Form 1095-B and 1094-B

4. How to Import 1095B Data

5. How to eFile ACA forms?

6. How to pass the test scenarios?

7. How to validate XML documents before efiling IRS

8. How to print forms in PDF format

9. Network printing (Multiple-user version)

10. How to eFile 1095 correction?

11. How to apply for TCC?

Priced at just $195 for a single user version, ($295 for new efile and PDF version) this ACA forms filing software saves employers time and money by processing forms, in-house. To learn more about ez1095 ACA software, customers can visit http://www.halfpricesoft.com/aca-1095/aca-1095-software.asp

About halfpricesoft.com
Founded in 2003, Halfpricesoft.com has established itself as a leader in meeting the software needs of small businesses around the world with its payroll software, employee attendance tracking software, check printing software, W2 software, 1099 software and barcode generating software. It continues to grow with its philosophy that small business owners need affordable, user friendly, super simple, and totally risk-free software. Reported by PRWeb 13 hours ago.

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Analysis: GOP vexed by factions on replacing health law

December 27, 2016, 1:31 am

≫ Next: How to Build a Powerful Healthcare Brand

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Some Republicans would revise and rebrand "Obamacare," junking unpopular provisions like its requirement that most Americans carry health insurance, while preserving more popular provisions. President-elect Donald Trump and Republican congressional leaders will have to unite the groups on complicated changes affecting the financial and physical well-being of millions of people. Republicans have "a really narrow path," says Grace-Marie Turner of the Galen Institute, a free-market health care research organization. The unpopular "individual mandate" to carry health insurance or risk fines could be replaced with other persuasion short of a government dictate. [...] popular provisions such as protecting those with pre-existing health conditions would be retained in some form, as well as financial assistance for low- and moderate-income people. [...] its GOP advocates believe most Americans will find their goal of "universal access" politically acceptable when measured against the Democratic ideal of "universal coverage" underwritten by government. Trump may have given this group some cover by saying that he wants to keep parts of the law, but his bottom line remains unknown. Next they could move on to much bigger objectives like restructuring Medicaid and Medicare, and placing a cost-conscious limit on tax breaks for employer coverage. Budget hawks see health care as the main driver of government deficits, and they are loath to address that imbalance by raising taxes. The most conservative lawmakers want to "pull Obamacare up by the roots as if it never existed," says Republican political consultant Frank Luntz. Reported by SeattlePI.com 13 hours ago.

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How to Build a Powerful Healthcare Brand

December 27, 2016, 6:58 am

≫ Next: Growing number of Americans are retiring outside the US

≪ Previous: Analysis: GOP vexed by factions on replacing health law

By Brian Lischer

I work with companies in a range of different industries, and not one of those industries cries out for branding quite like healthcare does. Sweeping legislation and far-reaching industry trends have put the healthcare consumer in the driver's seat.

Health insurance subsidies mean that healthcare consumers are more empowered and have a broader range of providers to choose from. Not only are healthcare brands now forced to compete for patients, the funding they receive from federal and state authorities is increasingly dependent on value-based performance metrics like patient satisfaction. When it comes to healthcare, the customer can no longer be ignored--and neither can branding.

For example, one of my recent clients, a regional healthcare provider that had served the community for over 40 years, saw the writing on the wall. With a dated, lifeless identity and a website to match, the organization knew it would be difficult, if not impossible, to expand their services to new patient demographics. A comprehensive rebrand followed by a targeted social media campaign that leveraged compelling patient stories enabled the brand to surpass their strategic objectives around growing their patient base.

So, what's the secret? How do you build a powerful healthcare brand that gets the results your company is looking for? The following five phases -- each critical to a successful rebranding initiative -- will give you the best chance to do just that.

**1. Brand Research**
Like all practices in the healthcare field, the best rebrand is one that's based on evidence. And the best way to get that evidence is through in-depth brand research. An audit of your brand's top competitors will give you a better understanding of the market landscape, revealing valuable opportunities for differentiation. The recent wave of mergers and acquisitions has left the healthcare industry in a confused and befuddled state. There's no shortage of opportunities to set your brand apart with a cohesive and consistent brand experience.

In addition to a competitive audit, online surveys and in-depth interviews with your employees and customers give you insight into how your audience perceives you: the definitive measure of your brand's performance. Carrying out this research is imperative if you hope to position your healthcare brand for success.

**2. Brand Strategy and Positioning**
The goal of positioning is to define the fundamental building blocks of your brand; while strategy is the process of charting a course for success. The framework that emerges from brand strategy and positioning clearly articulates who your brand is, why it exists, and how it engages with the world.

Critical to strategy and positioning is building consensus around your brand's core messaging. By defining elements such as your organization's purpose, vision, mission and values, you create a brand compass with which to navigate the road ahead. In addition to core messaging, strategy and positioning enable you to clearly articulate elements like your brand's personality, key differentiators, sub-brand architecture, and the tenable marketplace position that your brand will stake out.

**3. Brand Identity**
Identity is what many people envision when they think of branding. It comprises your logo, color palette, typography, iconography -- all of the visual elements that embody your brand. Your identity should be deeply informed by the research and strategy that you've already done. It should capture your brand's purpose and personality while meaningfully differentiating it from your competition.

The larger continuum in which your identity exists, known as brand expression, is where the story of your healthcare brand truly comes to life. It's the verbal language that communicates your value propositions and the visual imagery that captures your brand's essence. It plays out on your website, in your marketing collateral, and every other initiative where your brand engages with your customers.

**4. Brand Activation**
The final step in your healthcare rebrand is the activation of your brand, both internally and externally. Your internal stakeholders -- executives, employees, and board members -- are the living, breathing face of your brand. It's critical they understand your brand at the deepest level if they are to serve as its ambassadors.

External activation is an ongoing process that begins with the rollout of your brand. Activating your brand through a strategic deployment of marketing and public relations initiatives gives you the ability to influence how your customers experience your new brand. True activation occurs when your target audience aligns with your brand's purpose and promise and engages with your brand in meaningful ways that foster long-term relationships.

Today's healthcare industry is in a unique state of flux. Companies within the industry can view the current state of affairs as either an impediment or an opportunity. Those that see it as the latter, and invest in branding so as to further align themselves with their customers, will have a distinct advantage over the competition as the industry moves forward.

Brian Lischer is founder and CEO of Ignyte, author & speaker.

-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 8 hours ago.

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Growing number of Americans are retiring outside the US

December 27, 2016, 8:51 am

≫ Next: The Republican Plan to Repeal and Replace the ACA: Can It Work?

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Just under 400,000 American retirees are now living abroad, according to the Social Security Administration. Retirees most often cite the cost of living as the reason for moving elsewhere said Olivia S. Mitchell, director of the Pension Research Council at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. Viviana Rojas, an associate professor at the University of Texas at San Antonio, says the biggest obstacle is not speaking the language or knowing the culture. While retirees still can receive Social Security benefits, Medicare is not available to those living abroad, Mitchell said. The former military language and intelligence specialist said he pays $350 annually to be part of Japan's national health insurance. The rest is covered by a secondary insurance program for retired military personnel. Japan experienced biggest growth, 42 percent, of American retirees than any other country between 2010 and 2014, according to data from the Social Security Administration. The presence is so large that in the island of Okinawa, the U.S. military occupies about 19 percent of the area, according to Ellis S. Krauss, professor emeritus of Japanese politics and policy-making at the University of California, San Diego. Roginski, who volunteers for the Misawa Air Base Retiree Activities Office, said he helps connect more than 450 retirees and their families living in Northern Japan with resources. EDITOR'S NOTE — Maria Ines Zamudio is studying aging and workforce issues as part of a 10-month fellowship at The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, which joins NORC's independent research and AP journalism. Reported by SeattlePI.com 6 hours ago.

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The Republican Plan to Repeal and Replace the ACA: Can It Work?

December 27, 2016, 10:29 am

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Repeal of the Affordable Care Act is on the front burner for the start of the January congressional session. Mitch McConnell, Senate majority leader, says that it is "the first item up in the new year." There are major, unresolved questions, however, as to what repeal really means, with many provisions of the ACA supported by Republicans, insurers, hospitals, patient advocacy groups, and the public. Despite their goal, the GOP still has no replacement plan after almost seven years of the ACA's passage. It has called for a replacement plan to be based on four principles: (1) states, not the federal government, should have primary responsibility for health policy; (2) patients and doctors should be in control; (3) there should be more competition among health plans to give patients more choices; and (4) small business should have more discretion and flexibility to configure health benefits for their employees. (1) How will these principles be implemented?

Lacking a replacement plan, Republicans are planning to delay by two to four years as they work it out. The goal of the GOP's replacement plan is meaningless and deceptive: "to guarantee 'universal access' to health care and coverage, not necessarily to ensure that everyone actually has insurance." (2) Two proposed "plans" don't help much to clarify replacement. House majority leader Paul Ryan's 37-page white paper, A Better Way, relies on such already failed policies as consumer-directed health care (with "skin in the game" cost-sharing), health savings accounts, high-risk pools, selling insurance across state lines, and block grants to states. It would also encourage further privatization of Medicare and Medicaid, promote "premium support" vouchers for Medicare, and encourage businesses to band together to gain more marketing power in "Association Health Plan." (3) Rep. Tom Price (R-GA), as leader of the House Budget Committee, proposed in 2015 the repeal of the ACA in its entirety, privatization of Medicare, sharp cuts in Medicaid funding, and defunding of Planned Parenthood. Today, as incoming appointee to head the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) in the Trump administration, he will have wide latitude and power to reverse whatever consumer protections may survive early repeal of the ACA with delayed replacement. (4)

What will happen in Congress in January remains unclear. Democrats can ward off a filibuster in the Senate while the Republicans are deeply divided over the ACA's repeal and replacement options. While GOP leaders in both the House and Senate seem to be coalescing around a two or three replacement strategy, the forty Freedom Caucus members in the House favor a more aggressive, shorter replacement schedule with adherence to free-market, small-government policies. (5) Rep. Tim Murphy, (R-PA) backs repeal of the ACA, but wants to preserve its benefits and protections for what HHS estimates to be 60 million people with mental illness and substance abuse disorders at this time of epidemic opioid abuse, record-high suicide rates, and a critical shortage of psychiatric beds. (6) Republican governors in a number of states that expanded Medicaid under the ACA will face a strong backlash from loss of coverage and funding if it is repealed.

Meanwhile, as tensions rise even among Republicans about their ACA strategy, corporate stakeholders are lobbying against its repeal. Private insurers, who stand to lose some 22 million enrollees in their expanded subsidized markets under the ACA, are arguing for continued coverage of their losses by the government, and if the individual mandate is repealed, that it be replaced with "strong, effective incentives, such as late enrollment penalties and waiting periods" and continued adequate payments to private Medicaid plans. (7) As Marilyn Tavenner, former head of CMS and now chief executive of America's Health Insurance Plans, warns: "If insurance companies believe cost-sharing subsidies will not continue, they are going to pull out of the market during the next logical opportunity." (8) Hospital organizations say that a repeal of the ACA without immediate replacement could cost them $165 billion by the middle of the next decade and trigger "an unprecedented public health crisis." (9)

Replacing a repealed ACA is a more daunting and complicated challenge than most legislators and policy makers can imagine. How can you preserve, for example, such very popular provisions as banning insurers from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions and keeping children on parents' plans until age 26? How can you protect Medicare from higher spending, which will lead to higher premiums, deductibles, and cost sharing for beneficiaries? (10) Without the ACA's guarantees, how can you preserve the ability for about 52 million adults to gain coverage on individual plans? (11) Moreover, how can you assure an adequate safety net for the 20 million more uninsured and lower-income Americans as Medicaid cuts allow states to restrict eligibility and benefits with less accountability?

Timothy Jost, JD, professor of law at the Washington and Lee University School of Law, makes a good case to not repeal the ACA until a replacement plan is ready:
First, any repeal proposal would be subject to a filibuster in the Senate and the Democrats retain more than enough votes to stop a repeal bill. Second, the Affordable Care Act contains hundreds of provisions affecting Medicare, program integrity, the health care workforce, biosimilars, prevention, and other issues unrelated to what most Americans think of as "Obamacare." Immediate repeal of the ACA and presumably restoring the law that preceded it would likely bring the Medicare program, for example, to a halt until new rules could be written. The ACA is inextricably interwoven into our health care system and is not going away immediately. (12)

John Geyman, M.D. is the author of The Human Face of ObamaCare: Promises vs. Reality and What Comes Next and How Obamacare is Unsustainable: Why We Need a Single-Payer Solution For All Americans

visit: http://www.johngeymanmd.org

*References*1. Pear, R. Senate Republican leaders vow to begin repeal of health law next month. New York Times, December 6, 2016.3. Pear, R, Kaplan, T. G.O.P. plans to replace health law with 'universal access.' New York Times, December 15, 2016.5. Rovner, J. House Republicans unveil long-awaited plan to replace health law. Kaiser Health News, June 22, 2016.7. Petito, J, Hyatt, A, Zingman, M. We condemn the AMA and AAMC endorsements of Tom Price for HHS secretary. Common Dreams, December 12, 2016.9. Bade, R. Freedom Caucus opposes GOP's Obamacare replacement plan. Politico, December 5, 2016.11. Ehley, B. Obamacare repeal could be 'akin to Armageddon' for people with mental illness. Politico, December 7, 2016.13. Tracer, Z. Health insurers willing to give up a key Obamacare provision. Bloomberg News, December 6, 2016.15. Abelson, R. Health insurers list demands if Affordable Care Act is killed. New York Times, December 6, 2016.17. Goldstein, A. Hospitals warn Trump, Congress of massive losses with Affordable Care Act repeal. The Washington Post, December 6, 2016.19. Neuman, T, Jacobson, G, Boccuti, C. Issue Brief. What are the implications of repealing the Affordable Care Act for Medicare spending and beneficiaries? Kaiser Family Foundation, December 13, 2016.21. Rodriques, CH. Without ACA guarantees, 52 million adults could have trouble buying individual plans. Kaiser Health News, December 13, 2016.23. Jost, T. Taking stock of health reform: Where we've been, where we're going. Health Affairs Blog, December 6, 2016
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Why Paul Ryan Is So Desperate To Vote On Obamacare Repeal Quickly

December 27, 2016, 11:44 am

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House Speaker Paul Ryan has vowed a quick repeal of Obamacare in order to “stop the damage” and because “things are only getting worse.”

Meanwhile, here is a selection of news reports from the past two weeks:

The Obama administration announced that the number of people signing up for insurance through HealthCare.gov, the federal website that 39 states use to administer Obamacare plans, is even higher than last year. State-run sites such as Covered California are reporting similar surges.

An independent think tank, The Commonwealth Fund, published a study showing that fewer people are skipping medical care because of cost ― most likely because, thanks to the health care law, so many more people have health insurance.

Standard and Poor’s Global Ratings reported that insurers selling Obamacare plans are seeing better financial results this year, suggesting that premiums are finally coming into line with the actual medical expenses of their customers ― and that this year’s big rate hikes may be a “one-time pricing correction.”

It’s possible that Ryan thinks these and similarly positive news items are irrelevant ― that the Wisconsin Republican has deluded himself into thinking Obamacare really is an unmitigated policy disaster, rather than a fairly typical government program full of pluses and minuses and the inevitable implementation complications that large reform efforts usually overcome.

It’s also possible that Ryan’s crusade to pass repeal in January has nothing to do with policy and everything to do with politics ― that he wants Congress to vote before the rest of the country, and maybe even the president-elect, wakes up to the real-life changes such a vote would unleash.

What “repeal and delay” would mean in real life

Ryan and his allies envision a quick, surgical strike on Obamacare soon after Donald Trump takes office, via what’s come to be known as a “repeal and delay” strategy. The idea is to eliminate Obamacare’s funding, using a special legislative procedure reserved for bills related to the budget, while leaving most of Obamacare’s coverage provisions in place for a year or two or maybe three. In theory, the more than 20 million people now relying on the program would hold onto insurance while Republicans craft their replacement scheme.

Even conservative experts doubt this gambit would work out so neatly. Insurers that tolerated early losses in Obamacare marketplaces in the hopes of realizing future profits aren’t going to stick around for a market that’s about to disappear ― particularly if the repeal bill also takes actions, such as eliminating the individual mandate, that would tilt the insurance customer base even more toward unhealthy people with high medical expenses. If enough carriers flee, a recent analysis from the Urban Institute predicted, millions of people would lose their health insurance in just the first year.

And it’s not like Republicans can guarantee that, after a transition period, they would have a new health care scheme in place and ready to go. It’s been more than six years since Republicans first promised to craft an Obamacare replacement, yet they are nowhere near a consensus on what such a replacement should look like.

The House has a set of reform principles with no dollar figures, the Senate doesn’t even have a set of principles, and President-elect Trump has a set of vague talking points that could mean he endorses some traditional conservative ideas, like allowing insurers more freedom to sell coverage across state lines, or that he’s never given these specific proposals more than 10 minutes of thought.

This intellectual disarray should not be surprising. Finding consensus on health care policy is hard once the trade-offs become apparent ― when lawmakers discover, for example, that it’s difficult to require insurance coverage for people with pre-existing conditions without making sure that healthy people are also paying into the system.

Obamacare’s approach, a combination of subsidies for individuals who buy insurance and penalties for those who do not, isn’t the only one. But the alternatives, which range from single-payer on the political left to high-risk pools on the political right, don’t make those policy trade-offs disappear. They simply move the trade-offs around. Lower premiums for the young tend to mean higher premiums for the old, less regulation on insurers usually means less protection for consumers, and so on.

The prospect of repeal with so much uncertainty about a replacement has already drawn carefully worded criticism from a handful of Republicans, including Sens. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.) and Susan Collins (Maine). Alexander’s warnings about the perils of haste are particularly important because he’s a senior, widely respected member of the Senate ― and because he is chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which has direct jurisdiction over health legislation.

Why Ryan and his allies want that repeal vote now

But Ryan and his allies aren’t slowing down, at least not so far, and there are likely two main reasons.

One is that the repeal bill is likely to dictate the size and shape of an eventual replacement, by stripping out Obamacare’s revenue ― including some $350 billion in taxes that fall exclusively on the wealthiest Americans. Cutting upper-income taxes is a perennial priority for Republicans. But without that money at the disposal of lawmakers, it’s pretty much impossible to craft a conservative scheme that would come anywhere close to the scale of insurance coverage that Obamacare does.

Sure enough, the schemes conservatives envision would all result in far fewer people covered, greater exposure to medical bills even among those with insurance or a combination of those two. The ones hit hardest would be the people without a lot of disposable income, the ones with serious medical problems and (worst of all) the people who fall into both categories.

The other likely reason to rush a repeal vote would be to avoid public scrutiny of both its short- and long-term effects.

For all of the controversy swirling around President Barack Obama’s signature health care law, and for all of the genuinely negative feelings the public has about it, its core elements remain highly popular. Those elements include not just protection for people with pre-existing conditions but also the availability of financial assistance for people who can’t afford coverage on their own ― which, in a recent Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation poll, a whopping 80 percent of Americans said they support.

The same Kaiser Foundation poll found that roughly half of Americans want to keep Obamacare in place or expand what it does. Another 17 percent merely wants Congress to scale it back, while just over a quarter want full repeal ― and even that enthusiasm wanes when respondents learn that repeal might mean eroding the law’s consumer protections.

An extended debate over repeal, the kind that Democrats endured in the 14 months they spent crafting health care reform, might focus public attention on the disconnect between what it wants and what Republicans are proposing ― and suddenly repeal might not seem very attractive politically.

Republicans, particularly those from safely conservative House districts, might be telling themselves that their voters want full Obamacare repeal, regardless of what the public as a whole desires. If so, they should look more closely at that Kaiser poll, which showed even Republican voters divided over whether to support full repeal. Or maybe Republican lawmakers should listen to the Trump voters that Vox’s Sarah Kliff interviewed in Kentucky and that the Atlantic’s Olga Khazan interviewed in Pennsylvania.

These voters weren’t Obamacare fans, for sure, and many said they were angry other people seemed to be getting more financial help paying for insurance. But these voters were in no mood to restore the pre-Obamacare status quo.

Many said they hoped for a new system that provided more coverage rather than less, and quite a few were actually grateful for their Obamacare insurance ― even if they didn’t always know it came from Obamacare. “I’m afraid now that the insurance is going to go away and we’re going to be up a creek,” one Kentuckian told Kliff.

What Trump really thinks and wants

It’s not clear how many other Republican voters are feeling the same fear ― or whether Trump himself has come to grips with what a quick repeal vote, without a replacement in place, would entail.

As The New York Times’ David Leonhardt noted on Tuesday, Trump’s blustering about Obamacare frequently included promises to replace it with something better. “We have to take care of the people that can’t take care of themselves,” Trump said during a Fox News debate. “Everybody’s got to be covered,” he told CBS’s “60 Minutes.”

Those statements could have the same meaning as anything else Trump has said ― which is to say, they could have no meaning at all. Come January, Trump might simply outsource health care policy to members of his administration, starting with Vice President-elect Mike Pence ― who, from the looks of things, is in lockstep with Ryan.

But Trump has a history of endorsing the principle of universal coverage and it’s possible that he really thought repealing Obamacare would be a prelude to something even more far-reaching and comprehensive. If so, that would put Trump very much at odds with what Ryan and his allies are proposing to do.

The only question would be whether Trump, and the public at large, realize in time to act.

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