Leadership Central Penn (LCP) wrapped up 2018 with a trip to the Columbia County Courthouse to learn about the law. The Hon. Judge James graciously hosted the class for a morning session on the three types of law, the structure of Pennsylvania’s judicial system and his presentation, “The Cost of Justice.” The morning started with a substantive and procedural law overview by Judge James, and the following local attorneys:- Michael Smith, Esq. from Hummel, Lewis & Smith – Civil Law
- David James, Esq. from Harding, Hill & Turowski – Domestics and Family Law
- Christine Luschas, Esq. from Derr, Pursel, Luschas and Naparsteck – Domestics and Family Law
- Rebecca Reimiller, Esq., Assistant District Attorney, Columbia County – Criminal Law
- Markie L. Troutman, Addictions Coordinator, Bloomsburg MAT Clinic
- Colleen Brent, United Way Staff
- Barbara Warunek, Court Programs & Development Director- Columbia County Courthouse
- Samantha Barger, UW Intern
- Ashley Mensch, Columbia County Family Center
- April Miller, Columbia County Children and Youth Administrator
- Denise Labuda, Columbia County Chief Juvenile Probation Officer
- Michelle Freed, Domestic Relations
From PA Chamber of Business & Industry
The New Year has begun and with it, a new legislative session. On Jan. 1, the entire House and Senate took the oath of office, marking the official start of the 2019-20 legislative session. The rest of the month will be dominated by the necessary legislative housekeeping measures required to get the General Assembly up and running – committee chairs will soon be announced, followed closely by each member’s committee assignments. On Jan. 15, Gov. Tom Wolf will officially start his second term, bringing a new lieutenant governor – Lt. Gov-elect John Fetterman – onto the scene to preside over the state Senate. Before you know it, we’ll be well into February with the governor’s fifth budget address and budget hearings with the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.
For the PA Chamber and our broad-based membership, the start of a new session brings renewed opportunities to push for pro-growth public policies. We are ready to the ground running as we work with elected officials and our local chamber partners to improve the Commonwealth’s overall business climate. In December we finalized our 2019 legislative agenda, which focuses on the need for tax reform. Amazon’s recent decision to split its second headquarters between northern Virginia and New York City make now a perfect time to take a hard look at Pennsylvania’s tax structure and determine if we’re doing all we can to make the Commonwealth the most attractive option for businesses of all sizes to locate and hire.
Armed with facts in the Tax Foundation’s recent report on the Commonwealth’s business climate, the PA Chamber is making the case to lawmakers this coming session that Pennsylvania needs to implement tax reforms that will mirror reforms at the federal level. Chief among these goals is the reduction of our state’s Corporate Net Income Tax, which at 9.99 percent is among the highest effective rates in the nation and presents one of the largest hurdles for attracting new investment and creating jobs.
Additionally, we will also be focusing our efforts on workforce development in 2019. In its announcement on where it will be bringing 50,000 new jobs and $5 billion in new investment, Amazon cited workforce readiness as a major factor in its final decision on where to locate. It’s no secret that Pennsylvania struggles in this area. In fact, our 28th Annual Economic Survey showed that for the first time ever, employers listed difficulty finding qualified candidates to fill open positions as the No. 1 hurdle facing their businesses. Our organization continues the fight to close the jobs skills gap through our dynamic “Start the Conversation HERE” initiative, which provides job creators and job seekers with the information they need to get on the path to a skilled trade career. This fall, we were proud to have again teamed up with the mikeroweWORKS Foundation to distribute a second round of scholarships to students who are pursuing a skilled trade. Thanks in large part to the generosity of employers, we awarded 25 of these students more than $108,000 in financial assistance. I encourage you to check out this scholar spotlight in the latest issue of Catalyst and visit the website, StartTheConversationHere.com, to find out how you can help to be a part of the skills gap solution through a tax-deductible scholarship donation.
As we embark on 2019, we look forward to continuing our strong relationship with our local chamber partners. Working together to advance policies that will promote private sector job growth is the best way to improve economies across the Commonwealth, and boost our economic competitiveness for the benefit of every Pennsylvanian.
Member News
- A representative from the Wilkes University Small Business Development Center will be at the Chamber office at 238 Market St., Bloomsburg, on Friday, Jan. 18, from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. for its monthly small business outreach day. Any current or aspiring small business owner is welcome to stop in and speak to Ray Haden, business consultant with the Wilkes SBDC, for advice and guidance on starting or running a small business. SBDCs provide free, confidential consulting services to current and aspiring small business owners. Anyone interested in meeting with him should contact Ray at 570-408-4340 or email to schedule a time between 10-3 on Jan. 18 to meet.
- Geisinger HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital recently unveiled its new name and brand as part of its Company’s name change and rebranding initiative. As of Jan. 1, the inpatient rehabilitation hospital is now known as Geisinger Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital. It will continue to provide the same high-quality, post-acute care for patients overcoming a variety of major illnesses and injuries. To commemorate the new name and brand, the hospital will be hosting a open community celebration event on Thursday, Feb. 7, from 3-6 p.m. The event will be held in the hospital dining room, located at 64 Rehab Ln., Danville. Tours and photo booths will be available for event attendees, and hor d’oeuvres will be served. RSVP prior to the event to 510-271-6110 or by email. Birmingham, Ala.-based HealthSouth Corporation launched its new name and brand on Jan. 1, 2018 and has been transitioning its 130 inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and 273 home health and hospice locations serving 36 states and Puerto Rico over the last year, which will continue through 2019. All of the Company’s post-acute care service locations in Pennsylvania will migrate to the Encompass Health name and brand on Jan. 1.
- Knoebels Amusement Resort will hold its annual job fair on Saturday, March 2, from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., at the Elysburg Fire Department, located at 1 East Mill St., Elysburg. There are seasonal positions available in games, ride operations, food service, gift shops, grounds crew, security & first aid, admissions, crystal pool, campground, guest services, and more. If you have a particular interest or skill set, Knoebels has a job for you. Visit the Facebook event for more information.
State Senator John Gordner (center) and Representative David Millard (right) recently met with the Joint Governmental Affairs Committee.
Elected officials representing Columbia and Montour counties discussed issues of interest to the business community with members of the Chamber and Visitors Bureau recently. Senator John Gordner, Representative David Millard, and Harold Hurst with Representative Kurt Masser’s office met with the Joint Government Affairs Committee in early January. Topics included tourism funding, energy policy, group health plans, and workers comp reforms.
With forty-three new representatives and seven new senators being sworn in to office on Jan. 1, Governor Wolf will take the oath for his second term on Jan. 15. The Governor will then deliver his budget address in early February. Aiding the budget process for the coming year will be revenue collections which are currently ahead of estimates. Sales tax revenues through December were $163.2 million, or 3 percent, above estimates, and corporate tax revenues were up $294.6 million, or 21.6%, ahead of projections. Both Gordner and Millard noted the strength in the economy and sales taxes from online retailers as contributing to the positive numbers.
Capturing revenues through online lodging booking sites as well as services like Airbnb could also provide additional funding for statewide tourism promotion. Representative Millard was reappointed Chair of the House Tourism and Recreational Development Committee and spoke about the need for more funding at the state level. He did not have an estimate on how much additional revenue could be realized for marketing.
Millard also expects to co-sponsor legislation in the House to support the State’s nuclear power industry. In November, the Nuclear Energy Caucus released a report detailing the challenges of the industry in Pennsylvania, and suggesting options for keeping nuclear plants viable. Senator Gordner is co-sponsoring a Senate bill that would provide clean energy tax credits. Any legislation would need to be signed by the Governor by June to avoid the premature closure of a plant in Beaver County.
Another topic of discussion was the Wolf Administration’s stance on association health plans. In mid-2018, a federal rule change allowed businesses to band together for the purposes of negotiating health insurance rates. This would allow the Chamber to once again offer health insurance options for small and medium-sized employers. However, Pennsylvania’s Attorney General is among twelve in the nation attempting to block the change, and the State Insurance Department is also taking a stringent stance which prevents pricing benefits from being realized. Gordner and Millard asked for more information on the issue in order to question representatives of the administration.
One action approved by the Governor in 2018 is saving businesses money. The passage and enactment of H.B. 1840, significant workers’ comp legislation, provides a fix to a state Supreme Court decision in the Protz v. Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board case, which has been financially detrimental to employers. In 2017, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court removed Impairment Rating Evaluations from the law, which for more than 20 years has provided a structured process for state-designated physicians to determine a patient’s level of impairment and how long wage-loss benefits should be paid. As a result of the ruling, the Pennsylvania Compensation Rating Bureau took the unprecedented action of filing for a mid-year loss cost increase, which industry experts conservatively estimated was costing employers hundreds of millions of dollars each year in higher insurance costs. The PA Chamber of Business & Industry had been advocating for the fix.
Gordner, Millard, and Masser will be invited to participate in the annual state legislative breakfast briefing with the general membership in the spring.
More than 400 businesses and organizations belong to the Chamber to receive benefits and support efforts to strengthen their businesses and our region. Increased membership allows us to offer additional programs and benefits, have a stronger voice in advocacy and be involved in more activities and initiatives in our communities. The Chamber welcomes its newest member, and the first new member of 2019, Caz Russell LLC, to help us fulfill our mission.
Caz Russell is a business consultant specializing in leadership development training. Based in Milton, Caz is an independent John Maxwell Leadership speaker, teacher, trainer and coach. Maxwell was voted the #1 leadership and management expert in the world by Inc. Magazine. Caz offers workshops on subjects such as leadership, communication, decision making, error prevention and creating a new safety culture. A retired veteran of the electric industry, Caz’ vision is to share his experiences with others to utilize, grow and learn from. Caz can be reached at 570-809-2493, by email, or visit his website or Facebook page.
From MePush
See original article from MePush website.
EMAIL IS THE #1 THREAT
Hi, this is Andy Gritzer with MePush. I just wanted to send out an email to assist with email safety.
Unfortunately, email has become the biggest concern regarding virus related incidents. While there are measures in place to catch most viruses (spam filters and antivirus) the easiest way to prevent them is through proper handling of spam/malicious email.
I will assume that most of you receive spam email. Spam filters will catch about 99% of spam that flows to your organization. It’s the ones that get through that we need to worry about. Below are some tips on how to avoid compromising your accounts, your computer, and your company’s network. Really, all it comes down to is being aware and diligent.
Example of an organization’s spam filter statistics is in the below picture
NOTE: I will use the terms “spoofing” and “phishing”. Spoofing is a fraudulent practice in which an unknown source sends communication disguised as a known source. Phishing is when an unknown source attempts to acquire information such as account credentials or credit card information.
Just because it says it’s from John Smith does NOT mean it is from John Smith. You may receive an odd email from someone you have constant contact with. Remember to look at the email address it is from and NOT just the name. It might show John’s return address as “illtakeyourmoney@lol.ru” (just an example) when the reality his email address is john.smith@google.com.
That being said we are at the point where there are a lot of spam/fake/phishing emails being sent via “spoofed” addresses. The name AND email address will look proper. It will say it is from John Smith with an email address of john.smith@google.com But when you hit reply it goes to another account completely. Anyone can spoof anyone. Which makes it very difficult to determine what is legitimate or not. Also, check to make sure the signature (if there is one) matches the sender.
I am not trying to scare you; just please assume anything that comes in with a link or attachment is NOT legitimate. Make sure you cover your bases when opening attachments from known senders and especially UNKNOWN senders.
Were you expecting john.smith@gmail.com to send you a document? Does the document pertain to something you do at your workplace or a shared interest? If not, do NOT open it. Contact the sender and inquire about it to make sure before opening. A lot of times the sender or the sender’s organization was compromised at one point and you might just be receiving spoofed emails.
You receive an email from Microsoft, Google, DocuSign, etc. asking you for your account credentials. These can look very legitimate. No self-respecting company would every ask you provide your login credentials to them. They have them already. A dead giveaway is if you happen to click on the link and it takes you to a landing page asking to select what type of account (Microsoft, yahoo, google, adobe) and to enter your email address and password. Also, ask yourself, do I even have an Office 365 account? If not, then chances are it’s a scam/phishing email.
If you oversee finances never make a requested wire transfer or open a random invoice. These phishing experts target specific people/positions within companies. They will get the name of the CEO, send an email that looks like it is from the CEO to the CFO requesting a money transfer. Please check the language of the email. If it sounds generic, chances are it isn’t valid. We have had clients do this at great financial loss.
So please just keep this in mind when opening email. Email has generally been the part of our jobs/home that takes very little effort. You never really had to pay much attention when looking at your email. Email was just, email. Unfortunately, now we need to be very careful. So, if something seems a little odd, chances are it might be.
I hope these tips were helpful!
Thank you, Andrew Gritzer
From ChamberChoice and Smart Business Pittsburgh
It’s no secret that health care pricing varies widely and has a direct impact to the bottom line for employers of all types and sizes.
As health care costs continue to increase, employers have sought innovative and creative strategies to lower expenses. One strategy, which has gained momentum, is referenced-based pricing (RBP). The RBP approach typically doesn’t involve a
traditional insurance company or provider network negotiating covered services for the health plan. Instead, RBP sets limits on the amount a plan will pay for certain medical services.
Smart Business spoke to Michael Galardini, director of sales at JRG Advisors, to break down how RBP works and whether it might be right for you.
How does RBP work with health plans?
RBP sets limits on the amount a health plan pays for procedures or services performed in hospitals and free-standing surgical centers without the use of a PPO network. For physician charges, a national PPO platform is utilized. The limits are based on a percentage above the amount that Medicare pays, which is based on the cost that each facility files with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The limits are selected by employers in consultation with their benefits advisor, to provide a reasonable and fair profit to the provider. A good RBP model considers both Medicare reimbursement and the actual cost to deliver the service; and adds a fair profit margin for the provider.
If the employee is balance billed for the difference, the RBP provider assigns legal counsel to the employee, at no cost, including defending the RBP payment in court.
Employers often partner with a third party administrator (TPA) to establish the best limits for a given medical procedure. The TPA helps conduct market research and negotiate the most appropriate deals with providers. Finding a reliable TPA, which works well with your company and the RBP provider, is crucial for negotiating the best price for your employees.
What are the advantages of using RBP?
Because there is no assigned network for hospitals and surgical centers, covered individuals may seek treatment at any facility they desire. RBP generally provides anywhere from 60 percent to 70 percent savings from billed medical charges. Typical PPOs only provide 40 percent to 50 percent from billed charges.
Hospital billed charges are taken from a charge master that each hospital maintains. The charge master is a list of the retail price of services that the facility charges for patients without insurance, or network discounts. The charge master changes from time to time, however, generally the charges are about 800 percent to 1,000 percent above the amount that Medicare pays the facility. Even after PPO discounts are applied, employer health plans are paying 400 percent to 500 percent above the amount that Medicare pays.
Are there any drawbacks to RBP?
Given the complexity of RBP, employers and employees need to carefully consider a number of things and be properly educated on how RBP will work for their employees. It is vital to work with a trusted partner that is reliable and experienced in the RBP process.
Furthermore, not using an experienced partner (and its legal advocacy) could potentially leave you and your employees vulnerable to providers attempting to balance bills. While the potential for payment disputes between employers, participants and health care providers always exists over RBP, there has been little RBP litigation to date. Litigation is always a potential threat to both the employer and employees, but disagreements over these issues are typically resolved by negotiation.
RBP can be an innovative strategy for lowering health care costs. As the market continues to evolve, employers are seeking cost reductions. The RBP option is unique in its ability to potentially reduce costs and create informed consumers. Is your business ready to investigate this innovative approach?
The Foundation of the Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce would like to thank the following Chamber members for their support of its educational improvement programs in workforce development:
Funds were received through the PA Department of Community & Economic Development’s EITC program. The Foundation will use these funds to support the programs of Tech Theatre, EVERFI Financial Literacy, STEM Magnet with Bloomsburg University, STEM competition at the Bloomsburg Fair, Classroom in the Hospital, Classroom on Main Street and Pennsylvania Free Enterprise Week Scholarships. Through these programs students from middle and high schools in Columbia and Montour Counties have opportunities to learn inside and outside the classroom, in a unique way not offered traditionally. To learn more about these programs, or other K-12 programs of The Foundation, contact Foundation director, Jeff Emanuel by email or at 570-784-2522. Thanks again for your support!
From PA Chamber of Business & Industry
The state Insurance Department recently announced its approval of “loss cost” filings that may result in workers’ compensation savings to Pennsylvania employers, effective Jan. 1, 2019. The first of these filings from the PA Compensation Rating Bureau reflects the enactment of Act 111 of 2018, in which the legislature responded to the state Supreme Court’s decision in the Protz case with a legislative fix that reinstated the Impairment Rating Evaluation process to the state’s WC system. An important cost-saving measure, IREs were previously used for more than 20 years as a fair and effective way for state-designated physicians to determine a patient’s level of impairment and whether wage benefits should be limited or paid indefinitely. The Court’s decision last year to throw out the IRE process led the PCRB to file a mid-year loss cost increase, which was estimated to increase workers’ comp costs by hundreds of millions of dollars. The PA Chamber led the successful charge in advocating for the legislative fix to this ruling, which resulted in Act 111 and this subsequent loss cost decrease.
The second loss cost change approved by the Insurance Department was reflective of a data error uncovered in Nov. 2017 that was incorporated into rates set in April of this year. In announcing the second change, Insurance Commissioner Jessica Altman said, “it is possible some businesses paid higher rates than they should have … therefore, I am urging all workers comp insurers to determine as quickly as possible whether this is the case for any businesses they insure, and to reimburse any businesses which have overpaid as a result of the November 2017 filing.”
The PA Chamber had sent a letter to Commissioner Altman on Dec. 7 urging the Department to adopt this provision.
Member News
- The United Way of Columbia and Montour County’s United in Recovery coalition will conduct free drug and alcohol treatment assessments this Friday, Jan. 4, from 3-6 p.m. at the Reliance Fire Company, located at 501 W. 3rd St., Berwick. No appointments are necessary and this event is open to residents of all counties. Medical providers specializing in addiction will be on hand to conduct assessments for anyone that does or may have an issue with drug or alcohol abuse. For more information or questions, please contact the United Way at 570-784-3134 or by email.
- For The Cause recently began a quarterly newsletter. Check it out and read more about this organization, which is dedicated to making the greater Berwick area a region of pride where those communities thrive as they live, work and play, and also read about its Teen Center and its programs, its involvement in an Eagle Scout project being undertaken by a local teenager to build a home for a homeless vet, its weekend food program and more.
- Service 1st Federal Credit Union employees collected over 100 toys for Toys for Tots at their annual holiday party.
Chris Court, Vice President Accounting & Operations; Nicole Hoyes, Assistant Market Manager; Tom Rambo, Vice President Bloomsburg and Danville Markets; Bill Lavage, President/CEO.
In place of a gift exchange, employees enjoy taking part in this very special tradition by bringing donations of new toys in hopes of brightening the holidays for local children. In addition to toys collected at the gathering, many Service 1st branch locations served as Toys for Tots donation sites for members and the community.
