Complying with the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) recently became even more complicated. What do the changes from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) mean for employers? After years in the making, on November 17, 2008, the DOL issued its final revised regulations for the FMLA. Because the regulations require a statement of FMLA policy to be included in all employee handbooks, it will be essential that companies revise their employee handbooks to reflect the changes in the law. The FMLA allows unpaid leave and job protection for employees who take time off to care for immediate family members with a serious condition. With an aging population and a dual-focus workforce; the time an adult spends providing care of another has emerged into a workplace issue. Holding a job and providing elder care often causes stress, depression and burn out that can lead to increased absenteeism and a high turnover for employers. The seminar was held to discuss how to confront the elder care challenge.

Topics to be addressed:

• Military leave: National Defense Authorization Act (H.R. 4986)
• Calculation of leave on an intermittent and reduced basis
• The overlap with other laws, benefits and policies
• What qualifies as a “serious health condition”
• Baby boomers and their parents: Impact on employment
• Productivity losses: absenteeism, partial-absenteeism, workday interruptions

Featured Speakers:
Wendy C. Carmichael, Esq., USI Southwest’s in-house ERISA counsel
Ms. Carmichael earned her B.A. degree from Vanderbilt University and her J.D. from the University of Oregon School of Law. Before joining USI Southwest, she was in private practice at Courtney & Associates, P.C., practicing employee benefits law, and was named a 2006 Texas Rising Star by Texas Monthly magazine. At USI Southwest, Ms. Carmichael monitors changes in benefits laws, including HIPAA, COBRA, FMLA, ERISA & state insurance laws; writes weekly updates and a quarterly client newsletter covering welfare plan developments and general issues; makes presentations, internally and externally, explaining significant laws; and provides assistance with respect to specific legal questions (e.g., those concerning discrimination, participant communication and privacy) directly to clients, consultants, and account management personnel.

Liebe Ostrow, CSA
Liebe Ostrow, founder of Senior Care Advisors of Texas Inc., has been a financial planning specialist since 1985. After more than 20 years of dedication to her clients and seeing first-hand the needs that have arisen in her own family, Ms. Ostrow is passionate about bringing an informed, holistic approach to the issues and opportunities that accompany retirement. The founder and CEO of Ostrow Financial Group, Ms. Ostrow is a graduate of Northeastern University in Boston, Mass. Always with her clients’ interests at heart, Ms. Ostrow has been a groundbreaker throughout her career, and recently earned her Certified Senior Advisor® designation through the Society of Certified Senior Advisors. In 1998, she became one of the first in the financial services industry to qualify as a Certified Family Business Specialists.

Jane P. Lehto, CSA
Recognizing the needs of patients frustrated with the health insurance claims process, Jane Lehto founded MRR Medical Reimbursement Resource LLC in 1991 in Houston, Texas. For more than 13 years, MRR has advocated for patients and their families to ensure that they receive all the benefits to which they are entitled under their plans. The mature population frequently struggles with the complexities of this process and Ms. Lehto believes strongly that seniors need and deserve competent and fair representation when interacting with providers and insurers. An Atlanta native, Ms. Lehto graduated magna cum laude from the University of Georgia, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She recently earned her Certified Senior Advisor® designation through the Society of Certified Senior Advisors.