The Small Business Administration is urging victims of the Atlanta Georgia area flooding that occurred from September 18 through October 8, 2009, to complete and return applications for emergency assistance and loans by November 23, 2009.

The SBA is concerned that many business and home owners will not have settled with their insurance company by that time. Thus, the victim will not know what portion of the damage will be covered by insurance and what portion will need to be covered by a loan. The SBA is urging victims to complete and return the paperwork even if the amount of the insurance settlement is unknown. The SBA will make the full loan in return for reimbursement when settlement insurance proceeds are recovered.

Businesses and non-profit organizations of any size (in a specific geographic area affected by the flooding) may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets. Interest rates are as low as 4 percent for businesses with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set by the SBA and are based on each applicant's financial condition.

Business loan applications may be downloaded from www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance. Applications may be returned to one of the Business Recovery Centers or mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, Texas, 76155. Anyone unable to visit one of the Centers may obtain information and loan applications by calling the SBA's Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 (or 1-800-877-8339 for the hearing impaired) Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. EDT, or send an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

It is open enrollment season for many employer-sponsored health plans. 2010 figures to be an interesting year as employers look at ways to trim costs and provide for their employees. Employers provide such benefits to encourage retention and to retain high-value employees and open enrollment offers the employer the challenge of educating the employee about their benefits. I have an article with helpful tips for employers working through open enrollment.

Another factor this year is the effect of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA). This Act will be in effect for 2010 health plans and prevents employers from seeking genetic information for purposes of determining health plan premium rates.

The challenge is that genetic information and "collection" are not clearly defined in the implementing regulations, rules, and law. A fact sheet is available from the Department of Labor to provide some basic guidance.

Open enrollment often involves the collection of information from employees and dependents. The concern is that some of the information requested will violate GINA exposing the employer to potential penalties. A full analysis of any particular circumstance is beyond this post, but employers should be aware of this new requirement and seek advice from their health insurer or legal counsel to insure open enrollment questionnaires do not violate GINA.

I visited Washington, D.C. over the weekend, arriving last Thursday. My thanks goes to the Office of Congresswoman Betty Sutton for arranging and guiding my kids on an excellent tour of the U.S. Capitol.

The weather was terrible, but it was exciting to be "inside the beltway" during a time when the health insurance reform debate is in full swing. It is easy to direct anger at "Congress" as a generic concept. However, when you walk the halls of the Longworth or Rayburn buildings where the Representatives work, it really puts a human face on federal government. Small offices, diligent staff, red badges, green badges, vending machines, security, and a House Floor that is really not as big as it looks on CSPAN, are all images that remain with me.

I'll share more of my visit and some pictures in future posts.

During press briefings last week, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs stated, in answer to questions about employment and job creation, that the White House may be looking at extending COBRA premium assistance past January 1, 2010. Mr. Gibbs stated, "the President -- some of the things the President is talking about there -- obviously there are a number of ideas that have been implemented that are coming to a legislative end, whether it is...extending certain unemployment benefits, whether we're looking at the notion of extending some of the COBRA benefits."

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 set up an assistance package to provide recently unemployed workers up to 65% of COBRA premiums to maintain health insurance. While popular with employees, the imposition of the program created an administrative headache and an unforeseen cost to employers seeking to survive by shedding payroll costs. The legislative subsidy will expire on January 1, 2010.

This means employees laid off after January 1, will not receive the 65% premium subsidy. And, with a 9.8% unemployment rate, this translates into many laid off workers unable to maintain health insurance coverage without some assistance. We'll keep an eye on this and report on any updates.