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As this year’s extended flu season continues, aided by numerous cases of H1N1 (or “swine”) flu, employers are grappling with the best way to balance the personal health of their employees, the public health risks of the contagious illness, and their own business operation plans in the face of critical absences from the office.  The Washington Post yesterday highlights some of the issues employers are facing during flu season, as well as some proposed solutions.

Workplace associations, many of whom are themselves facing this problem, have created a number of resources from a variety of perspectives to help all employers adapt to this environment.  The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) has created an “H1N1 (Swine) Flu Resources” page that allows members to receive and read up-to-date information on the disease.  Additionally, it provides a community for employers to share their thoughts on how to handle flu season and an email address for them to ask questions or share solutions to staffing issues.  SHRM also recently released “Doing Business During an Influenza Pandemic” a guide for businesses of all sizes to help cope with widespread flu outbreaks.

A major concern for epidemiologists are childcare facilities and schools, as germs and virus spread quickly in areas with high concentrations of children.  The American Academy of Pediatrics has an “H1N1 Swine Flu Information” website that covers not only medical facts about the disease, but resources and links for how to prevent the spread of H1N1 in the workplace and in workplaces with children.  For colleges and universities, the American Council on Education has created a Pandemic Flu Preparedness Resource while the National Association of College and University Attorneys has an updated Disaster Preparedness and Response page.

Does your association have a plan in place for H1N1 illness among staff?

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ASAE recently conducted an interview with Scott J. Becker, the Executive Director of the Association of Public Health Laboratories, on the recent news regarding the H1N1 influenza virus, commonly known as “swine flu”.

Bloomberg News is reporting this morning that House Energy & Commerce Chair Henry Waxman (D-CA) sent letters to six insurance companies demanding information on their small business plans and specifically a response to allegations that the insurers routinely drop small businesses when their premiums increase due to employee illness.

The letters, which were sent to insurers including WellPoint and Aetna (seen here), demanded that the insurers produce relevant documents explaining their small business plans, policies to determine when to raise rates as well as drop coverage, and the maximum rate increase.  Congressman Bart Stupak (D-MI), a co-signer on the letter and chair of the committee’s oversight subcommittee, has promised hearings into the alleged purges of small businesses.

“As part of our ongoing investigation, we are now looking into the practice of health insurance companies terminating the coverage of small businesses when their employees become ill and their health insurance claims increase,” said Waxman in a statement. “We need to better understand how widespread this harmful and destructive practice has become, and how it is impacting small businesses and their employees across the country.”

A spokesperson for America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), which represents the major insurance companies, called the letters a “fishing expedition.”  “This is just a continuation of a politically timed and politically motivated fishing expedition in an attempt to justify a new government-run plan,” said Robert Zirkelbach, a spokesman for AHIP. “Health plans are already highly regulated at both the federal and the state level, and the overwhelming majority of Americans are satisfied with their current health care coverage.”

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