Menu Of Plans Research Articles

Matching Preferences and Access: Sustainable Investing in 401(k) Plans

The vast majority of 401(k) plan participants want access to investments that match their personal values, yet a small fraction of plans offer those types of investments. The culprit for the existing misalignment has been unstable regulation, which has discouraged plan fiduciaries from including some categories of investments, such as sustainable investments, on 401(k) plan menus. In late 2022, the Department of Labor issued guidance that for the first time explicitly states that fiduciaries do not violate their duty of loyalty by considering participant preferences when making investment-related decisions. This Article makes two unique contributions. First, it evaluates the research on participant preferences for sustainable investments. Second, it provides a framework that fiduciaries can use to assess and consider those preferences while simultaneously fulfilling their duties of loyalty and prudence. If fiduciaries adopt the framework developed in this Article, it could be a triple win. Data indicate, and experts believe, that employees will save more in their 401(k) plans if they have access to investments that support their personal values. An increase in retirement savings would help close the substantial pension gap that exists, particularly for young employees and women who are particularly vulnerable to under saving. Companies will benefit if employees place greater value on their 401(k) plans. And, the world would benefit from increased assets flowing to sustainable investments at a time when climate and social sustainability are close to or in crisis.

Plan Menus, Retirement Portfolios, and Investors' Welfare

Plan Menus, Retirement Portfolios, and Investors' Welfare

Development of Android-Based 3d Animation Learning Applications to Support Distance Learning for the D4 Animation Study Program, Udinus Semarang

The existence of the COVID-19 pandemic has become a big problem in practicum courses, especially the 3D1 Animation course at the Dian Nuswantoro University animation study program, Semarang. Lecturers cannot guide students directly when experiencing obstacles in the learning process such as during face-to-face learning. The purpose of this research is to create an android application for learning media 3d1 animation. In this application there are several menus including the semester learning plan menu, video tutorials, task collection, consultation with lecturers, remote desktop requests and othersRemote desktop features to make it easier for lecturers to guide students remotely. This study uses the waterfall method, namely software requirements analysis, design, development, testing, and maintenance with testing using the black box method. The test results show that each aspect has results that can be concluded as successful and feasible. This research succeeded in developing android-based 3d1 animation learning media.

Elaboration and validation of an instrument for qualitative assessment of food preparations offered to workers

The assessment of food preparations offered to workers, taking into consideration the use of ingredients according to the type of industrial processing, is important in order to promote the health of this population. This study aimed to elaborate and validate an instrument to qualitatively assess food preparations offered to workers by food services, focusing on the extent and purpose of the industrial processing of food ingredients. Methodological and multiple-case studies were conducted based on the realities of three food services. The instrument, which was denominated the Score for Qualitative Assessment of Preparations (EAQP), comprised ten questions that assessed the classification of ingredients according to the extent and purpose of industrial processing, as well as other Brazilian and international recommendations on healthy eating. This instrument can be applied in relation to at least four different preparations (salad, main course, side dish, and dessert) and classifies the quality of preparations into four levels of quality (high, intermediate, low, and very low). The instrument presented a satisfactory content validity index for scale in the two stages of content validation (0.940 and 0.966). In the discriminant analysis, the instrument was applied to 384 preparations and showed 98.44% agreement between the criteria for classifying the quality of the preparations. The EAQP is the first instrument to assess individual food preparations in a practical and easy way, taking into account the extent and purpose of the industrial processing of ingredients. The EAQP can be used in food services by professionals to evaluate the quality of preparations and to plan menus. It can help to replace processed and ultra-processed ingredients, contributing to promote healthy preparations for consumers.

Dominated Options in Health Insurance Plans

Prior research documents that there are sometimes dominated options in health plan menus, but is that common? We analyze Kaiser Family Foundation data on health plans that firms offer to their employees. For firms offering both a high-deductible and lower-deductible health plan, 62 percent of the time the high-deductible option has lower maximum spending risk for the employee. We estimate that the high-deductible plan dominates at roughly half of firms. We discuss potential mechanisms behind these surprising patterns and find support both for two explanations: widespread adverse-selection pricing and some employers also differentially favoring high-deductible plans. (JEL G22, G52, I13)

Effects of the Menu of Loan Contracts on Borrower Behavior

We study how the menu of contracts presented to a decision maker—including contracts she may be precluded from choosing—affects her choice of remunerative but risky actions relative to lower paying, less risky alternatives. We do this through a series of laboratory experiments modeled after the loan repayment options offered to U.S. student borrowers, analyzing borrowers’ task (career) choices in settings that vary the menu of available and unavailable loan repayment plans and knowledge of unavailable options. In these experiments, we observe behavior that is inconsistent with predictions from standard economic models in which agents can easily make complex decisions and each alternative in a choice set is evaluated independently of other potential options. Instead, we provide evidence that expanding the menu of choices or making an agent aware of choices that she has been denied can affect how a contract is valued. Our empirical findings are most consistent with behavioral models that allow for anticipated regret over a choice that turns out to be suboptimal ex post or preferences for simplicity and gratitude for being unburdened from having to make a choice. This paper was accepted by Yan Chen, decision analysis.

Inferring Risk Perceptions and Preferences Using Choice from Insurance Menus: Theory and Evidence

Abstract Demand for insurance can be driven by high risk aversion or high-risk. We show how to separately identify risk preferences and risk types using only choices from menus of insurance plans. Our revealed preference approach does not rely on rational expectations, nor does it require access to claims data. We show what can be learned non-parametrically about the type distributions from variation in insurance plans, offered separately to random cross-sections or offered as part of the same menu to one cross-section. We prove that our approach allows for full identification in the textbook model with binary risks, and extend our results to continuous risks. We illustrate our approach using the Massachusetts Health Insurance Exchange, where choices provide informative bounds on the type distributions, especially for risks, but do not allow us to reject homogeneity in preferences.

Health Insurance Menu Design for Large Employers

We explore the challenges faced by a large employer designing a health insurance plan menu for its employees. Using detailed administrative data from Harvard University, we estimate a model of plan choice and utilization, and evaluate the benefits of cost sharing and plan variety. For a single plan with a generous out-of-pocket maximum, we find that modest cost sharing of approximately 30% maximizes average employee surplus. Further gains from offering choice are limited if based solely on financial dimensions, but can be economically significant if paired with other features that appeal to sicker households. Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.

Alphabeticity Bias in 401(k) Investing

AbstractStructural factors that cause irrational investment in defined contribution savings plans are of great concern. Using a proprietary database of 401(k) plans we show that alphabeticity—the order that fund names appear when listed in alphabetical order—significantly biases participants’ investment allocation decisions. While we show a larger impact as the number of funds in the plan increases, this bias is strong even when relatively few funds are available in the plan menu. Importantly, our findings suggest that a more strategic ordering of funds could result in favorable outcomes for participants.

Menu planning practices in early childhood education and care - factors associated with menu compliance with sector dietary guidelines.

Despite recommendations, early childhood education and care services do not plan menus in accordance with sector dietary guidelines. This study aimed to examine the following among Australian long day care services: (a) menu planning practices; (b) prevalence of menu compliance with sector dietary guidelines; and (c) menu planning practices associated with higher menu compliance with sector dietary guidelines. Long day care services within Hunter New England, NSW participated in a pen and paper survey assessing menu planning practices and socio-demographic and service characteristics. Two-week menus were assessed for compliance with sector dietary guidelines, based on the number of servings of food groups and discretionary foods provided per child, per day. Staff from 72 services completed the survey and 69 provided their menu. Results indicated the service cook was fully responsible for planning the menu in 43% of services, and 57% had received written support to assist with menu planning. Service menus were compliant with an average of 0.68 out of six food groups and discretionary foods. In poisson regression models, a shorter menu cycle length (P=.04) and the receipt of training opportunities to support menu planning (P<.01) were significantly associated with higher menu compliance. Menu compliance with sector dietary guidelines is low among participating long day care services. SO WHAT?: The implementation of practices such as shortening of the menu cycle and the provision of training opportunities may assist in the planning of menus that are more compliant with dietary guidelines in this setting.

The Dynamics of Lifecycle Investing in 401(k) Plans

In an effort to improve 401(k) portfolio choices, many US plan sponsors are offering target maturity date (TM) lifecycle funds, which place younger workers into higher-equity-share portfolios and then automatically rebalance them into more conservative holdings as they near retirement age. Our study of over a quarter-million participants offered TM funds shows that sponsor-driven menu decisions do influence adoption patterns. Yet many participants also prove to be active decision-makers, particularly new plan entrants and seemingly less financially literate employees. Comparing portfolios before and after TM fund adoption, we observe that such funds meaningfully change the age structure of equity exposure, eliminate zero- or all-equity portfolios, and reduce the share of idiosyncratic portfolio risk. We conclude that recent pension legislation sanctioning TM as default funds will modify 401(k) investment patterns. The speed with which behavior changes will depend both on employer plan menu decisions as well as voluntary choice by new entrants and low-literacy employees.

Public organization management: Trade Union Cafeteria Plan of Volgograd State University

The article analyses the effectiveness of the current project of systematic social package expansion according to the flexible management system in the Trade Union Organization of Workers of Volgograd State University. The application of such methodologies as customer / product development, Total Quality Management and empathic design has allowed focusing on the customization of social benefits on the Cafeteria Plan menu. The solution to the problem of combining production management and social benefits distribution in a public organization constitutes the novelty of this project. The authors conclude that the use of flexible and situational methods in the system management of an enterprise has enabled creating breakthrough product innovations in the services and benefits sector, extending their action to a wide range of users in the region, as well as applying this practical experience in the work of trade union organizations of other Russian universities.

Putting the Pension Back in 401(K) Plans: Optimal Versus Default Longevity Income Annuities

Most defined contribution pension plans pay benefits as lump sums, yet the US Treasury has recently encouraged firms to protect retirees from outliving their assets by converting a portion of their plan balances into longevity income annuities (LIA). These are deferred annuities which initiate payouts not later than age 85 and continue for life, and they provide an effective way to hedge systematic (individual) longevity risk for a relatively low price. Using a life cycle portfolio framework, we measure the welfare improvements from including LIAs in the menu of plan payout choices, accounting for mortality heterogeneity by education and sex. We find that introducing a longevity income annuity to the plan menu is attractive for most DC plan participants who optimally commit 8-15% of their plan balances at age 65 to a LIA that starts paying out at age 85. Optimal annuitization boosts welfare by 5-20% of average retirement plan accruals at age 66 (assuming average mortality rates), compared to not having access to the LIA. We also compare the optimal LIA allocation versus two default options that plan sponsors could implement. We conclude that an approach where a fixed fraction over a dollar threshold is invested in LIAs will be preferred by most to the status quo, while enhancing welfare for the majority of workers.Institutional subscribers to the NBER working paper series, and residents of developing countries may download this paper without additional charge at www.nber.org.

Alphabeticity Bias in 401(k) Investing

Structural factors which cause irrational investment in defined contribution savings plans are of great concern. Using a proprietary database of 401(k) plans we show that alphabeticity – the order that fund names appear when listed in alphabetical order – significantly biases participants’ investment allocation decisions. While we show a larger impact as the number of funds in the plan increases, this bias is strong even when relatively few funds are available in the plan menu. Importantly, our findings suggest that a more strategic ordering of funds could result in favorable outcomes for participants.

Allowing Consumers to Bundle Themselves: The Profitability of Family Plans

Telecommunications service is an important and growing market, with worldwide revenue exceeding $2.2 trillion in 2016. In the U.S. market, the total number of mobile wireless connections has grown from 279.6 million in 2008 to 396 million in 2016. All the firms in this market offer consumers an option of purchasing either an individual plan or a family plan. Whereas a menu of individual plans can be thought of as a means to segment the market, the theoretical challenge is to understand how a firm stands to benefit from adding family plans to its product mix. In this paper, we use a game-theoretic framework to explore the role of family plans. Interestingly, we find that even when a family plan does not draw in any new consumers, a firm can still benefit from offering these plans. This occurs primarily because a family plan enables the firm to price discriminate more effectively. In particular, because some consumers can bundle themselves and join a family plan, the firm is able to charge a higher price to single high-valuation consumers who are unable to be part of a family. Furthermore, the presence of a family plan can have a negative impact on the plan offered to single low-valuation consumers who now have to pay a higher overage price. We also show that not all family plans are profitable and that the profitability depends on the sizes of different types of families. The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/mksc.2018.1121 .

Abstract B16: Potential challenges and strategies for working with community cancer advocates in a rural population

Abstract Introduction: The Breast Health Research Champion (BHRC) program was developed in order to train breast health advocates in the community on breast health basics, clinical trials, and biospecimen donations. Data collection is underway for the 4th cohort, and focuses on the rural area of Lawrenceville, Virginia. Lawrenceville is a part of Brunswick County, which is a large county encompassing 569 square miles and a population of 16,500 persons. This is the second cohort involving rural communities. When working with small, tight-knit communities, we have encountered some challenges and have developed methods/strategies to address them. Methods: From experiences in a past rural cohort, several adaptations were made in the program in order to ensure success. These minor adaptations were developed in conjunction with community facilitators from the target area. Conversations were held throughout the facilitator training sessions, encouraging facilitators to problem-solve potential issues in order to assist in preparing for the program. Although the changes are small, it is thought that the adjustments made created a more engaged, sustainable relationship between researchers, community partners, and community members. Summary: The community partner identified two women from different geographic areas in the large county of Brunswick. This served multiple purposes; it helped reduce the burden on any one community member, and it increased the areas that participants were recruited from. The recruitment from various areas was critical as it provided a greater impact of the key messages of the program going out into the community. Particularly in the rural areas, we have found that communication from a community facilitator as opposed to research staff is crucial for engaging individuals. Participants were more likely to attend sessions and continued education when contacted by the community facilitator. The facilitators also identified alternate options to engage participants who were unable to travel or attend a session. iPads were used to record videos from education sessions in order to facilitate their understanding. Internet connectivity is not readily available in this area; however, the community partner was able to provide space for additional viewing sessions with Internet access. Another challenge we encountered was a lack of healthy foods available for the sessions. Facilitators worked with local community members to plan menus and prepare healthy food options for the sessions. Conclusion: Engaging communities in research involves flexibility and a multifaceted approach. When preparing for community-involved research, make sure community members understand that challenges will be encountered, but research staff are there to troubleshoot issues that arise. Open and honest communication with community partners about past challenges and listening to their suggestions for improvements are crucial for successful engagement in rural communities. These conversations are integral as it fosters a sense of trust, which ultimately strengthens the partnership. Citation Format: Katelyn Schifano. Potential challenges and strategies for working with community cancer advocates in a rural population [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Tenth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2017 Sep 25-28; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2018;27(7 Suppl):Abstract nr B16.

Choose to Lose: Health Plan Choices from a Menu with Dominated Option*

Abstract We examine the health plan choices that 23,894 employees at a U.S. firm made from a large menu of options that differed only in financial cost-sharing and premium. These decisions provide a clear test of the predictions of the standard economic model of insurance choice in the absence of choice frictions because plans were priced so that nearly every plan with a lower deductible was financially dominated by an otherwise identical plan with a high deductible. We document that the majority of employees chose dominated plans, which resulted in excess spending equivalent to 24% of chosen plan premiums. Low-income employees were significantly more likely to choose dominated plans, and most employees did not switch into more financially efficient plans in the subsequent year. We show that the choice of dominated plans cannot be rationalized by standard risk preference or any expectations about health risk. Testing alternative explanations with a series of hypothetical-choice experiments, we find that the popularity of dominated plans was not primarily driven by the size and complexity of the plan menu, nor informed preferences for avoiding high deductibles, but by employees’ lack of understanding of health insurance. Our findings challenge the standard practice of inferring risk preferences from insurance choices and raise doubts about the welfare benefits of health reforms that expand consumer choice.

How narrow a network is too narrow?

The second open-enrollment period for coverage through the Health Insurance Market place extends from November 15, 2014, to February 15, 2015; millions of people in the United States are once again choosing from a menu of plans. Although federal law dictates some aspects of the plans, shopping for coverage—even on health insurance exchanges that are well organized—can feel like little more than educated guesswork.

Long-term hospitalized elderly people have lowered L-carnitine and coenzyme Q10 in blood than healthy elderly people

Background Non-essential nutrients, L-carnitine (carnitine) and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) have attracted much attention as supplements for anti-aging and improvement of metabolism. Although the levels of carnitine and CoQ10 in the body decrease with advancing age, dietitians do not consider intakes of these nutrients when they plan food prescription or menu for elderly people. In addition, there are few reports comparing nutritional status of these nutrients between hospitalized and independent elderly people. In this study, the blood levels of carnitine and CoQ10 of long-term hospitalized and independent elderly people were investigated. Materials and methods The participants were 15 elderly adults (4 men and 11 women, mean age 76.5±6.2 years) who were hospitalized for a long time, and 30 healthy elderly adults (9 men and 21 women, mean age 77.6±6.5 years). Inpatients were further divided into two groups (inpatients oral-feeding and inpatients enteral-feeding). Anthropometric parameters, nutrition intakes and biochemical blood tests of the participants were determined. Results The level of serum albumin in inpatients oral-feeding, inpatients enteral-feeding, and healthy elderly adults were 3.4±0.3 g/dL, 3.4±0.4 g/dL, and 4.5±0.3 g/dL, respectively. The blood levels of carnitine in inpatients oral- and enteral-feeding were decreased by 25% (p <0.001) and 50% (p <0.001), respectively, as compared to that in independent elderly people. The blood levels of CoQ10 in inpatients oral- and enteral-feeding were decreased by 40% (p <0.01) and 50% (p <0.001), as compared to that in independent elderly people. Conclusion The blood levels of carnitine and CoQ10 in the long-term hospitalized elderly people were lower than that in the healthy elderly people. Their blood levels in inpatients enteral-feeding were the lowest among 3 groups. The results suggest that carnitine and CoQ10 might decrease in both biosynthesis and intakes in long-term hospitalized elderly people. Therefore, supplementation of these non-essential nutrients to hospitalized elderly people might be effective for prevention of deterioration in their nutritional status.

The Quota-Based Compensation Plan in Fashion Retailing Industry under Asymmetric Information

We study a compensation plan problem in the fashion retailing industry, which involves a risk-neutral fashion retailer and a risk-neutral salesperson, in a two-stage game framework with asymmetric information. In the first stage, the fashion retailer provides a menu of compensation plans to the salesperson who decides which plan to sign based on his superior market demand information. Confronted with the asymmetric demand information, the fashion retailer could observe market information from the salesperson's response by designing a menu of compensation plans rather than a single one to the salesperson. In the second stage, the fashion retailer then makes production decision and the salesperson determines his selling effort. We consider both adverse selection and moral hazard. We adopt the quota-based plan to derive the fashion retailer’s optimal compensation plan design and the salesperson's best response. We emphasize the impact of the quota level on the system outcomes. The results reveal that a higher quota level is disadvantageous to the fashion retailer but advantageous to the salespersons.