PHP has cemented its position as one of the UK's leading health and wellbeing intermediaries, following two national award wins in the space of a few weeks.

Cover Excellence Awards 2009 Healthcare Intermediary of the Year ***************************

PHP Commercial Manager Paula Aitken receives award from comedian Jason Manford and Jack Briggs, Intermediary Sales & Marketing Director, Simplyhealth What the judges said: "PHP’s case study showed an approach which involved all parties in the PMI jigsaw. It was a ‘well structured appraisal of the client's needs’ which also showed a detailed analysis of cost control measures, while the winning intermediary's ‘caring yet practical approach’ shone through"

Health Insurance Awards 2009 Best Group Medical Insurance Intermediary *************************** Each of the awards seeks to showcase best practice within the industry and asks for real-life case studies to demonstrate a commitment to clients, display innovative solutions and show a caring and honest approach. PHP has grown substantially in the last few years, but our ethos of treating customers fairly and offering impartial independent advice has remained the same. To be recognised by our peers in both of these awards helps demonstrate that the quality of our service, advice and innovation is still amongst the best in the industry and has not been lost in our expansion. As a business we are extremely proud of our staff, our business partners and our clients.

As a business it is easy to focus on the balance sheet in turbulent times, but it is important to remember the human impact. 

Increased anxiety brought about by financial and job insecurity now poses a risk to employee health, with two in three workers claiming they feel more stressed, run down and prone to illness since the ‘credit crunch’.  When that happens, businesses can see a fall in productivity and motivation amongst staff, which in turn affects the bottom line. 

However, by helping an employee deal with the causes of stress and illness, employers can increase both productivity and morale, developing a culture of wellbeing amongst staff. 

Workplace wellbeing strategies are rapidly growing in popularity;  In this year’s Sunday Times Best Companies list, 95% of organisations in the top 20 big firms have a wellbeing programme in place, as well as 88% of medium sized companies. 

Employee Assistance Programmes (EAP’s) are a popular aspect of wellbeing strategies.  For as little as 10 pence per employee per week, they provide 24 hour, 365 day access to trained counsellors who deal with financial, emotional, legal, occupational and civil issues. 

Keeping your workforce healthy, both physically and mentally, becomes even more important in a hard economic climate; whilst it can be difficult to justify spending in these turbulent times, if past experience is anything to go by, it can be argued that the companies that are best placed to weather the economic storm could be those who view their staff as an invaluable business asset and employee wellbeing strategies as an essential tool to attract and retain talent.

	For further details about EAP's or any other health-related products or services offered by PHP visit www.php.co.uk or contact Kurt Harper on 01274 588862 or kurt.harper@php.co.uk

The healthcare benefits employees can receive from their employer can be complex with a need to calculate the taxable benefit should there be one.  For example medical insurance is taxable only if it’s provided to employees earning £8,500 a year or more, or to company directors (regardless of earnings). 

You pay tax on a benefit if it's countable as earnings or a benefit that is capable of being converted into cash. An employer discharges an employee's debt when they pay a bill for goods or services directly that in law is the employee's liability. It doesn't matter for tax purposes whether payment is made voluntarily or under contract.  For example, an employee has treatment, the hospital invoices the employee and then the employer pays the hospital.  The employer has discharged the employee’s debt by paying the bill, so the amount paid is taxable as earnings. 

Under Income Tax rules any benefit in kind provided to an employee, except where exemptions exist is subject to Income Tax. 

For further information regarding tax implications for employee benefits visit www.payrollprofession.org