HMAA debuts new health program

The Hawaii Medical Assurance Association has launched a new health and productivity solutions program for businesses and employees.

HMAA Wellness for Life offers health consultations and personal coaching from locally based certified health experts, as well as online tracking. The program is free to HMAA’s 42,000 members.

"Businesses are struggling to stay afloat in this prolonged challenging economy, and we’re in a position to help them save time and money," John Henry Felix, HMAA’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

The insurer said the program is intended to help businesses lower health costs and improve productivity.

Isle health groups aid self-funded clients

Hawaii-Western Management Group has partnered with HCC Life Insurance Co. to provide self-funded clients medical stop loss insurance.

The administrator for Hawaii Medical Assurance Association said more employers are choosing to self-fund health benefit plans to reduce costs and control reserves, as well as avoid costly federal health care reform requirements.

Medical stop loss, also known as excess loss insurance, protects employers with self-funded health benefit plans from large catastrophic and routine claims that are significantly higher than expected.

China’s ranks of millionaires increasing

China’s millionaires will account for about half of the rich people across 10 major economies in Asia and hold more than half of the wealth by 2015, according to a study by Julius Baer Group and CLSA Asia Pacific Markets.

The millionaires will more than double in number to 2.8 million, with 1.4 million high net worth people in China, according to a recent report that covered China, India, Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, the Philippines and Malaysia. Chinese millionaires will hold $8.76 trillion of the $15.81 trillion that these countries’ millionaires are expected to have, it said.

"In terms of the overall amounts of wealth that will increase, it’s very much a China story," said Stefan Hofer, emerging market equity strategist at Julius Baer.

Expansion in the world’s fastest-growing major economy created 502,000 millionaires in the country last year, according to the report. State and private investments helped drive a 9.5 percent gain in second-quarter gross domestic product from a year earlier, the government said in July, faster than estimated as growth in industrial output and retail sales accelerated and copper and aluminum production reached records.

The almost tripling of millionaires’ assets in the 10 nations from $5.6 trillion in 2010 also will be driven by currency appreciation in the region, according to the report, adding to the economic growth and gains in asset values. The currency gain may create 600,000 new millionaires — or individuals with more than $1 million of investible assets excluding their primary residence — by 2015, the bank said.

India will be the second-biggest market among the 10 economies by 2015, with 403,000 millionaires and a combined $2.5 trillion in wealth, said the report, which excludes Japan. South Korea will be ranked third, it said.

N. Dakota flooding to push up pasta prices

PLAZA, N.D. » Consumers are paying more for pasta after heavy spring rain and record flooding prevented planting on more than 1 million acres in one of the nation’s best durum wheat-growing areas.

North Dakota typically grows nearly three-fourths of the nation’s durum, and its crop is prized for its golden color and high protein. Pasta makers say the semolina flour made from North Dakota durum produces noodles that are among the world’s best.

This year’s crop, however, is expected to be only about 24.6 million bushels, or about two-fifths of last year’s. Total U.S. production is pegged at 59 million bushels, a little more than half of last year’s and the least since 2006, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

AT&T plans to woo U.S. over T-Mobile deal

WASHINGTON » AT&T plans to approach the Justice Department to discuss conditions, including the sale of assets or the transfer of subscribers to other companies, that would allow its merger with T-Mobile to be completed, people close to the transaction said Friday.

AT&T has a strong incentive to determine how many conditions the Justice Department might impose on the proposed merger. If the costs of those conditions are "reasonably likely to be more than $7.8 billion," according to the merger agreement, AT&T can walk away from the transaction without having to pay a breakup fee to T-Mobile of $3 billion in cash plus wireless airwaves worth an estimated additional $3 billion.

Nissan to send 25 Leafs to China for trial

Nissan Motor Co. will send as many as 25 Leaf electric cars to China’s Wuhan city for a trial period by next spring, according to Vice President Masami Misaki. The carmaker has no plans at present at sell the Leaf in China, he said Saturday in Tianjin.

ON THE MOVE

UnitedHealthcare has appointed new leaders for its Hawaii operations: William Guptail, president; David Herndon, chief operating officer; David Heywood, vice president; and Dr. Fatima Phillips, medical director. The executives have more than 60 years combined experience in the health care industry.

Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel has promoted Peter Abarcar Jr. to executive chef of the resort. He has 23 years of experience in the culinary field, including chef de cuisine and lead cook at the hotel’s Coast Grille Restaurant and sous chef at the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.