LITTLE ROCK, Ark. & NASHVILLE, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

As part of its long-standing commitment to improving the quality of life of its members, Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield has agreed to a four-year extension through 2015 of its current contract offering Healthways (HWAY) award-winning SilverSneakers Fitness Program to eligible members. SilverSneakers, the nations leading exercise program designed to keep older adults active and healthy, is offered to Arkansas Blue Cross more than 120,000 Medicare Advantage and Medicare supplement members.

Providing programs and services to help our Medi-Pak and Medi-Pak Advantage members be their healthy best is an important aspect of our health plans, said Cindy Thornton, vice president of Senior Products. SilverSneakers continues to be one of the benefits that helps our members feel better and enhance their quality of life. Our members tell us SilverSneakers has made a difference in their health and well-being, and Arkansas Blue Cross is committed to keeping this program available to our members at no additional cost to them.

Using proven methodologies based upon more than 16 years of science and outcomes, the SilverSneakers Fitness Program increases physical activity in older adults, resulting in higher well-being and lower health care costs. The program engages participants in active behavior change through access to a variety of physical activity venues and senior-specific programming that incorporates physical fitness and social experiences.

As part of their mission, Arkansas Blue Cross offers products and services designed to create high customer value, confidence, peace of mind and an improved quality of life. By continuing to offer SilverSneakers to its Medi-Pak Advantage and Medi-Pak members, Arkansas Blue Cross is demonstrating its ongoing commitment to its older adult members through a time-tested, proven solution that provides a unique combination of exercise and social support to improve members health and overall well-being, said Ben R. Leedle, Jr., Healthways president and chief executive officer.

The enduring success of the program is evidenced through the SilverSneakers Fitness Program 2011 Annual Member Survey. According to the results, four out of five new members who were previously sedentary report, at least, doubling their amount of weekly exercise. Additionally, more than half of new members indicated that their SilverSneakers membership was their first fitness center membership. Fifty-six percent of SilverSneakers participants reported an increase in physical activity compared to the previous year, and a majority of participants reported reduced pain from arthritis, sciatica or lower back problems after participating in the program.

The SilverSneakers Fitness Program was founded in 1993 and serves more than 9 million eligible members. The Healthways fitness center network offers convenient access to 14,000 participating fitness and wellness facilities nationwide. Arkansas Blue Cross has provided SilverSneakers access to eligible members since 2007.

About Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield

Founded in 1948, Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, is the largest health insurer in Arkansas. Arkansas Blue Cross and its affiliates have more than 2,800 employees. If combined, the 38 independent, locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans collectively provide health care coverage for 100 million nearly one in three Americans.

About Healthways

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Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield Extends Relationship with Healthways, Offers SilverSneakers Fitness Program ...

Last weekend, my dad told my mom that their "retirement guy" had called and told them to transfer their assets from one mutual fund to another. Upon hearing this, I asked who "their guy" was and what the fees and performance were for these funds. They didn't know either.

According to Teresa Ghilarducci, a professor of economics and retirement specialist, this is fairly commonplace: "I repeatedly hear about the 'guy.' When I ask how much the 'guy' costs ... or if their investments do better than a standard low-fee benchmark, they inevitably don't know."

Though I actually think my parents will be just fine in retirement, this uninformed approach to retirement planning will be a major crisis in coming years. According to recent estimates, there are 58 million Americans between the ages of 50 and 64. The median retirement savings for this group is only $26,000 per person.

To give you an idea of how scant that $26,000 will be when combined with Social Security and spread out over the rest of one's life, consider this: Almost half of these middle-class workers will be living on a food budget of $5 per day.

According to Ghilarducci, a safe rule of thumb is that you must have 20 times your annual salary saved up by the time you retire. If you earn $75,000 per year, you need $1.5 million saved up to retire with a similar lifestyle.

Even those who are saving are getting screwed But even if you are doing a great job saving for retirement, there's an insidious, almost undetectable culprit eating away at your savings: mutual fund fees. Whether we are forced into certain plans by our employers or choose them based on our "guy's" suggestions, mutual funds are still a popular vehicle for retirement savings.

A casual glance at a mutual fund's expense ratio might show a seemingly low percentage that you're charged each year. My parents, for instance, had been locked into a mutual fund with an expense ratio of 1% for decades. It seems low, but those fees can really add up over time.

Let's take a relatively simple example and assume my parents' mutual fund earned 9.8% per year -- the S&P 500 average between 1970 and 2011 -- and that they've been putting away $5,000 per year for 40 years. At this point in time, their savings would total about $1.7 million.

Source: Author's calculations.

Of course, these kinds of returns aren't too bad. The problem is that a group of Wall Street "pros" have been getting rich off folks like my parents for years, and not enough people realize it. You see, the 1% charged every year is what the mutual fund's managers charge for their "expertise" in picking winning stocks and sectors.

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The Shocking Retirement Numbers That Will Blow You Away

(MoneyWatch) Although most people are willing and able to save more for retirement, they're often unsure just how to go about it, according to recent survey by State Street Global Advisors that highlights this so-called action gap.

A large majority of the respondents -- 83 percent -- said they could cut their household budget by at least five percent to increase their retirement savings, while 64 percent said they could cut back as much as 10 percent. Fifty-two percent of the surveyed employees said they'd even be willing to increase their 401(k) contributions to as much as 10 percent of their pay if their employer automatically increased their 401(k) savings rate by one percent each year.

So what's stopping people from saving more? Frankly, it's a head-scratcher. For example, although 78 percent of the respondents said they know it's important to determine how much they must save to ensure a secure retirement, only 33 percent claim to have the knowledge to calculate that amount.

The Retirement Savings Menu: a visual take on how much you should save How to pick a target date fund Top tips for using retirement calculators

I realize that it takes some time and effort to estimate how much you need to save for retirement, and I've written previously about how to figure that out. But let me give you some additional advice: If you have the room to reduce your household budget by five to 10 percent so you can save for retirement, go ahead and save more.

Unsure how of much you need to save to have a secure retirement? Don't use that as an excuse to put off saving more -- chances are high that you're not saving enough and that you're short by a large margin, so any additional savings is much better than doing nothing.

Today, go online to your 401(k) plan administrator or pick up the phone and increase your retirement contributions by five to 10 percent of your pay. Then take the time in the weeks and months ahead to calculate how much you should save for retirement and adjust your contributions accordingly.

Don't know how to invest? Don't let that hold you back. Pick the target date fund in your plan if one is available, or select a mutual fund that's balanced evenly between stocks and bonds. You can always take the time later to learn more about investing. Today, though, go ahead and save more.

If you don't have a 401(k) plan, explore purchasing an IRA, or simply open an investment account with an established mutual fund company. Vanguard, Fidelity, and T. Rowe Price are all good places to start for any type of retirement savings; they have low-cost mutual funds and non-commissioned telephone representatives who will guide you through the process. So go ahead and save more.

If you're like many people who are motivated by emotions rather than logic, check out my Retirement Savings Menu post. It motivates you to save more by showing you what your life could be like in retirement.

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How to beat the retirement savings "action gap"

BOSTON, July 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --John Hancock Funds has launched a new program designed to help retirement plan advisers demonstrate their value and build stronger client relationships. Available on the John Hancock Funds' adviser web site, http://www.jhfunds.com, the program, "Focus on Value: What Matters Most to Your Clients and How to Build on It," includes a Guidebook, Wholesaler PowerPoint, and Plan Sponsor Toolkit.

In addition, John Hancock participated as a co-sponsor for a survey and study of plan sponsors released in the spring and called: "Can a Professional Retirement Plan Adviser Really Make That Much of a Difference?" The survey findings provide first-person insight into ways that plan sponsors believe retirement plan advisers may bring the greatest value to their plans and participants.

"New Department of Labor regulations this year require retirement plan service providers to reveal investment expenses and fees to plan sponsors. The right adviser can help monitor and review fees to ensure compliance," noted Gene Huxhold, Senior Managing Director, Investment Only Retirement Plans. "Our materials illuminate insights and provide steps to boost the specific values that plan sponsors recognize and appreciate most about service the retirement plan advisers provide. John Hancock is committed to the Investment Only space and to helping retirement plan advisers express their value to plans and participants."

The new Guidebook from John Hancock Funds includes five key findings from the research study whereby plan sponsors offered observations about what retirement plan advisers bring to their plans:

The guidebook also offers corresponding practice management tips for advisers.

Also available are the Wholesaler PowerPoint, a client-facing presentation that mirrors the Guidebook and is formatted for iPad delivery, and the Plan Sponsor Toolkit, which offers a comprehensive approach to evaluating a new or existing financial adviser for a company's retirement plan.

About John Hancock Funds

The Boston-based mutual fund business unit of John Hancock Financial, John Hancock Funds manages more than $74.5 billion in open-end funds, closed-end funds, private accounts, college savings and retirement plans, and related party assets for individual and institutional investors as at March 31, 2012.

About John Hancock Financial and Manulife Financial Corporation

John Hancock Financial is a unit of Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. In 2012, John Hancock celebrates 150 years of serving clients across the United States, while Manulife celebrates its 125th anniversary. Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and in most of Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, Manulife Financial Corporation offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were C$512 billion (US$512 billion) as at March 31, 2012. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as 'MFC' on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under '945' on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at manulife.com.

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John Hancock Funds Launches Program To Help Retirement Plan Advisers Demonstrate Their Value

We continue to be bombarded with stories of executives committing ethical violations.

The latest fiascos involve inappropriate relations and resume falsification, resulting in bad press for companies, destroyed reputations and disgust by the public, who must endure an endless parade of disgraced chief executive officers. These business leaders think the rules do not apply to them, and their behavior tarnishes the good CEOs.

The CEOs of Yahoo and Best Buy, along with Best Buy's founder, were recently forced to step down. Here's what happened. Yahoo's CEO was caught falsifying his resume while Best Buy's CEO and its founder were both forced to step down over the CEO's inappropriate relationship with an employee and the founder's failure to report the issue.

You have to wonder what these individuals were thinking. You just can't do these things, even if you're the CEO or chairman of the board. Everyone must understand that there are consequences to one's behaviors and no one is immune ever. These guys didn't get the message.

Best Buy founder Richard Schulze was forced to step down as the company's chairman of the board after it was revealed that he failed to inform the board when he learned that CEO Brian Dunn was having an improper relationship with a female employee. Dunn resigned and Schulze ultimately did too.

Once again, careers were destroyed and a company reputation's harmed because key executives did dumb things one having a relationship with a subordinate and the other for failing to report it after receiving a written statement about it, in clear violation of their company's policy.

Best Buy acted appropriately in accepting both "resignations." The company's internal audit showed Dunn's behavior was inappropriate and negatively impacted the work environment. It turns out this (apparently) consensual relationship was not a secret at Best Buy, as the consenting partner spoke openly about her friendship.

As for Schulze, his 46-year career at Best Buy ended because his failure to report this incident "exposed the employees to potential retaliation and the company to potential liability," according to the company.

While there has been no claim of sexual harassment, the potential exposure was there. All executives and managers should learn from this and take the necessary steps to protect their companies from similar embarrassments:

As for Yahoo, Scott Thompson, the former president of Yahoo, falsified his resume when he was a candidate for the job. Thompson stated he had a degree in computer science, when he did not. When he got caught, he blamed the recruiter. And for all that, he lost his job. Senseless.

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When hubris and personal responsibility clash

Hope Solo talks about her upcoming autobiography, "Solo: A Memoir of Hope," and the process of opening herself up to share her life stories.

What follows is an excerpt from "Solo: A Memoir of Hope," the upcoming autobiography of U.S. women's soccer goalkeeper Hope Solo, co-written by Ann Killion, on sale on Aug. 14, published by arrangement with HarperCollins Publishers. Copyright 2012 HarperCollins Publishers.

Chapter One: Life Behind the Smiley Face

My first memories are a kaleidoscope of happiness: A small red house surrounded by a wooden fence; my free-spirited mother, Judy; my big, outgoing father, Gerry; my older brother, Marcus; and me, Baby Hope.

On the outside of the fence, for everyone passing by to see, was a giant yellow smiley face. On the other side was a yard with a sandbox and a jungle gym. An English sheepdog named Charlotte. Rabbits and turtles and kittens. Out back we played Red Light! Green Light! and had Easter-egg hunts and birthday parties. Inside the house, my mother, a budding photographer, set up a darkroom to develop film, as well as a workout room where she practiced karate. I snuggled with my parents in their bed and watched TV. The cozy kitchen was where we had family spaghetti dinners.

Smiley face on the fence, happy people in the house.

But as with so much of my life, the truth is a little more complicated. Clutterplastic toys, yard equipment, bikes, an old jalopyfilled up our side yard. The neighbors complained, so my parents were forced to put up a fence to hide all our crap. My mom didnt like thinking the neighbors had won some kind of victory, so she painted that garish yellow happy face as tall and as wide as the fence would allow. The smiley face wasnt a reflection of internal happiness. It was a big (expletive)* you to our neighbors.

II.

How did we all arrive there, in a tract house on Marshall Street in Richland, Washington?

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Hope Solo gets personal in autobiography

Lesley Young/Special to The Commercial Appeal

Jennifer Milburn, 40, of Cordova, dropped from a size 14-16 to a size 4 while working with a personal trainer three days a week and working out on the stationary bike and elliptical machine by herself two to three days a week.

"I saw myself, and I was so depressed," Jennifer Milburn says of weighing 190 pounds. She promised her herself she would do something about, and she did.

Jennifer Milburn hated having her picture taken, even on a family trip to Walt Disney World

"I saw myself, and I was so depressed," said Milburn, 40.

When she returned from Florida that March of last year, she promised herself and her husband she would do something about it.

"I sat down with Joe (Solomito) at Results (Personal Enhancement Studio) and told him I would do whatever he told me to do," Milburn said.

Weighing in at 190 pounds, she met with Solomito three days a week at the Cordova gym for weight lifting and 30 minutes of cardio exercise.

"I had a very bad knee, so I used the bike because it strengthens the knee," she said. "I also noticed it strengthened my butt."

On other days, Milburn spent 30 minutes exercising on the elliptical machine and 30 on the stationary bike on her own.

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Success Story: Promise turns into career change

Really, I dont know why so many people are annoyed with President Obama for saying that personal success is almost always a product of our system in America, with the benevolent federal government leading the way. Certainly, thats true, and I will attempt to prove it based on a brand-new investigation of very successful folks.

New York Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey was once a mediocre performer, but he became a star by perfecting the knuckleball. Word is that Nancy Pelosi took the pitcher aside and demonstrated just the right spin to put on his delivery. The former Speaker of the House is too modest to take credit, but she does want to tax Dickey at a higher rate now that hes a 1 percenter.

Did you know that Clint Eastwood was a struggling actor until California Gov. Jerry Brown taught him to squint and say things like, Feeling lucky, punk? Apparently, Brown learned that phrase from a former girlfriend, singer Linda Ronstadt, and generously passed it along to Eastwood. However, there is no truth to the rumor that Browns autobiography will be entitled: Dirty Jerry.

She wont admit it, but Lady Gagas career took off when New York Sen. Chuck Schumer advised her to lose the poker face and loosen up a little. Taken aback by the blunt advice, the former Catholic-school girl took it to heart and replaced her blue blazers with ripped fishnet stockings and rhinestone halter-tops.

The rest, of course, you know. But what you might not know is that Schumer was the inspiration for the Gaga hit: Born This Way.

Likewise with Simon Cowell. The Englishman was looking for a TV niche when he ran across Congressman Barney Frank, who advised him to insult just about everybody and wear tight undershirts in public. After watching Frank on cable TV, Cowell adopted his scorched-earth verbal style and ever since has amassed hundreds of millions of dollars. Fortunately for Cowell, when Frank told him to invest in Fannie Mae, he declined, believing Fannie was an obscure rapper.

But the topper is LeBron James. As a kid in Akron, Ohio, LeBron was directionless, wandering around the boulevards looking for something to do. Then one day a suave stranger showed up on the playground and began shooting hoops with LeBron and his crew. The man showed the youngsters a variety of basketball moves, including the fade-away jump shot. From the jump, LeBron was enthralled and thus began his steady climb to basketball greatness. That strangers name: Barack Obama.

And now you know the rest of the success story.

Veteran TV news anchor Bill OReilly is host of the Fox News show The OReilly Factor and author of the book Pinheads and Patriots: Where You Stand in the Age of Obama. To find out more about Bill OReilly, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at http://www.creators.com. This column originates on the website http://www.billoreilly.com.

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Now you know the rest of the success story

Eden Hazard has set his sights on a successful season with Chelsea and hopes to build on last year, when the English giant won the Champions League and FA Cup.

The versatile attacker joined the Blues from Lille in the summer transfer window and he is keen to become a key figure at his new club.

"Chelsea's goals for the new season? We have not discussed it with the coach yet, but I guess that we want to do as well as last season," Hazard stated to reporters. "I do not really have any personal objectives. I just hope to play as many games as possible. I am not the type of person to set certain goals. The most important thing for me is to get regular first-team action and do well."

The attacker then went on to discuss Salomon Kalou's move from the Blues toles Dogues, and Hazard hopes the Cote d'Ivoire international can help his former side to Ligue 1 glory again.

"His move is a good thing. He is a great player, a big star. I hope that he can do at Lille what he did at Chelsea, and help the team to more trophies."

Lille was crowned Ligue 1 champion in 2010-11, but had to settle for third spot last term.

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Hazard aiming to help Chelsea repeat 2011-12 success

By Malcolm Manness - July 22, 2012 | Tickers: AAPL, XRX | 0 Comments

Malcolm is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinions of our bloggers and are not formally edited.

Understanding Apple #2: Success = (O +V) * F

Why are Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) products so successful? The answer is simple and complex.

You may love Apple and their products, or hate them to the core, but what cannot be denied is that Apple now has the highest market cap of any company, their products are trend setters, and currently they are trading at rather low multiples, especially regarding forward earnings.

Warren Buffet has the maxim: Invest in what you know! So, for those who want a unique perspective on Apples success, I have a series of articles 'Understanding Apple.' I hope you will find them helpful and provocative. Part-1 was a brief outline of Apples history.

In Part-2 I discuss the reasons for their success. Part-1 listed mostly indisputable, historical facts. Here I am more subjective, giving readers my unusual viewpoint. Though not entirely original, Ive been saying this for many years.

Why are Apple products so successful? The answer is quite simple.

Of course the investor wants to know how they accomplish this. So the real question is How do they do this?

I suggest:

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Understanding Apple #2: Success = (O +V) * F