Is it illegal for a company to change workers’ health insurance plan without telling them?

It depends on the kind of plan.

Businesses with employer-created, self-funded plans — which are regulated by federal law — must notify workers of any “material modification” no later than 60 days after the change, said Elizabeth Todd, a U.S. Labor Department spokeswoman.

But employers with fully insured private group plans, which are regulated by state law, can change insurers without notice, said Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon.

Online: www.dol.gov/ebsa; www.ldi.state.la.us.

Beef product in use since 1990s

What is “pink slime”?

The term refers to “lean, finely textured beef,” a filler made by Sioux City, S.D.-based Beef Products Inc. The name “pink slime” reportedly originated with former U.S. Deparment of Agriculture scientist Gerald Zirnstein, who has argued against the product’s unlabeled use in ground beef.

The filler is made up of trimmings, scraps and connective tissue left over from meat cutting. It’s treated with ammonia gas — which combines with water in the mixture to become ammonia hydroxide — to kill microbes and is then added to ground beef.

The product has been used since the 1990s, but few people knew about it until the media, principally ABC News, began reporting on it several weeks ago.

Beef Products Inc. last Monday announced that it would suspend operations at three of its four plants and launch a public relations campaign to counter claims about its product and rebuild its business.

“We feel like when people can start to understand the truth and reality then our business will come back,” said Craig Letch, the company’s director of food quality and assurance. “It’s 100 percent beef.”

Other products treated with ammonia hydroxide, according to the International Food Information Council Foundation, include chocolates, caramel, cheeses and baked goods.

Online: www.foodinsight.org.

Law limits tinting of vehicle windows

Is there a law restricting how dark tinted windows can be?

Yes.

State law says side windows at the front of a car should allow at least 40 percent of the light through; for those in the back the level is 25 percent. Rear windows must allow at least 12 percent of the light through.

Additionally, the law says sunscreen strips on windshields can’t extend more than 5 inches from the top of the glass, and they can’t be red or amber.

Online: www.legis.state.la.us.

The Informer answers questions from readers each Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. It is researched and written by Andrew Perzo, an American Press staff writer. To ask a question, call 494-4098, press 5 and leave voice mail, or email informer@americanpress.com

The beef product known “pink slime” or “lean