Health Care Reform Update: Planning Now for Significant 2014 Deadlines
The Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) makes sweeping changes to the current health insurance landscape. Though some of these changes are already in force, the most significant provisions of the ACA become effective on January 1, 2014. This includes the “pay or play mandate,” the individual coverage mandate, and certain significant taxes and fees that are imposed on employers.
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Temporary Relief From ACA Provisions Extended To Insured Expatriate Plans
The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury (collectively, the “Departments”) recently issued guidance in the form of a Frequently Asked Question (“FAQ”) that relates to the applicability of the market reform provisions of the Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) to certain expatriate health care plans.
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Employer Excise Taxes Under Health Care Reform – Contraceptive Coverage Mandate, New Proposed Regulations and HHS Due Process and Privacy Report Deadline Was 1/1/13
As you may have heard, the U.S Supreme Court denied Hobby Lobby an injunction against the PPACA contraceptive coverage mandate. Employers who maintain health care plans are required to pay excise taxes for failure to comply with a particular aspect of the law, regardless of whether coverage is affordable.
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Summary of Benefits and Coverage Required for Fall Open Enrollment
Thank you to everyone who attended our recent Health Care Reform seminar! During the seminar, we mentioned the Summary of Benefits and Coverage, or SBC, required to be distributed as early as Sept. 23, 2012. One of the questions that arose about the SBC was, “Does this mean that the insurers now have to provide …
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Health Care Reform Survives Supreme Court Scrutiny – But Not Entirely Intact
Health care reform just got a clean bill of health from the United States Supreme Court. The Court today ruled on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA”), and generally upheld the legislation in a 5-4 decision written by Chief Justice John G. Roberts.
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Supreme Court Wraps Up Oral Arguments On Health Care Reform – Day Three
On Wednesday, March 28, the Supreme Court wrapped up three days of oral arguments related to the constitutionality of certain portions of the health care reform legislation.
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Health Care Reform Reaches The Supreme Court – Two Days Down, One to Go
The Supreme Court on Tuesday, March 27 heard oral arguments on the most pivotal issue concerning the implementation of the health care reform legislation. The issue before the Court on Tuesday concerned the constitutionality of the individual mandate that is at the heart of the recent legislation (i.e., the obligation imposed on all covered individuals, effective in 2014, to either purchase health care coverage or pay a penalty for refusing to do so).
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Implementing $2,500 FSA Limits for Non-Calendar Year Plans – Start Now
Beginning January 1, 2013, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA”) requires plan sponsors to limit pre-tax health flexible spending account (“FSA”) contributions to no more than $2,500 per calendar year. There are currently no limits on health FSA contributions. This change is anticipated to be a revenue-raiser, because the new limit is lower than most existing plan-imposed pre-tax FSA contribution limits, and affected employees will pay taxes on more of their salary.
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Health Care Reform Finally Reaches The Supreme Court – Day One!
The health care reform legislation finally is having its day (well, actually several days) in court — in the United States Supreme Court no less. Other than for those fixated on the upcoming Final Four (unfortunately, the author’s team already has been eliminated and thus I am free to write this) or on the triumphant …
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Summary of Benefits & Coverage Q&A’s Posted
We now have Q&A’s on the health care Summary of Benefits and Coverage. This guidance is incredibly late and is not binding, but it may be of assistance to everyone rushing to get this documentation put together and distributed.
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