The IRS Thursday published finalized rules loosening restrictions on health reimbursement arrangements, allowing employers to significantly expand the use of such accounts and make them a much bigger part of employers’ healthcare offerings. Beginning in January 2020, employers will be able to use individual coverage HRAs to provide employees with pre-tax funds to pay for […]
It’s no secret the IRS has been actively enforcing the Affordable Care Act’s Employer Mandate. To date, the IRS has identified a total of 49,259 employers that did not comply with the ACA for the 2015 tax year alone. So far, that’s more than 30,000 Letter 226J tax notices that have been issued with penalty assessments for more than […]
There has been a lot of talk about the future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). With the midterm elections coming soon, Americans have stated that healthcare is top priority. For many health insurance companies, the ACA also has been top of mind as they struggled with the changes in the law that made it more challenging for them […]
The Trump Administration issued the Short-Term, Limited-Duration Insurance Final Rule that expands the coverage length of “short-term, limited-duration insurance” policies under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The Final Rule allows individuals to buy short-term insurance policies for coverage periods of up to 12 months — four times the length of the previous three-month cap — […]
The California Supreme Court last week issued an opinion concluding that Starbucks must pay its employees for off-the-clock duties that take several minutes per shift. In issuing its opinion, the Court rejected the coffee giant’s request to invoke a federal wage rule (known as the de minimis doctrine) that excuses employers from paying employees for […]
A year and a half into Donald Trump’s presidency, the Commander in Chief and his administration have made a strong effort to convert on his campaign promise to alter and even eliminate the Affordable Care Act. We watched a political soap opera play out in 2017 as a Republican House and Senate ultimately failed to […]
We all know that employers do not like uncertainty in their business plans. It makes it hard to develop a strategy and run any business. Since 2010 with the full-throated implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) it is apparent that the one constant during the summer months is that employers spend a tremendous amount […]
The Department of Labor recently issued new rules that make it easier for small businesses to join together to create association health plans. With this change, small businesses can form AHPs without having to follow some Affordable Care Act requirements that they previously had to adhere to. Now, in theory, it is easier to create AHPs if […]
The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed two healthcare bills that would expand the use of health savings accounts, a move that, if advanced, could significantly drive higher employee enrollment in high-deductible health plans that feature HSAs. The Restoring Access to Medication and Modernizing Health Savings Accounts Act, or HR 6199, takes several steps to […]
The U.S. government is attempting to wrangle insurance carriers back into the Affordable Care Act health exchanges by increasing their funding. As a result brokers could also see a return to the exchanges through a boost in commissions from those carriers looking to reinvest. Having renewed employer and employee interest in the exchanges also means […]