Law Requires Certain Employers to Offer Dependent Coverage Until Age 26 Under the Affordable Care Act, when a plan covers dependents, it must continue to make the coverage available until a child reaches the age of 26, even if the young adult has been offered coverage through his or her own employer, is married, no…
Guidance Provides 2017 Monthly National Average Premium for Bronze Plans The IRS has released the 2017 monthly national average premium for a bronze level health plan offered through the Health Insurance Marketplace, which is used to determine the maximum individual mandate penalty. New Guidance According to the new IRS guidance, the monthly national average premium…
Model Notice Informs Employees of Eligibility for Premium Assistance Under Medicaid or CHIP An updated model notice for employers to provide information on eligibility for premium assistance under Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) is now available for download from the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). Click here to download the latest employer…
Payments for Medicare Premiums Also Prohibited A recently released IRS letter reaffirms the agency’s view that funds from a health flexible spending arrangement (health FSA) may not be used to reimburse health insurance premium payments or Medicare premium expenses. Certain Premiums May be Deducted The IRS letter points out that health insurance premium payments, including…
Use Popular Benefits to Lure Top Talent Benefits are a key factor in attracting and holding onto the best and brightest people for your organization. To make sure you’re keeping up with the competition, consider offering these emerging popular benefits to your employees. Telemedicine and On-Site Clinics: Millennials demand and value convenience, in health care…
As a business evolves, so must its compensation strategy. Hopefully, your company is growing — perhaps adding employees or promoting staff members who are key to your success. But other things can spur the need to fine-tune your compensation strategy as well, such as economic changes or the rise of an intense competitor. A goal…
Overview of Employer Responsibilities for Handling Rebates The Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) rules under Health Care Reform require an issuer to provide rebates if its medical loss ratio (the amount of health insurance premiums spent on health care and activities to improve health care quality) falls short of the applicable standard during a reporting…
Model Notices Previously Set to Expire on May 31, 2017 The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has extended the effective date of its model Health Insurance Exchange Notices through May 31, 2020. Previously, these model notices were set to expire on May 31, 2017. No other changes have been made to…
As a reminder, the Taxpayer Advocate Service (an independent organization within the Internal Revenue Service) has developed a tool to assist employers in understanding how the Affordable Care Act’s employer shared responsibility (“pay or play”) provisions work and how the provisions may apply to them. Employer Shared Responsibility Provision Estimator Employers can use the Taxpayer…
Providing a strong package of benefits is a competitive imperative in today’s business world. Like many employers, you’ve probably worked hard to put together a solid menu of offerings to your staff. Unfortunately, many employees don’t perceive the full value of the benefits they receive. Why is this important? An underwhelming perception of value could…
