Posts Tagged ‘Wilmette’
Amazon Takes Aim at Disrupting the Healthcare Industry
Thursday, February 1st, 2018Blue Cross warns GOP repeal bill ‘undermines’ pre-existing condition rules
Wednesday, October 11th, 2017“The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association warned against a new GOP ObamaCare bill on Wednesday, saying it would “undermine” protections for pre-existing conditions.
“The bill contains provisions that would allow states to waive key consumer protections, as well as undermine safeguards for those with pre-existing medical conditions,” the association said in a statement.
Illinois Medicaid enrollment jumps under Obamacare
Wednesday, September 16th, 2015Crain’s Chicago Business reports:
“ Illinois is among a dozen states where the number of new enrollees surpassed projections for the expansion of Medicaid under Obamacare. While the surge in signups lifts the number of insured people, it has also stoked worries about the future cost to taxpayers.
Illinois and Cook County eventually will have to bear 10 percent of the cost of expanding the safety-net insurance program for the poor. The federal government agreed to pay all costs for the expansion through 2016, but it will begin lowering its share in 2017.
High deductible plans have more people delaying treatment
Monday, January 12th, 2015“As the cost of health care rises, more and more Americans in nearly every economic class are choosing to delay medical treatment because they can’t afford it.
A new Gallup poll released Friday found that about one in three Americans say they have put off treatment for themselves or a family member because of cost—the highest rate recorded in Gallup’s history.
IRS Gears up for Impact of Health Care Reform on Tax Season
Friday, October 3rd, 2014“Internal Revenue Service commissioner John Koskinen told a congressional subcommittee about the IRS’s progress on the Affordable Care Act and the impact that tax subsidies will have next tax season.
In a hearing before the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee on Wednesday, Koskinen talked about how the IRS would be processing the premium tax credit, which helps subsidize the cost of health insurance coverage for eligible taxpayers.
When It’s Time to Get Off Your Parents’ Health Plan
Tuesday, February 18th, 2014“One provision of the Affordable Care Act that has garnered pretty universal praise is the policy change allowing young adults to remain on their parents’ health insurance plans through age 26. Previously, young adults were knocked off the plans at age 19. (Full-time students were able to stay on until age 22.) (more…)
Another Month Of Fixes For Health Care Website
Friday, November 1st, 2013“The Obama administration has set a rough timetable of the end of November for completing a long list of fixes to the new, trouble-plagued government website for uninsured Americans to get health insurance coverage, the linchpin of the president’s signature legislative achievement.
Summarizing a week’s worth of intensive diagnostics, the administration acknowledged Friday the HealthCare.gov website has dozens of complex problems and tapped a private company to oversee fixes.
Quick Facts about Health Care Reform and Premiums
Tuesday, July 23rd, 2013“Given recent attention on the impact of health care reform on health care costs and premiums, we wanted to share the following facts:
- The impact the ACA will have on premiums will vary considerably depending on a where a person lives, what coverage they have today, and their age, gender, and health status. Simply looking at averages does not explain what these changes will mean for a particular person in a particular state. To learn more about the wide variation in impact, visit www.TimeforAffordability.org/changes.
Quick Guide to ACA Affordability, Penalty & Subsidy Calculations
Tuesday, April 2nd, 2013|
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have jointly issued rules that define affordable coverage. Employers and employees still have several questions about how this affects penalty calculations and subsidy eligibility. The following offers some insight on these key issues: Employers
“Failure to Offer” Penalty Employers that have 50 or more full-time equivalent employees must offer group health insurance to their employees next year or pay a penalty. The penalty is $2,000 per full-time employee with an exemption for 30 employees.
For example, if an employer had 100 full-time employees the penalty would be applied to 70 employees, which would result in a $140,000 penalty. The penalty is pro-rated on a monthly basis for employers that offer coverage for only a portion of the year. “Unaffordability” Penalty Employers (with 50+ employees) that choose to offer health insurance coverage must then make sure it is considered affordable, or be faced with a different penalty. Coverage is considered affordable if the employee cost for self-only coverage is less than 9.5% of their compensation, as reported in Box 1 of their W-2 statement.
For example, an employee making $35,000 would have to be charged $277.08 or less per month ($35,000 x 9.5% = $3,325/12) for self-only coverage for it to be considered affordable.
The employer can charge additional premium for employees that elect to cover dependents. There is actually no contribution requirement that the employer must make towards dependent coverage, and this is not taken into account to determine if the employer is offering affordable coverage.
If the coverage is considered unaffordable the employer may be subject to a penalty. The penalty is $3,000 per employee, and it is only applicable to employees in which coverage is considered unaffordable, and that apply for coverage through a public exchange and qualify for a premium tax subsidy. The penalty would also be pro-rated on a monthly basis if the employer provided affordable coverage for only a portion of the year. |
