SHOP for Small Group Customers Buying a plan through SHOP versus direct Buying plans through the Small Business Health Options Program, or SHOP, provides an advantage only for employers with fewer than 25 employees that are eligible for a tax credit provided by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). If customers are not eligible for this tax credit, there is no advantage to purchasing a plan through SHOP. This is because… Click here to download the SHOP bulletin
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Near the end of 2013, the IRS issued Notice 2013-47 that permits a cafeteria plan to provide for the use of up to $500 of any unused amount remaining in the health FSA in the immediately following plan year (the “carryover” provision). This provision is optional, requires a plan amendment, and cannot be offered if the cafeteria plan allows a grace period. Click here to download the bulletin
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The Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, legislation extending the “doc fix” for Medicare payments, also includes a provision that repeals the maximum deductible limits applicable to many small group health plans. As you recall, deductible limits for non-grandfathered small group plans are capped under the ACA at $2,000 for single coverage and $4,000 for family coverage effective for the first plan year on or after January 1, 2014. This legislation repeals the deductible limits as of the date health care reform was enacted (March 23, 2010). Click here to download the bulletin
Continue ReadingWe are pleased to announce that Edward T MacConnell, President of Total Benefit Solutions has earned the certification of Certified Voluntary Worksite Professional from the National Association of Health Underwriters. Voluntary/Worksite products are not new to the employee benefit industry. However, the surge of interest in these products has accelerated as employers seek ways to help attract and retain talent. The industry has responded swiftly with new products, new features, new enrollment technologies and many changes to the underwriting rules of these products. This has created new responsibilities for agents, brokers and consultants as advising clients in this area will differentiate their value to the consumers they serve. Certified Voluntary Worksite… Read More
Continue ReadingOn March 31, 2014 President Obama signed into law Bill HR4302 – Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014, sometimes called the “Doc Fix” bill. While the primary purpose of this bill was to prevent the automatic cuts to physician Medicare payments, this bill also included a significant modification to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This bill included a section that ends the limitations on deductibles that were set at $2,000/individual and $4,000/family within the ACA on small group employer sponsored health plans, and made the effective date retroactive to the original enactment of the ACA. The act states: SEC. 213. ELIMINATION OF LIMITATION ON DEDUCTIBLES FOR EMPLOYER-SPONSORED HEALTH PLANS.… Read More
Continue ReadingOur friends at Zane Benefits recently shared this comic and I enjoyed it so much I thought you might like it too: Click here to see the rest of the comic on zanebenefits.com Click here to see the rest of the comic on zanebenefits.com
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Small employers that pay at least half of the premiums for employee health insurance coverage under a qualifying arrangement may be eligible for the small business health care tax credit. The credit is specifically targeted to small businesses and tax-exempt organizations that primarily employ 25 or fewer workers with average income of $50,000 or less ($50,800 for calendar year 2014). To be eligible, you must cover at least 50 percent of the cost of single (not family) health care coverage for each of your employees. You must also have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). Those employees must have average wages of less than $50,000 (as adjusted for inflation… Read More
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