New Jersey Small Employer Stop Loss Bill

A bill has been introduced in New Jersey in both the Senate and Assembly that, if passed, would prohibit insurance carriers or other insurers subject to the insurance laws of New Jersey or any other state from offering, issuing or renewing any stop loss insurance policy of any kind to small employers. Stop loss insurance provides reimbursement for catastrophic, excess or unexpected expenses and is used by small employers to self-insure part of the health insurance coverage they provide for employees. Under New Jersey law, in connection with a group health plan, a small employer means an employer with 2-50 eligible employees on business days during the preceding calendar year. If passed,… Read More

Continue Reading

Important Info! HSA Limits for 2019

Continue Reading

Total Benefit Solutions featured in the Southampton Spirit

Total Benefit Solutions: A Committed Team Focused On ‘Clients First’ For Health Insurance by Tianna Grosch Looking for affordable health insurance but not sure where to start? Seeking the correct health insurance with benefits fit to your needs can be a daunting task, one that you should leave in the hands of caring and compassionate professionals. Total Benefit Solutions, Inc. (TBS) is the right place to get the advice and assistance you need in order to make the best enrollment decision whether you’re a family, senior or company. Ed and Kathleen MacConnell began this agency inspired by their own difficulties in receiving insurance coverage for their daughter Katelin, who was… Read More

Continue Reading

Common Questions: Rules For Your HSA After Becoming Medicare Eligible

Medicare and Your HSA In 2017, over 22 million Americans have a Health Savings Account. Each year that number goes higher and higher as High Deductible Plans become more popular with Individuals and Employers. Once you turn 65 and enroll in Medicare, you can no longer open an HSA or deposit money into it, but what if you already had one with a balance? You don’t have to worry about a “Use It Or Lose It” clause. That money can still be used towards out-of-pocket costs! Here are some very common questions about how you can continue to benefit from your HSA and why keeping funds in it for your… Read More

Continue Reading

Prevent Osteoporosis with Screenings

10 Facts About Osteoporosis By Kathleen Hall This silent disease significantly raises your risk for fractures and disability. 1. Losing bone density is a normal part of aging. We reach peak bone mass between ages 25 and 30, and then slowly lose begin to start losing bone mass at age 40. For women, reduced levels of estrogen after menopause accelerate bone density loss. “Women lose 1.5 to 2 percent of their bone density per year in the first 10 years after menopause,” says Laura Ryan, MD, clinical associate professor of medicine in the division of endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. 2. You don’t lose… Read More

Continue Reading

Trump Administration Expands Access To Short-Term Plans That Do Not Meet ACA Requirements

The New York Times  (8/4 Pear) reports that on Wednesday, the Trump Administration unveiled “a final rule…that clears the way for the sale of many more health insurance policies that do not comply with the Affordable Care Act and do not have to cover prescription drugs, maternity care or people with pre-existing conditions.” These new options “will help people struggling to afford coverage under the 2010 law, said James Parker, a senior adviser to” HHS Secretary Alex M. Azar II.         On its front page, the Washington Post  (7/31, A1, Goldstein) reports that these policies, which are intended “to fill brief gaps in coverage, will be available for 12 months at… Read More

Continue Reading

CMS Expands the Extension of Needed Relief for Marketplace Enrollees Who Missed Medicare Enrollment

CMS is offering assistance to certain individuals enrolled in both Medicare Part A (and/or Part C) and the Exchange for individuals and families to drop their Exchange coverage and enroll in Part B without penalty. Further, CMS is offering assistance to certain individuals who dropped or lost their coverage from the Exchange and are paying a Part B late enrollment penalty from their subsequent enrollment into Part B. These eligible individuals can have their penalty reduced. Individuals can apply for the special enrollment and reduction in late enrollment penalties during a limited time – it is available now and ends September 30, 2018 Read Blog Post from MedicareRights.org CMS SHIP… Read More

Continue Reading

Searching for Keystone HMO Proactive Providers by Tier?

Please note you must select the proactive plans from the list. Go to this link:  Choose a health plan:             From the drop down select, Medical then Keystone Proactive:   Now your search will return physicians with Tier listings showing:  

Continue Reading

Aetna Funding Advantage for Small Businesses

Aetna Funding Advantage (AFA) is a new self-funded option that provides all of the financial and plan design flexibility of a traditional arrangement with special features designed to help companies with as few as 2 employees achieve even greater savings on their health insurance. The benefits of self-funding have traditionally been considered by larger companies. But Aetna Funding Advantage has changed that. It is specifically designed to be attractive and affordable for small businesses like yours. Watch this short video and download the documents below for some information. As always please contact your Total Benefit Solutions dedicated account manager at (215)355-2121 if you have any questions, concerns or would like to learn… Read More

Continue Reading

2018 Individual Health Insurance Open Enrollment: PA Independence Individual Consumer Plans and Rates

  Individual Health Insurance Open Enrollment 2018! Don’t do it yourself! Our dedicated professionals are here to help you take the fits out of the benefit planning process!  One mistake and you could be stuck with a bad plan all year! We work with all available plans both on the healthcare.gov marketplace and off! Have your own expert help you! Our experts are trained to help you Choose between on and off exchange options Maximize any subsidy eligibility. Help you understand the cost sharing subsidies Help you choose the plan that is the best fit for you Explain the differences between the plan design and your out of pocket expectations Fill… Read More

Continue Reading

Video: Our New Online Enrollment System

Watch this short video to get a quick overview of our new employee enrollment system with Ease Central!   As always please contact your Total Benefit Solutions account manager at (215)355-2121 if you have any questions about our new enrollment system with Ease Central!

Continue Reading

Video: New Individual Dental & Vision Choices

Click here to shop, compare and enroll!

Continue Reading

Compliance Bulletin & Reform Center

Health Care Compliance and Reform Education Center A fundamental change in the way the United States handles health care has arrived. Benefit rules and coverage change faster today than they used to in ten years! Our Compliance and Health Reform Education Center is where we will keep a copy of our health care reform bulletins throughout the year, in an easy  to view format where you can download a brief summary or watch a short informative video. Click here to visit totalbenefitscomply.com Please contact your Total Benefit Solutions account manager at (215)355-2121 if you have any further questions.  

Continue Reading

HSA / FSA / HRA Comparison of Key Features for 2017

HR360: HSA / FSA / HRA  Comparison of Key Features for 2017 This guide brought to you by our partners at HR360. As us today how your organization can benefit from personalized HR services designed to fit your company’s legal compliance needs! Your Total Benefit Solutions Inc Account Manager is available at (215)355-2121. Click here to download the complimentary guide  

Continue Reading

Stand-Alone HRAs for Small Employers are Back!

Stand-Alone HRAs for Small Employers are Back! The 21st Century Cures Act, signed by President Obama on December 13, 2016, gave small employers a means of providing employees help with their individual insurance premiums and other out-of-pocket qualified medical expenses without violating the provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Small employers can now provide a specific kind of Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) to help employees with the costs of individual health coverage. According to the statutory language under “Title XVIII – Other Provisions” of the Act, qualified small employer health reimbursement arrangements (QSEHRAs) are not considered “group health plans” and do not have to adhere to ACA market reforms,… Read More

Continue Reading

Introducing Ease Central

In an effort to enhance our client experience even further, Total Benefit Solutions would like to announce that we have entered into a partnership agreement with Ease Central. Ask us today how your organization can benefit from Ease Central! Download an EaseCentral Employer Overview Click here to visit our Ease Central web portal. Employee Onboarding with Ease Central HRIS with Ease Central      Benefits-Simple employee benefits quoting, enrollment and management in one place. “Bring your own carrier” HRIS-Powerful PTO tracking, performance reviews and goal setting for managers. Payroll-Robust payroll integrations to cut administrative work.” Bring your own payroll” Benefits-Easy employee insurance rate quoting, enrollment and management in one place.… Read More

Continue Reading

2016 Compliance Year In Review Digest

2016 Compliance Year In Review Digest A complete digest of all our compliance bulletins for the entire year of 2016 from our business partners at Emerson Reid. A handy guide to all of the year’s updates and changes all in one place. Download your copy now and keep it for future reference.   Click to Download Compliance Digest 2016 Year in Review     As always please contact your Total Benefit Solutions Account Manager at (215)355-2121 if you have any questions or concerns.

Continue Reading

Relief for Small Employers with HRAs

On December 13, 2016, President Obama signed into law the “21st Century Cures Act” which allows small employers without group medical plans to reimburse individual premiums and other medical expenses of employees under health reimbursement arrangements (“HRAs”), effective with the 2017 plan year, and provides relief from penalties to all small employers reimbursing individual premiums of employees for earlier plan years. In addition, the Cures Act provides a medical innovation package that funds medical research, accelerates cutting-edge treatments for rare diseases, and makes significant reforms to the mental health system. The Issue An employer cannot offer employees cash to reimburse the purchase of an individual policy, without regard to whether… Read More

Continue Reading

New Law Exempts Certain Small Employer HRAs From ACA Market Reforms

New Law Exempts Certain Small Employer HRAs From ACA Market Reforms Gaddiel Gonzalez-Brown & Brown Consulting President Obama has signed into law the 21st Century Cures Act, which, among other things, allows small employers to offer new “qualified small employer health reimbursement arrangements” to reimburse employees for qualified medical expenses, including individual health insurance premiums, for years after December 31, 2016. Small employers are defined as those with fewer than 50 full-time equivalent employees who do not offer a group health plan.   Background Under prior agency guidance, stand-alone HRAs (except for retiree-only HRAs and HRAs consisting solely of excepted benefits) and HRAs used to purchase coverage on the individual… Read More

Continue Reading

Health Reform: Cost of Living Adjustments, Individual Penalty, HSA limits & more for 2017

    On October 25 and 27, 2016, the IRS released cost of living adjustments for 2017 under various provisions of the Internal Revenue Code (the Code). Some of these adjustments may affect your employee benefit plans. These adjustments include but are not limited to the following: Cafeteria Plans Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefits Requirement To Maintain Minimum Essential Coverage (Individual Penalty) Highly Compensated Non-Grandfathered Plan Cost-Sharing Limits H.S.A. Annual contribution limitation, catch up contribution and minimum deductibles Key Employee   Click here to download the bulletin   As always if you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact your dedicated Total Benefit Solutions, Inc. account manager at (215)355-2121.

Continue Reading
Healtcare Reform Law

ACA: Important Implementations & Delays in 2016

As our third year of the ACA Open Enrollment Period arrived, it’s time to examine some of the new implementations in 2016. Some of the major components, especially those affecting businesses were delayed or deferred since the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. This year is considered to be a big year due to the “full implementation” of the employer mandate as well as a number of changes, repeals, and moratoriums on other sections of ACA. Some of the key changes are listed below: CHANGES AND IMPLEMENTATIONS Full implementation of the Employer Mandate Currently it is not mandated that employers provide health care to their employees. Moving forward, however, if… Read More

Continue Reading

Think HR Comply: Small Business Support from Total Benefit Solutions

We are pleased to introduce to you a our sponsored client service—ThinkHR. If you are involved with employee issues, this will be a value-added benefit that will save you time and money. ThinkHR offers ThinkHR Live, a team of HR experts standing by to answer your questions or provide advice. This phone-based support service is available from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Central each business day. You also have access to ThinkHR Comply, an award-winning online resource center for all of your workforce issues. Download this brochure, it describes the scope of HR topics that are handled by the ThinkHR Live team. The service is provided to all Total Benefit… Read More

Continue Reading

Now Available from Total Benefit Solutions: Low Cost ERISA Wrap SPD Documents

Wrap Summary Plan Description (SPD) If you offer group health insurance you’re now required by ERISA law, enforced by the Department of Labor and now the Affordable Care Act, to distribute a Wrap SPD within 120 days of the Plan’s effective date. The ERISA and ACA required Group Health Insurance Wrap SPD document is now available for a $99 one-time fee. You only update your Wrap SPD document as your benefit options change. The low cost Wrap SPD document is limited to fully insured group health insurance plans only.     Here are the Wrap SPD document requirements by ERISA and the Affordable Care Act as succinctly as possible: If… Read More

Continue Reading

Health Care Reform: 8 things the IRS wants small employers to know about the health care tax credit

  The Affordable Care Act’s small business health care tax credit is designed to encourage small employers to offer health insurance coverage to their employees. Click the link below to download the whitepaper 8 things the IRS wants small employers to know about this credit: 8 Things to Know About the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit For more information about the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit contact your Total Benefit Solutions, Inc account manager at (215)355-2121 or visit your ThinkHR library at www.thinkhr.com and log in.     Watch a video below about the Small Business Healthcare Tax Credit

Continue Reading

Form 1095-C Notification Reminder and Frequently Asked Questions

Form 1095-C Notification Reminder and Frequently Asked Questions 2015 Forms 1095-C must be furnished to individuals by March 31, 2016. Generally, if Forms 1094-C and/or 1095-C are incorrect and incomplete, a penalty may apply if not corrected by the due date and the employer cannot show reasonable cause. Briefly, the amount of penalties can range from $50/form with a $500,000 maximum penalty/year to $250/form with a maximum penalty of $3M/year. Click here to download Form 1095-C Notification Reminder and Frequently Asked Questions – 031516R As always please contact your Total Benefit Solutions, Inc. account manager at (215)355-2121 if you have any questions or concerns about this bulletin, or any other… Read More

Continue Reading