PPACA – Page 7 – Total Benefit Solutions Inc

Introducing Worksite Benefits

May 20, 2014May 20, 2014Ed MacConnell

INTRODUCING WORKSITE… From Your Trusted Advisor. Worksite Programs are more than just a source of additional insurance products to be purchased at employee expense! A coordinated program will help you manage all your benefits so you can spend more time on your business. Our focus on quality ensures that your employees have the access and affordability that they need. Benefit communication and counseling services help your employees understand and appreciate their benefits. Worksite programs can be expanded and adjusted as your core benefits change, reducing headaches at annual open enrollment time. We have joined forces with the strongest, most reliable Voluntary Benefit providers to offer our clients valuable employee benefit… Read More

Comparative Effectiveness Fee Reminder

May 20, 2014May 20, 2014Ed MacConnell

The Comparative Effectiveness Research Fee is now known as the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Fee. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the Act) imposes a new Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee, formerly the comparative effectiveness research fee, on plan sponsors and issuers of individual and group policies. The first year of the fee is $1 per covered life per year, the second year the fee adjusts to $2 per covered life and then it’s indexed to national health expenditures thereafter until it ends in 2019. Click here to download this bulleting regarding the timely payment of the fees. Purpose of the Fee The assessed fees are to… Read More

Aetna: Important updates to our Pennsylvania Small Group eligibility guidelines

May 1, 2014Ed MacConnell

This briefing is applicable to all brokers writing Pennsylvania based employers We have updated our eligibility guidelines as it relates to sole proprietors, owners, partners, W-2 employees and husband / wife groups for 2014. These updates have been made to maintain compliance with state and federal requirements. Please review the updates we have outlined below. We thank you for your continued collaboration. The following applies to Small Group Pennsylvania new business and renewals: The definition of an employer is now one W-2 common law employee. This accommodates an owner with at least one “enrolling” W-2 common law employee who is not a spouse and not an owner. Sole proprietors, owners… Read More

IBC: Individual Dental and Vision PPO’s Now Available!

April 29, 2014April 29, 2014Ed MacConnell

Please be advised that Independence Blue Cross (IBC) is offering a new portfolio of Dental and Vision Care plans for adults (aged 19 and older) featuring low out-of-pocket costs and access to a large network of providers. These plans will be available for sale online, by phone, and by mail beginning on April 30, 2014, for June 1 effective dates. Offering individual customers Specialty Services products like Adult Dental and Vision Care emphasizes customer choice and helps give members the protection they need by protecting one of their most valuable assets — wellness. 15% discount on Bundled Dental and Vision IBC offers two Dental PPO plans and two Vision Care… Read More

Health Reform: New Guidance Clarifies Rules on Health FSA Carryovers

April 15, 2014April 14, 2014Ed MacConnell

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

IBC: Tobacco Status Important Questions and Answers

April 14, 2014Ed MacConnell

Why does IBC collect member-level information about tobacco use? Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), premium rates for health insurance coverage in the individual and small group markets may be based on family size, geography, age and tobacco use. In order to follow with this guideline and accurately rate each group, Independence Blue Cross (IBC) collects member-level tobacco use information to create group premiums for new and renewing group customers. Click the link below to download the IBC document that covers the most common questions about rating tobacco users in small group in PA. Tobacco Status For Small Group Customers Flyer

Ed MacConnell earns Voluntary Benefits Certification

April 2, 2014March 30, 2014Ed MacConnell

We 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

My Experience with Obamacare: A Freelancer Applies for Health Insurance

March 25, 2014March 25, 2014Ed MacConnell

Our 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

Client Testimonial: Mike Hilbert

March 19, 2014March 19, 2014Ed MacConnell

Ed, thank you for your recent endorsements. And especially thank you for helping my wife and I sail through the new Affordable Care Act. You and your team made the complicated seem simple and select the plan best suited for our health insurance needs. Thanks again!! Mike Hilbert Sales Pros for Hire PS- I have already received and paid my April payment and can print temporary insurance cards from the website.

The Truth Agents/Brokers & FFM Navigators The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

March 18, 2014Ed MacConnell

The Truth Agents/Brokers & FFM Navigators The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Shared with permission from B. Ronnell Nolan, HIA, CHRS-President/CEO – HAFA Financial Media Group, LLC, Centennial, CO, compiles this information annually. There are approximately 1.2 million licensed insurance agents nationally. The 1.2 million does not include the staff of licensed agents employed throughout the United States. After adding the staff, imagine the millions of people that Agents represent, educate and protect on a daily basis! With the passing of the ACA, Health Agents for America, Inc. was formed to create a tool box for Agents to use in educating the citizens of their local communities. HAFA is known to… Read More

Feds: Navigators don’t need E&O coverage

March 18, 2014Ed MacConnell

Enclosed in the 279 pages of proposed rules released Friday by the Department of Health and Human Services for the public health insurance exchanges is an answer, sort of, to a question brokers have raised for more than a year — who will be liable for navigators’ mistakes? n the section of the rules discussing navigators, the Obama administration’s document says “a state or an exchange must not require that all navigators be agents or brokers or carry errors and omissions coverage.” Further, the rule says that if navigators were to be required to carry E&O insurance, this would disqualify them from being considered a “community and consumer-focused nonprofit group.” Federal law… Read More

IBC: Small Group Metallic Plans Mapping

March 18, 2014Ed MacConnell

Upon renewal in 2014 small groups will be automatically “mapped” to a new ACA compliant metallic plan. Find your new recommended 2014 Blue Solutions plan using the chart below. To make your renewal even easier we’ve identified the plan that most closely matches your current plan. Or you can choose from among 36 other options to suit your needs. More comprehensive coverage Blue Solutions health plans now cover Essential Health Benefits like pediatric dental and vision. Your health plan also continues to cover doctor visits, hospital admissions, emergency room treatments, maternity care, lab tests, X-rays, prescriptions, and vision benefits for both children and adults. Click the link below to download the… Read More

Health Reform: Regulations Issued on Waiting Periods

March 12, 2014March 12, 2014Ed MacConnell

For plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2014, a group health plan and an insurance carrier offering group health insurance coverage may not apply any waiting period that exceeds 90 days. This rule applies to both grandfathered and non-grandfathered plans. It should be noted that nothing in the Affordable Care Act requires a group health plan or carrier to have a waiting period Click here to download the bulletin

Total Benefit Solutions Makes Enrolling Easier

March 1, 2014March 1, 2014Ed MacConnell

In an effort to meet the enrollment challenges that many are facing under healthcare reform, Total Benefit Solutions Inc has designed a custom form for our clients to use. Using this form and submitting it to Total Benefit Solutions Inc will enable our Marketplace trained and certified licensed independent brokers to assist you in the enrollment process from the registration right through the enrollment! Remember as your independent broker we always work in your best interests, not an insurance company. We represent you, our client and not an insurer or government agency. Click the link below to open the form and get started! When completed, just click the link to… Read More

Health Reform: Final Rule Issued Regarding Health Insurance Provider Fee

February 17, 2014February 17, 2014Ed MacConnell

Beginning in 2014, a health insurance provider fee applies to covered entities engaged in the business of providing health insurance for United States health risks. United States health risks include the health risk of a U.S. citizen or a resident alien including those living abroad. Thus, insurers issuing expatriate policies covering a U.S. citizen or resident alien living abroad are subject to the fee. Medical, dental and vision carriers in the insured marketplace are subject to this fee. This fee does not apply to self-insured employer-sponsored plans. Click the link below to download the bulletin. Final Rule Issued Regarding Health Insurance Provider Fee

Relief for Vision, Dental and EAP Benefits and New Wraparound Coverage

February 17, 2014February 15, 2014Ed MacConnell

The Departments of Labor, Treasury and HHS issued a proposed rule that provides helpful guidance regarding certain excepted benefits, including vision benefits, dental benefits, employee assistance programs (EAPs) and certain wraparound programs. Click the link below to download the bulletin. Relief for Excepted Benefits-012414R

Health Reform: Final Regulations Issued on Employer Penalty

February 15, 2014February 15, 2014Ed MacConnell

On February 10, 2014, the IRS released final regulations implementing the Employer Shared Responsibility provision under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for 2015 (the “employer penalty”). This guidance is lengthy and provides helpful clarification in many areas. We are in the process of reviewing the guidance, but you will find some key aspects of this rule below: The employer penalty will apply to employers with 100 or more full-time equivalent employees starting in 2015. For employers with 50-99 full-time equivalent employees, there is a one-year delay and the employer penalty provision will start in 2016. Click the link below to download the bulletin. Final Regulations Issued on Employer Penalty – 021114R

Video: Who can help me enroll?

February 11, 2014February 8, 2014Ed MacConnell

Who can help you enroll on a new affordable care act plan? Remember an independent broker like Total Benefit Solutions Inc can still help you enroll on a plan on the Federal Healtcare Exchange or off at no additional cost to you. Your independent broker is still truly your healthcare advocate! Another simple yet educational video from Humana:

Husband & Wife 2 Person Groups No Longer Eligible for Group Coverage

December 4, 2013March 8, 2014Ed MacConnell

Effective January 1, 2014 for new business and as existing groups renew thereafter, Husband and Wife only and Partner only businesses are no longer eligible for Small Group coverage. There are differences on how each state* will handle immediate family members who are also employees. Sole Proprietors Sole proprietors, owners and their immediate family members forming a business are not considered employees and may only buy insurance through the Individual Marketplace. Sole proprietors reporting on Schedule C cannot form a group health plan without having at least one non-spouse common-law employee.** * The FFM states (e.g., NJ, PA, DE) will abide by the above within the SHOP (Small Group Exchange Marketplace). In… Read More

Tag: PPACA

Introducing Worksite Benefits

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Comparative Effectiveness Fee Reminder

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Aetna: Important updates to our Pennsylvania Small Group eligibility guidelines

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IBC: Individual Dental and Vision PPO’s Now Available!

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Health Reform: New Guidance Clarifies Rules on Health FSA Carryovers

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IBC: Tobacco Status Important Questions and Answers

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Ed MacConnell earns Voluntary Benefits Certification

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My Experience with Obamacare: A Freelancer Applies for Health Insurance

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Client Testimonial: Mike Hilbert

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The Truth Agents/Brokers & FFM Navigators The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

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Feds: Navigators don’t need E&O coverage

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IBC: Small Group Metallic Plans Mapping

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Health Reform: Regulations Issued on Waiting Periods

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Total Benefit Solutions Makes Enrolling Easier

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Health Reform: Final Rule Issued Regarding Health Insurance Provider Fee

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Relief for Vision, Dental and EAP Benefits and New Wraparound Coverage

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Health Reform: Final Regulations Issued on Employer Penalty

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Video: Who can help me enroll?

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Husband & Wife 2 Person Groups No Longer Eligible for Group Coverage

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