On November 2, 2017, the IRS issued guidance regarding the enforcement of Employer Shared Responsibility payments, otherwise known as the Section 4980H penalty. Questions 55-58 of the IRS Questions and Answers on Employer Shared Responsibility Provisions Under the Affordable Care Act indicate that the IRS is moving forward with assessing penalties on Applicable Large Employers […]
On the morning of July 28, 2017, another effort to repeal or replace the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) failed in a 49-51 Senate vote when three Republican senators voted against the bill. Attempts to pass even a trimmed down “skinny” version of the bill were unsuccessful. Following this dramatic vote, the path forward for health […]
On May 18, 2016, the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) issued final regulations implementing the nondiscrimination provisions of the Affordable Care Act. As we discussed in our March 30, 2016 blog, the rule prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity in the provision of health programs. In application, the final […]
As a reminder, effective January 1, 2016, employers must offer minimum essential coverage to 95% or more (up from 70% or more for 2015) of their full-time employees and their dependents each month or pay a very steep penalty. Missing the mark even slightly, for example coming in at 94%, will require the employer to […]
Assistant Secretary of Labor Phyllis Borzi recently offered informal guidance on the broad scope of nondiscrimination regulations proposed under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act. During her remarks at the ABA Labor Section Employee Benefits Committee Meeting in February, Ms. Borzi indicated that the proposed regulations would apply to any health plan that receives […]
In an earlier blog post this year, I discussed the King v. Burwell case and the possible ramifications if the United States Supreme Court did not uphold the Internal Revenue Service position that residents in states with either a state or federal Health Care Exchange are entitled to receive subsidies from the federal government to […]
The Affordable Care Act (the “ACA”) generally requires that large employers offer health coverage that meets certain requirements to their full-time employees (i.e., employees working 30 hours or more per week) and their children to avoid paying potential tax penalties. Some employers have decided to reduce certain employees’ hours to less than 30 hours per […]
I have blogged more on the topic of how the Health Care Reform Act applies to employers that reimburse employers for individual health insurance policies than any other topic in the last year. At one point in time, as indicated in my post of June 11, 2014, The IRS Meant What It Said in Notice […]
On February 8, 2015, the IRS released final forms and instructions for reporting health coverage pursuant to Code Sections 6055 and 6056, which were added by the Health Care Reform Act. Please see our SW Benefits Update, “Final IRS Forms and Instructions for Reporting Health Coverage Clarify Large Employer Requirements for 2015 and Beyond” for […]
As part of Health Care Reform, employers and insurers are required to provide group health plan participants with a Summary of Benefits and Coverage (“SBC”) describing the important features of the group health plan option(s) offered by the employer/insurer. The SBC is also intended to provide participants a way to easily compare different group health […]
