Nov 18, 2019 | Legislative Updates
On Nov. 15, 2019, the Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury (Departments) issued a proposed rule regarding transparency in coverage that would impose new transparency requirements on group health plans and health insurers in the individual and group markets. Specifically, the proposed rule would require plans and issuers to disclose:
- Cost-sharing estimates to participants, beneficiaries and enrollees upon request; and
- In-network provider-negotiated rates and historical out-of-network allowed amounts on their website.
The proposals would only apply to non-grandfathered coverage, and would also apply to self-insured group health plan sponsors.
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Sep 12, 2019 | Legislative Updates
On Sept. 11, 2019, the IRS updated their Questions and Answers (Q&As) on the employer shared responsibility rules under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), to include adjusted penalty amounts for 2019 and 2020. According to the FAQs, the penalty amounts will be increased as follows:
- For calendar year 2019, the adjusted $2,000 amount is $2,500 and the adjusted $3,000 amount is $3,750.
- For calendar year 2020, the adjusted $2,000 amount is $2,570 and the adjusted $3,000 amount is $3,860.
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Jul 27, 2019 | Legislative Updates
On July 23, 2019, the IRS issued Revenue Procedure 2019-29 to index the contribution percentages in 2020 for determining affordability of an employer’s plan under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). For plan years beginning in 2020, employer-sponsored coverage will be considered affordable if the employee’s required contribution for self-only coverage does not exceed:
- 78% of the employee’s household income for the year, for purposes of both the pay or play rules and premium tax credit eligibility; and
- 24% of the employee’s household income for the year, for purposes of an individual mandate exemption (adjusted under separate guidance). Although this penalty was reduced to zero in 2019, some individuals may need to claim an exemption for other purposes.
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Jul 3, 2019 | Legislative Updates
Beginning in 2020, employers of all sizes may implement a new HRA design – an individual coverage HRA (ICHRA) – to reimburse their eligible employees for insurance policies purchased in the individual market or Medicare premiums.
Final rules released by the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Treasury (Departments) permit employers to offer an ICHRA as an alternative to traditional group health plan coverage, subject to certain conditions. One of these conditions is that employees and dependents who are covered by an ICHRA must be enrolled in individual insurance coverage or Medicare coverage for each month they are covered by the ICHRA. Also, employers that sponsor ICHRAs must comply with an annual notice requirement.
Employers may allow employees to pay for off-Exchange health insurance on a tax-favored basis, using a Section 125 cafeteria plan, to make up any portion of the premium that is not covered by the employer’s ICHRA. (more…)
May 28, 2019 | Legislative Updates
The IRS released Revenue Procedure 2019-25 to announce the inflation-adjusted limits for health savings accounts (HSAs) and high deductible health plans (HDHPs) for 2020. These limits include:
- The maximum HSA contribution limit;
- The minimum deductible amount for HDHPs; and
- The maximum out-of-pocket expense limit for HDHPs.
These limits vary based on whether an individual has self-only or family coverage under an HDHP.
The IRS limits for HSA contributions increase for 2020. Eligible individuals with self-only HDHP coverage will be able to contribute up to $3,550 for 2020, while eligible individuals with family HDHP coverage will be able to contribute up to $7,100 for 2020. The HDHP cost-sharing limits also increase for 2020. (more…)
Apr 19, 2019 | Legislative Updates
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released its final Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters for 2020. This rule describes benefit and payment parameters under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that apply for the 2020 benefit year. Standards included in the rule relate to:
- Annual limitations on cost sharing;
- The individual mandate’s affordability exemption;
- Direct enrollment in the Exchanges; and
- Special enrollment periods in the Exchanges.
HHS also sought comments on issues to address in the future, such as the practice of “silver loading,” the automatic re-enrollment process through the Exchanges and any additional measures that would reduce eligibility errors and potential government misspending. Although the final rule does not finalize any policies related to these issues, HHS noted that it intends to take the comments received in response to the proposed rule into consideration in future rulemaking. (more…)
