The Department of Health and Human Services set a goal for 2016 of signing up 10 million Americans for health insurance through state and federal marketplaces established under the Affordable …
2015
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Affordable Care Act
The ACA Is Not Harming Employment, a Fed Study Says
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenContrary to predictions by critics of the Affordable Care Act prior to itsimplementation, the healthcare law has not caused employers to cut the number of their employees or reduce the …
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Affordable Care ActLegislation
Voters In Key States Want ACA to Stay
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenA majority of likely voters in five key battleground states – Florida, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia – believe the Affordable Care Act is here to stay (64%) and want …
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With only weeks remaining in 2015, more than half of companies responding to a recent survey say they have not made much progress toward meeting the reporting requirements of the …
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Affordable Care ActLegislationRegulations
ACA Definition of ‘Small Employer’ is Revised
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenA bill aimed at protecting employees from possible increases in healthcare insurance costs under the Affordable Care Act passed both the House of Representatives and Senate, and has been signed …
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Affordable Care ActRegulations
How Income Affects The Premium Tax Credit
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe IRS has issued advice to help individuals understand how their household income can affect the Affordable Care Act premium tax credit they may receive on health insurance policies purchased …
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Affordable Care ActLegislationRegulations
Robert Sheen Speaks to HR Executives on ACA Compliance
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenAmerican employers must deal with new IRS reporting obligations and the possibility of hefty penalties because of the Affordable Care Act, Robert S. Sheen, Editor of the ACA Times and …
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Affordable Care ActHealth Care Coverage
17.6 Million Have Gained Health Coverage Under the ACA
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenAs of September 12, an estimated 17.6 million Americans have gained health insurance coverage since enrollment under the Affordable Care Act began in October of 2013, according to the Department …
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The Department of Health and Human Services announced $685 million in awards aimed at improving quality of care and reducing costs. The money will go to health care networks and …
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Affordable Care ActHealth Care Coverage
Number of Uninsured Women Sharply Lower
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe percentage of women aged 15 to 44 dropped sharply between 2013 and 2014, the first full year of implementation of the Affordable Care Act,,according to an analysis by the …
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Affordable Care Act
Coverage Offer Can Affect Shared Responsibility Payment
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenUnder the Affordable Care Act, applicable large employers are subject to the employer shared responsibility provisions. They must either offer affordable minimum essential coverage to full-time employees and their dependents, …
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The IRS is preparing new regulations to help avoid duplicate reporting of an individual’s minimum essential coverage when there is reasonable certainty that the provider of the “primary” coverage will report. The …
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Health Care Coverage
Employer Premiums Up 4%, Deductibles Rising Faster
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenPremiums for employer-sponsored health insurance rose an average of 4% this year, continuing a decade-long period of moderate growth, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. But the size of deductibles paid …
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Affordable Care ActLegislationRegulations
House Can Sue Administration on ACA Funding
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe House of Representatives can pursue its lawsuit against the Obama Administration that claims funding of subsidies under the Affordable Care Act violate the Constitution. Judge Rosemary M. Collyer of …
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As you get ready to file 2015 reports required by the Act, the Internal Revenue has released the final for submitting these reports, along with instructions for them. For reports …
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The IRS sent letters this summer to some taxpayers who were issued a Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement, showing that advance payments of the premium tax credit were paid …
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Affordable Care Act
S&P Says Nonprofit Providers Are Financially Stronger
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe Affordable Care Act, Medicaid expansion and the wave of mergers they have triggered have made the nonprofit healthcare sector financially stronger, according to the Standard & Poor’s ratings agency. …
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The Internal Revenue Service said it will propose a number of changes in the regulations on reports related to the Affordable Care Act. All of the proposed changes will have …
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A study by researchers at Harvard Medical School says an Act intended to make hospitals more efficient is unintentionally punishing hospitals that serve the sickest, poorest and least-educated patients. Under …
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EditorialsLegislationRegulations
Penalties Double For ACA Filing Failures
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenPenalties for failure to satisfy the complex IRS filing requirements resulting from the Affordable Care Act (ACA) have just doubled. With filing deadlines approaching, employers should act quickly to ensure …
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The Internal Revenue Service has issued proposed regulations that will require employer-sponsored health care plans to include “substantial coverage” for in-patient hospitalization and physician services. So-called “skinny” plans that lack …
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Affordable Care ActHealth Care Coverage
Key Dates for ACA Open Enrollment
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenNovember 1, 2015 – Open Enrollment begins. Individuals can apply for, drop, keep or change their Insurance plans. December 15, 2015 – Individuals must enroll by this date if they …
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A decision by the National Labor Relations Board that franchisors and companies using staffing agencies can be considered joint employers is expected to have a significant impact on companies that …
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Affordable Care ActReportingTax Filings
$11 Billion in Credits Paid During Filing Season
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenConsumers who bought individual health insurance coverage through federal and state exchanges received almost $11 billion in premium assistance tax credits in fiscal year 2014, according to a report by …
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LegislationRegulationsUncategorized
ACA Reporting Requirements For Large Employers
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenCompanies with 50 or more full-time employees should be gathering information now for Affordable Care Act reports they will have to provide to the IRS and to their employees early …
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Affordable Care ActPremium Tax Credit
Tools to Estimate ACA Fees and Credits
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe IRS has developed tools for employers and individuals to estimate their credits and payments related to the Affordable Care Act. The tools, available online, only provide an estimate intended …
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LegislationRegulations
Misclassifying Workers Can Trigger Two Penalties
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenEmployers are facing increased scrutiny by the Department of Labor, the and state regulators over possible misclassification employees as independent contractors or freelance workers. A DOL memo states that the …
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RegulationsUncategorized
Balance Billing Undermines Insurance Coverage
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenA key goal the Affordable Care Act is to make sure that the medical is covered by insurance plus the agreed-upon deductibles and copays. But for many families an illness …
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Four studies published in mid-August indicate that the Affordable Care Act is achieving its goal of reducing the number of Americans without health insurance while having no negative impact on …
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EditorialsLegislationRegulations
Why You Can’t Afford to Ignore The ACA
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenLike all owners of small businesses, the men and women who run construction Companies had more than enough to do before the Affordable Care Act added one more task — …
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Affordable Care ActRegulations
Are You Subject to the Individual Mandate?
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe IRS has issued an explanation of which U.S. citizens and foreign nationals are subject to the individual shared responsibility provision of the Affordable Care Act, or the “individual mandate.” …
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Affordable Care ActHealth Care Coverage
Uninsured Rate is 9.2%, a Record Low
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenOnly 9.2% of Americans are without health insurance, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. This is the lowest rate since the CDC began keeping records in 1972. The …
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Cadillac TaxRegulations
IRS Asks For Comments on New “Cadillac Tax” Rules
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe Internal Revenue Service has identified additional issues under Code Section 4980I, commonly known as the “Cadillac Plan” excise tax, and is proposing new regulations to deal with them. The …
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A Wyoming Indian tribe lost a legal bid to be exempted from the employer mandate of the Affordable Care Act, and must provide health insurance to all of its employees. …
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EditorialsLegislation
ACA Reporting Update: New Forms, Higher Penalties
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenACA Reporting Update: New Forms, Higher Penalties By Damian A. Myers Damian Myers is an Associate in the Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation and ERISA Litigation Practice Center in the Washington, …
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Affordable Care ActLegislationMedicaid/Medicare
Medicare and Medicaid Popular After 50 Years
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenWhen Medicare and Medicaid were signed into law on July 30th 50 years ago, opponents attacked the programs as wasteful, intrusive and a precursor to socialism or communism. Today both …
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The IRS issued a reminder that individuals who received advance payments of the Premium Tax Credit (PTC) in 2014, for insurance they purchased through a marketplace or exchange, should file …
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LegislationRegulationsUncategorized
IRS on Employer Shared Responsibility Provisions
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe Internal Revenue Service has issued a reminder to employers about specific “shared responsibility” provisions of the Affordable Care Act that may affect them. The size and structure of a …
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New reporting requirements mandated by the Affordable Care Act are posing challenges to large and small companies, and most employers have made little progress on deciding on or implementing a …
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LegislationRegulations
California Health Insurance Rates To Rise By 4%
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenCalifornia’s Affordable Care Act exchange, known as Covered California, has negotiated an average 4% increase in premiums for the 1.3 million residents of the state who buy individual insurance through …
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An increasing amount of medical care is being delivered by nurse practitioners, physician assistants and other non-physician providers, making care more widely available and helping hold down costs, according to …
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The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a reminder that all employers that provide self-insured health coverage, must file an annual return reporting certain information for each employee they cover. If …
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After two years of debate and months of closed-door negotiations, Utah’s Republican governor and state legislature have agreed on a deal to expand Medicaid in that state, covering about 126,000 …
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Affordable Care ActLegislationRegulations
ACA Offers Help For Informal Caregivers
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenMillions of Americans who provide unpaid care for ill, disabled or aged family members or friends can now get help through the Affordable Care Act for their own physical and …
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Affordable Care ActIRS
IRS Offers ACA Webinars for Employers and Insurers
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe Internal Revenue Service is offering a series of three webinars designed to help employers and insurance providers understand provisions of the Affordable Care Act. The webinars will be held …
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Affordable Care ActHealth Care CoverageMedicaid
Alaska’s Governor Acts to Expand Medicaid
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenAlaska’s Gov. Bill Walker moved to expand Medicaid, saying he will ask the administration to offer Medicaid coverage to all qualifying residents of the state. Noting that Alaska’s legislature had …
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Despite a few glitches, the Internal Revenue Service says, the agency’s staff did a “commendable” job implementing provisions of the Affordable Care Act. The most significant new challenge the IRS …
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LegislationRegulations
New Rules on Religious Objections to Birth Control
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenThe Obama administration has unveiled new rules aiming to address religious objections by to providing birth control to female employees as required by the Act.
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EditorialsLegislationRegulations
Impact of ‘King’ on Applicable Large Employers
by Robert Sheenby Robert SheenImpact of ‘King’ on Applicable Large Employers The Supreme Court’s decision in ‘King v. Burwell’ had ramifications for “applicable large employers” that went beyond approving payment of insurance subsidies in …
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Time’s Up on Premium Reimbursement The IRS has taken a hard position on employer payment plans under the ACA, and now the time is up for small employers to comply. …