New Health Care Information Forms

February 2, 2016 Robert Sheen ACA Compliance, Regulations

Individuals may receive forms in the next few months which provide information about health care coverage they were offered during 2015. The forms are for use by these individuals when they prepare their federal income tax returns, but the forms are not filed with the returns.

Much like Form W-2 and Form 1099, which include information about the income the taxpayer received, these forms provide information about their health care coverage which may be needed when these individuals file their individual income tax returns.

Two of the forms are new this year, while one was first sent to some taxpayers in 2015.

The new forms are:

Form 1095-B, Health Coverage.

Health insurance providers send this form to individuals they cover. It provides information about who was covered and when.

Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage.

Employers that offer “fully-insured” health coverage will send this form to their employees with information about their health coverage.

Employers that offer “self-insured” health coverage will send this form to individuals they cover, with information about who was covered and when.

The deadline for insurers, employers and other coverage providers to provide Forms 1095-B and 1095-C to their insureds is March 31, 2016.

Some taxpayers may not receive a Form 1095-B or Form 1095-C by the time they are ready to file their 2015 tax return. It is not necessary for taxpayers to wait for Forms 1095-B or 1095-C to file. While the information on these forms may be helpful for preparing a return, the forms are not required.

The form that was first issued last year is:

Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement

The Health Insurance Marketplace sends Form 1095-A to individuals who enrolled in coverage through the Marketplace. The form includes information about the coverage, who was covered, and when.

The deadline for the Marketplace to provide individuals with Form 1095-A is February 1, 2016. Taxpayers who expect to receive a Form 1095-A should wait to file their 2015 income tax return until they receive that form.

Individuals may get more than one form if they had coverage from more than one coverage provider, worked for more than one employer, or if they enrolled for coverage in the Marketplace for a portion of the year and received coverage from another source for part of the year.

Taxpayers are also likely to get more than one form if they changed coverage during the year, or if different members of their family received coverage from different coverage providers.

None of these forms should be attached to a tax return. However, they should be kept with the individual’s tax records.

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