Benefits Buzz

Posted April 24th, 2015 in Producers, Employers

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has eliminated the need for certificates of creditable coverage (a.k.a. HIPAA notices) as of this year. These notices detailed the amount of time a person was covered under a health plan, and their primary purpose was to reduce or eliminate pre-existing condition waiting periods when someone was changing from one health plan to another. Since the ACA has eliminated pre-existing condition waiting periods in almost all market segments, these notices are deemed to be no longer relevant.

Posted April 17th, 2015 in Producers, Employers, Individuals
Since 1997, the federal government has used a system referred to as the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) to pay doctors that participate in the Medicare program. The SGR has aimed to slow increasing costs related to Medicare by limiting and reducing payments to doctors. However, the SGR has seen a lot of backlash from doctors, with many indicating they would not participate in the Medicare program if payments were reduced.
Posted April 2nd, 2015 in Producers, Employers
The Illinois Department of Insurance (IDOI) issued a bulletin on March 20, 2015 as it relates to the renewal of certain health plans in 2016. In particular, the bulletin indicates that certain health plans may continue to be renewed for plan years on or before October 1, 2016 without being considered out of compliance with Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations.  
 
The bulletin impacts the following plan types: 
 
    Posted March 27th, 2015 in Producers, Employers, Individuals

    On March 4, 2015 the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in regards to the King vs. Burwell case, which is the most significant challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) since the constitutionality of the Individual Mandate was challenged back in 2012. The plaintiffs in the King vs. Burwell case argue that subsidies can only be provided by states that establish an Exchange on their own. They further argue that the federal government, which is utilized in 37 states, cannot provide subsidies to Exchange applicants.  

    Posted March 20th, 2015 in Producers, Employers, Individuals
    The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued nearly 500 pages of regulations that impact various components of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). These regulations were posted to the Federal Register on February 27th, and they take effect 60 days from the posting unless otherwise indicated in the regulations. Included in the final regulations are some key changes to Special Enrollment Periods (SEPs) for individual market coverage which are outlined below:  
    Posted March 16th, 2015 in Producers, Employers

    The IRS has released Notice 2015-17 with some new information about Employer Payment Plans, which are plans that are used to reimburse employees with pre-tax dollars for individual market coverage (e.g. HRA). Previous guidance had essentially eliminated Employer Payment Plans as an option for actively employed workers because they would not be able to comply with all of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) market reforms. Notice 2015-17 elaborates on the IRS’ position of Employer Payment Plans.

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