Employers

Posted May 21st, 2020 in Employers, Producers

Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRAs) can be otherwise described as premium reimbursement plans. Employers establish a plan to reimburse employees for health insurance coverage they obtain on their own; either a plan obtained in the individual health insurance market or through Medicare. Reimbursements are tax-free to employees and tax-deductible to employers.

Posted May 14th, 2020 in Employers, Producers, Individuals

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently released Notice 2020-29 and Notice 2020-33 which provide substantial changes to Cafeteria Plans, Health Flexible Spending Accounts (Health FSAs) and Dependent Care Assistance Programs (commonly referred to as Dependent Care FSAs).

Posted May 7th, 2020 in Employers, Producers

Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRAs) are new premium reimbursement arrangements that allow employers to reimburse employees for personal health insurance coverage they obtain on their own. Plans such as those offered on the Health Insurance Marketplace or Medicare plans are eligible for reimbursement. An employer may optionally choose to reimburse out-of-pocket medical expenses too.

Posted April 30th, 2020 in Employers, Producers, Individuals

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has issued guidance that will impact COBRA procedures, special enrollment periods, and claims procedures. The guidance will extend the length of certain time periods applicable to group health plans, disability plans and other welfare plans regulated by the ERISA law. Plan participants and beneficiaries will have additional time to do the following:

Posted April 28th, 2020 in Employers, Producers

As a reminder, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) created a research institute known as the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). The goal of PCORI is to help patients and those who care for them make better-informed decisions about healthcare choices.

Posted April 23rd, 2020 in Employers, Producers

If you’re familiar with the individual health insurance market, you should be aware that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) made significant changes to the application and enrollment processes starting in 2014.

Posted April 21st, 2020 in Employers, Producers, Individuals
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) have been available since 2004. Employees and individuals enrolled in qualified high deductible health plans (HDHPs) can put money into an HSA to pay for medical expenses at a later date. The contributions are tax-deductible, and if money is used to pay for medical expenses, the money can be withdrawn from the HSA tax-free. Unlike Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs), there is no cap on the amount of money that can be rolled over from one year to the next.
 
Posted April 16th, 2020 in Employers, Producers

Making Plan Changes During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Needless to say, these last several weeks have created challenging times for a significant number of employers. Stay-at-home orders and other impacts from the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic have put many employers in a position where they must make sudden health plan and benefit changes.

Posted April 14th, 2020 in Employers, Producers

The short answer is that they are both defined contribution plans.

The Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA) is an employer-sponsored defined contribution health plan whereas a 401(k) is a defined contribution retirement plan. 

Posted April 8th, 2020 in Employers, Producers

Many insurance carriers are offering up a limited time special enrollment period due to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic. Call it a midyear open enrollment period if you will. No qualifying event is necessary to enroll in the group health plan. Many insurance carriers (at the discretion of the employer) are allowing employees to join the group health plan if they waived coverage during the employer’s typical open enrollment period. This comes as good news for many employees.

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