Individual Mandate Update
As you may have heard, Congress repealed the Individual Mandate with their tax bill in December 2017. This means that, starting in 2019, people who do not enroll in “qualified” insurance under the Affordable Care Act will not have to pay a penalty with their 2019 taxes. The individual mandate is still in effect for 2018. If…
Fall Enrollment Periods for Medicare and Individual/Family Coverage
Fall Enrollment Periods for Medicare and Individual/Family Coverage Enrollment season is upon us. The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period runs from October 15th – Dec 7th. During this time, you can change your Medicare Advantage plan, your Medigap plan or your Part D coverage. We currently have rates and plan benefit changes for 2018 Medicare options.…
How did our health insurance become tied to our employer?
Ever wonder how the U.S. health insurance system evolved into this system that largely ties health insurance to your employer? Most other countries do not have this employer-based insurance system. The New York Times published a great summary of how we got where we are today: https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/09/05/upshot/the-real-reason-the-us-has-employer-sponsored-health-insurance.html
The Future of the ACA (aka “Obamacare”)
Many of our clients have been asking us about the future of the ACA (Affordable Care Act) or “Obamacare.” At this time, many ideas have been presented, but no concrete plans have been released regarding the repeal of the ACA. Accordingly, we are now working with clients for 2017 as if the current regulations…
Special Enrollment Periods Under The ACA
One MAJOR difference brought about by the ACA is in the enrollment process for health insurance. If you purchase your own insurance through the Marketplace or directly through an insurance company, there are two ways in which you can enroll in coverage: During Open Enrollment: Open Enrollment is scheduled to take place from November 1st…
Have a Highmark Plan? Check your January invoices!
For 2016, Highmark discontinued most of its individual plans available both on the Marketplace and directly through Highmark. If you were in one of these plans, you were automatically enrolled in their Off-Marketplace Bronze level plan with a $6,000 individual deductible. This means that, if you enrolled directly with Highmark, you want to look at…
Taxes, Penalties, and an Upcoming Healthcare Insurance Deadline!
So the blog posts took a bit of a hiatus during this Open Enrollment season but I wanted to sneak one in before the 2/15 deadline to get health insurance for 2015. I want to focus on your 2014 tax filing and also use it to highlight the reasons why you want to make sure…
Important Reminders for Marketplace Users
If you signed up for health insurance this year through healthcare.gov, there are some important reminders for Marketplace users as we approach the end of 2014 and the beginning of Open Enrollment for 2015. Income Verification Requests from the Marketplace The Marketplace will likely be reaching out to you in the upcoming weeks if…
IRS asks Healthcare.gov subscribers about subsidy eligibility
IRS Asks for Documentation If you signed up for insurance coverage as a Healthcare.gov subscriber and received a subsidy, the IRS may come knocking on your door asking more questions about your income eligibility for those subsidies. I know I have worked with many clients who had major changes in income in 2014 in comparison…
Are There Deadlines to Sign Up for Health Insurance?
Open Enrollment Unlike in previous years, you cannot sign up for an individual insurance plan at any time in 2014. There are health insurance deadlines now. The open enrollment period ends on March 31st – this means that you either have to be signed up on healthcare.gov for a plan or have an application submitted…
