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A bipartisan accord to fund the federal government until Jan. 15 and raise the government’s debt ceiling until Feb. 7, was reached by leaders in the U.S. Senate on Oct. 16, but the final agreement did virtually nothing to change the health care reform law. The only part of the compromise affecting health care reform […]
A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance from enforcing part of emergency rules designed to block health law navigators who had not been vetted by the state. As a result, churches, unions and social service organizations can set up computer stations to help the uninsured sign […]
Earlier this month, health insurance exchanges (also known as marketplaces) under the Affordable Care Act were launched, giving consumers — including COBRA qualified beneficiaries — new coverage options. Because qualified beneficiaries may come to employers with questions about enrolling in COBRA versus exchange coverage, here are some key issues to keep in mind. The key […]
As the 2014 plan year nears, plan sponsors are still sifting through the recently finalized changes to HIPAA’s nondiscrimination rules on wellness programs. The rules, issued June 3 (78 Fed. Reg. 33158), legally took effect Aug. 2 and must be met for plan years beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2014. Along with raising the […]
House Republican efforts to postpone, block and repeal Obamacare were key reasons for the federal government-shutdown crisis, under which 800,000 federal employees stayed home beginning Oct. 1. The House Republicans, whose opposition to Obamacare paralyzed spending bills, demanded that the administration acquiesce on two demands: postpone the “individual mandate” that individuals have federally approved minimum […]
The federal agencies implementing health reform continue to delay aspects of roll-out, especially as they relate to state-based health insurance marketplaces (also called “exchanges”), which are supposed to be up and running on Oct. 1. The Obama White House announced on Sept. 27 that federally run health-insurance exchanges, required by health care reform, will not […]
On Sept. 18, three federal agencies — Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury — petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn 10th Circuit’s decision in Hobby Lobby v. Sebelius, No. 12-6294 (10th Cir., June 27, 2013), after that court ruled in favor of the owner’s right to project his RFRA rights not to comply […]
In spite of the suspension of employer penalties under health care reform, the government strongly encourages employers to: (1) maintain or expand coverage; and (2) report on minimum affordable coverage under Section 6055 and/or 6056 rules. It’s important for employers to get experience gathering data and setting up systems for that reporting, Rachel Levy, an […]
Self-insured employers may not have to report the portion of the premium they pay, because that is not needed to determine if an individual is covered by “minimum essential coverage.” That’s one of a number of reporting items removed or reduced in IRS proposed health care reform rules detailing and streamlining reports on coverage offered […]
The health care reform process under which employers can contest adverse determinations (that can trigger pay-or-play penalties) due to an insurance exchange finding that their plans fail to provide minimum essential coverage was finalized in program integrity rules put on public display on Aug. 29 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The […]