Relief from the Individual Mandate

Your focus may be on the employer mandate part of ACA, but the recently released guidance regarding the individual mandate has some news you can use.   Just as January was turning to February, the IRS release final regulations for the Premium Tax Credit, proposed rules for the Shared Responsibility Payment for Not Maintaining Minimum Essential Coverage, and HHS released companion proposed rules for shared responsibility Exemptions.  The bottom line – if you offer a group health plan that meets the minimum essential coverage requirements to your employees (including affordability determined by the cost of self-only coverage), those employees and any related family members are not eligible for cost-sharing subsidies in the Exchange or tax credits, but they may be eligible for an exemption from the shared responsibility payment imposed if they don’t maintain minimum essential coverage. Read More