Survey Says: Employer Health Care Costs Will Increase Significantly in the Near Future 11/21/2012 Survey Says: Employers to Continue to Offer Benefits After Healthcare Reform A recent survey showed that about 80 percent of employers have expressed their intentions to continue offering health benefits to employees in the near future. Although the projected cost increase of the new health care reform bill shows a significant increase from years past, […] Read More >
2014 PPACA Penalty – what will you do? 11/21/2012 Think Dropping Coverage To Pay The PPACA Penalty Is Cheaper? Think Again! Many employers have been hearing rumors that it would be cheaper to simply pay the penalty fine for not providing health care to employees under the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act that is set to go into effect in 2014. However, research […] Read More >
2013 Health Savings Account Contribution Limits 11/11/2012 The IRS set the HSA contribution limits for 2013 as shown below: HSA Contribution Limits. The 2013 annual HSA contribution limit for individuals with self-only HDHP coverage is $3,250 (a $150 increase from 2012), and the limit for individuals with family HDHP coverage is $6,450 (a $200 increase from 2012). HDHP Minimum Required Deductibles. The […] Read More >
FSA Salary Reduction Capped at $2,500, Starting January 2013 11/06/2012 Changes are coming to flexible spending accounts. Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), a new $2,500 limit will be imposed on salary reduction contributions to health flexible spending arrangements, commonly known as FSAs. FSAs are popular perks that allow employees to divert income on a pre-tax basis to an account that they […] Read More >
IRS Issues guidance for 2013 Flexible Spending Accounts Plans 11/01/2012 After a lengthy wait, the IRS has issued additional guidance and clarification regarding the $2,500 plan maximum for health FSA’s effective for plan years after December 31, 2012. Here is a summary of the guidance and what it means for Flexible Spending Account plans: The effective date has been clarified to apply to plan years […] Read More >
myCafeteriaPlan® On-the-go – New mobile app released 10/15/2012 myCafeteriaPlan® On-the-go What’s New in Version 3.5 Mobile File A Claim—The new feature enables consumers to submit a new Flexible Spending Account, Transit or Health Reimbursement claim from their Mobile app at any time, and to add a receipt at the same time a claim is being filed. HSA Transaction Details—The new feature enables consumers […] Read More >
What is a HSA? 10/01/2012 What is a Health Savings Account (HSA)? Health savings accounts are tax favored accounts that can be contributed to by or on behalf of “eligible individuals” covered by certain high deductible health plans (HDHPs) to pay for certain medical expenses of eligible individuals and their spouses and/or tax dependents. An individual with a high deductible […] Read More >
Now that Healthcare Reform is Upheld, How does this effect Employers? 08/01/2012 The PPACA is underway… now what? In a hotly-contested 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court upheld the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act — though from an unexpected direction: The Court rejected the Administration’s argument that the Commerce Clause allowed them to impose a penalty on individuals for not buying health insurance coverage. But according to […] Read More >
All Health Plans Now Cover Preventive Services 07/05/2012 This may mean that there’s no reason to put off getting screened for these important treatments. From Healthcare.gov, the federal government’s site providing basic information on health care reform, including PPACA: Preventive Services for Adults – Including Senior Citizens Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm one-time screening for men of specified ages who have ever smoked Alcohol Misuse […] Read More >
Can Employers Save Taxes with a Section 125 Cafeteria Plan? 06/11/2012 Can Employers Save Taxes with a Section 125 Cafeteria Plan? The short answer is “yes, generally.” But let’s take a look at what a Section 125 cafeteria plan is. A cafeteria plan provides an array of voluntary fringe benefits, allowing an employee to choose the ones that best fit their individual needs. The employee then […] Read More >