ACA in 2017… Stay Tuned

What do we see? Our opinion was that if Hillary Clinton had won, ACA would have gotten the heavy lift it would have needed to advance.  The difficult regulations would have been imposed (vs delayed further) and the money would have been allocated from general funds to...

ARE YOU WONDERING ABOUT THE “CONTROLLED GROUP” QUESTION? HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The “Controlled Group” question is popping up for many employers with much greater frequency as part of various and sundry regulatory applications, audits, surveys, reporting requirements and underwriting questionnaires. Netting it out in layman’s terms — at...

THE LAW OF DISPROPORTIONATE COSTS: SMALL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES ACCOUNT FOR LION’S SHARE OF GROUP HEALTH PLAN MEDICAL COSTS

There’s plenty of cost related analytics available to support the disproportionate cost premise that medical expenses are highly concentrated among a very small proportion of enrolled employees.  These highlights, for example, from a Agency for Healthcare Research and...

EMPLOYER REIMBURSEMENT OF INDIVIDUAL HEALTHPLAN PREMIUMS REMAINS A BANNED PRACTICE UNDER ACA

While this was more of a hot topic when the full monty of healthcare reform was implemented back in 2014, some employers perhaps unaware of the turmoil in the individual marketplace still ask about reimbursing employees for individual health insurance policies. The...

Definition of Predicament: People Who Don’t Have Access to Employer Coverage, Aren’t Medicare Eligible, and Don’t Qualify for Subsidies

Yes, this is a bit anecdotal. Nevertheless, I think it’s  worth reporting and some may find it interesting. First, recently our team managed the annual open enrollment process for the group health plan of one of our employer clients. After a quick but thoughtful...