The new federal law providing public financial relief during the corona virus pandemic also brings some serious hidden risks for people who receive public financial assistance with their health insurance coverage. Since health insurance would be unaffordable to many people without financial assistance from Medicaid or the Advance Premium Tax Credits, any change that threatens […]
Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) are praised for financial savings and flexibility
Small business employers who choose to offer health benefits to employees will find more options available in 2019 under rules proposed late last year for adaptation this year. The IRS and Treasury Department clarified that employers who meet other conditions will be allowed to offer reimbursement of individual health insurance on a tax-free basis. These […]
December 15 is the enrollment deadline to avoid a potentially hefty tax penalty in 2019. For residents of most states, the federal tax penalty for not having health insurance disappears at the end of 2019. This is known as the ‘individual mandate’. However, New Jersey residents are not off the hook. New Jersey residents are […]
Small business employers who do not offer an employee health plan are missing out on valuable tax savings. These small firms may be understandably nervous about offering employee health benefits. Less than half of small firms even try. We’ve heard about high costs of medical care and health insurance that rise year after year. This cab be […]
The announcement today by Jeff Sessions that the U.S Justice Department will not defend parts of federal tax and insurance law related to health insurance is a big deal but not only for the reasons that most news reports (like this report from Reuters on the bizarre legal logic that the law is unconstitutional) are focusing […]
(This inform is not updated to reflect 2019 proposed regulations so should be presumed to be partially obsolete). Can a business with only one employee – the spouse of the sole proprietor – be eligible for a Health Reimbursement Arrangement? I can not give that assurance but at least one popular tax speaker says that […]
Illegal immigrants pay at least $12 Billion each year more in wage taxes that they receive in social benefits that the rest of us take for granted. These workers come to the U.S. legally, typically on short-term work visas, with the understanding that they pay regular U.S. wage taxes but do not receive the same benefits […]
(This inform is not updated to reflect 2019 proposed regulations so should be presumed to be partially obsolete). Yesterday I was hired for a single consultation engagement for a small business in Silicon Valley to answer a few simple questions about setting up a Qualified Small Employer Health Reimbursement Arrangement (QSEHRA). This is a simple, […]
When I started in the health benefits advisory business more than 30 years ago (1987) through the predecessor of Freedom Benefits I strongly disagreed that health care was a “right”. My opinion was shared by the majority of Americans. But three things have happened since then and public opinion has shifted: 1) The wealth gap […]