Will You Have To Report Under The Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2015?

Aug 25, 2015

As you may have heard, the Supreme Court recently ruled on the legality of premium tax credits paid through federally (rather than state) administered health benefit exchanges. The Court came down in favor of President Obama’s administration. After careful analysis of the ACA’s tax credit provisions, it was determined that tax credits for insurance purchased on any exchange created under the ACA are allowable.

What the decision means to individuals and businesses:

Healthcare_BillsFor individuals that are receiving or could receive tax credits to assist with the purchase of health insurance, the decision is good news. Any decision to overturn the availability of tax credits in states with federally run exchanges would have had an immediate impact on individuals living in those states; and would likely have a negative impact on the health insurance marketplace nationally, impacting the cost of insurance.

For middle market and larger businesses this means the potential penalty taxes for failing to provide affordable and meaningful health insurance coverage (the ACA’s employer shared responsibility provisions) will continue to be in effect.

One of the key elements for businesses with 50 or more full-time employees or equivalents is compliance with the ACA’s information reporting requirements that started in 2015 (reporting due by Jan. 31, 2016). Thus, for businesses that have been waiting for the outcome of this case before committing the time and financial resources necessary to develop reporting systems to meet that requirement, now is the time to act.

For questions or additional information about this alert please contact us.

Categories: Healthcare & Dentistry