21 May The Affordable Care Act’s Summary of Benefits and Coverage

Posted at 18:30h in Health Insurance

The complexity of group health insurance makes it difficult for employers to shop for health plans and for employees to choose among several employer-provided options. Unfortunately, helpful consumer information is not typically found in the patchwork of various non-uniform and intricate consumer disclosures, such as...

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14 May Affordable Care Act Update

Posted at 18:21h in Commercial Insurance, Health Insurance

Despite becoming law over four years ago, the Affordable Care Act continues to make headlines. Since it's not easy to keep track of all the changes, let's take a look at some of the more significant recent developments. Elimination of Small Group Deductible Limits A significant ACA...

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26 Mar Offering Health Insurance to Same-Sex Spouses

Posted at 14:42h in Health Insurance

Under the Affordable Care Act, health insurance issuers in the individual and group markets are generally required to guarantee insurance coverage to every employer and individual that applies. Beginning in 2015, this guarantee will extend to same-sex spouses. On March 14, 2014, the Department of Health...

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12 Feb Affordable Care Act’s Employer Mandate Delayed…Again

Posted at 14:28h in Affordable Care Act, Health Insurance

On February 10, 2014, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued final regulations implementing the employer responsibility provisions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Despite being previously delayed, the final regulations provide transition relief to employers with 50 or...

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26 Dec Affordable Care Act Implementation in 2014

Posted at 20:28h in Health Insurance, Risk Management

As 2013 comes to an end, many are making plans and resolutions for the New Year. 2014 is also a big year for the Affordable Care Act, as many of the Act’s provisions go into effect, such as: Individual Mandate. Under the Act, most individuals who...

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13 Nov Final Rules Issued for Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act

Posted at 19:23h in Health Insurance

The Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Treasury issued final rules implementing the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (Act). Though interim final rules implementing the Act were published and became effective in 2010,...

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18 Sep No Penalty for Noncompliance with ACA’s Notice of Coverage Options

Posted at 14:37h in Commercial Insurance, Health Insurance

On September 11, 2013, the United States Department of Labor announced that employers will not be fined or penalized under the Affordable Care Act for failing to provide employees with notice about coverage options available through the ACA’s Health Insurance Marketplace (Exchanges). This comes just...

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10 Jul Affordable Care Act’s Employer Mandate Delayed Until 2015

Posted at 19:43h in Commercial Insurance, Health Insurance, Risk Management

Shortly before the July 4th holiday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced that enforcement of the Employer Shared Responsibility requirement under the Affordable Care Act (Act) will be delayed until 2015. The employer mandate, which generally requires employers with at least 50 full-time or...

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12 Jun New Deadline for Affordable Care Act’s Employer Notice Requirement

Posted at 15:00h in Commercial Insurance, Health Insurance, Risk Management

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), employers are required to give employees written notice about their options for purchasing health insurance through Affordable Insurance Exchanges (Health Insurance Marketplaces). Though the original March 1, 2013 deadline was delayed, the Department of Labor (DOL) recently announced the...

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14 May Pushing Back the Clock on the Affordable Care Act

Posted at 14:42h in Commercial Insurance, Health Insurance, Risk Management

On January 1, 2014, a number of the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) more significant provisions will go into effect. This means that many employers renewing their health plans on or after January 1st can expect big changes to their plans and, most likely, their premiums....

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