The Michigan Business and Professional Association (MBPA) is actively lobbying against language included in the Executive Budget recommendation that would increase health insurance costs for Michigan businesses and consumers by expanding the newly-enacted Health Insurance Claims (HICA) Tax. We oppose this uncompetitive tax increase to employers who are struggling to continue to provide health insurance […]
By Joe Haveman State Representative A new legislative term has just gotten underway, and that means the annual adventure of crafting the state budget is right around the corner. Number crunchers, reform advocates, grand bargainers and plain old budget wonks are all gathering to pore over the numbers and help lay a foundation for another […]
Both returning members and new members are listed in the link below, along with their pictures. We welcome them on behalf of the business community and look forward to working together to continue the progress in making Michigan an attractive place to do business and reside. Download a PDF here courtesy of Gongwer News Service
By Kristi R. Gauthier, Esq. Clark Hill PLC February 2013 – One of the new notices requirements the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) imposes on employers is the Notice of Coverage Options Available through the Exchanges (Notice). What is the Purpose of this Notice? The purpose of the Notice is to: Inform […]
By Don McAnelly CPA/ABV/CGMA Rehmann February 2013 – It’s hard to believe we are nearing the three-year mark of President Obama’s signing of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA). Even more concerning is the fact that this piece of legislation appears to still have some surprises in store for us all. […]
CMS Publishes Proposed Registration Process for Exchange Agents and Brokers The Michigan Business and Professional Association (MBPA) want to keep you up to date as new information pertaining to the federal healthcare law is released that affect the agent community. You can count on us for dependable and accurate information. In hopes […]
Health Care Reform Connect™ – Two New Compliance Tools! • Small Business Health Care Reform Guide • Tax Credit Estimator With the 2014 deadline looming for implementation of the Affordable Care Act, you likely have many questions about how the ACA will affect you, your business and your employees. Health Care Reform Connect™ was […]
With as many as 795,000 Michigan residents soon to be eligible for health care coverage as a result of the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Michigan Business and Professional Association (MBPA) is hosting a Health Care Reform Conference. The conference will take place Tuesday, April 9, 2013 from 8:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. at […]
The Blues are committed to providing association members with the best online experience possible. With that in mind, when you visit bcbsm.com or MiBCN.com today, you’ll see a completely new site. We’ve combined MiBCN.com and bcbsm.com into one website, so you can explore all that the Blues have to offer in one location. […]
By Larry Grudzien
Attorney-At-Law
February 2013 – The IRS issued a final regulations on when an employer-sponsored plan is considered “affordable” for an individual related to the employee for purposes of eligibility for a premium tax credit. Under Health Care Reform, employees may be eligible for a premium tax credit to purchase health insurance through the future health insurance exchanges if, among other reasons, the employer plan is deemed unaffordable.
The final regulations clarify that for taxable years beginning before January 1, 2015, an eligible employer-sponsored plan is affordable for related individuals if the portion of the annual premium the employee must pay for self-only coverage does not exceed 9.5% of the taxpayer’s household income.
An employer plan will be affordable for family members if the cost of self-only coverage does not exceed 9.5% of the employee’s household income. In other words, for purposes of whether family members are eligible for tax credits, the affordability of family coverage is not taken into account; all that matters is that the cost of self-only coverage is affordable to the employee.
For purposes of applying the affordability exemption from the individual mandate in the case of related individuals, the required contribution is based on the premium the employee would pay for employer-sponsored family coverage.
For an employee eligible under an employer plan, affordability (for individual mandate exemption purposes) will be based on whether the cost of self-only coverage exceeds 8% of the employee’s household income. For a related individual (such as a spouse or child), however, affordability for this purpose will be based on whether the cost of family coverage exceeds 8% of household income. Under these rules, members of an employee’s family may qualify for an individual mandate exemption, even though the offer of affordable employer coverage to the employee would require the employee to enroll or risk paying a penalty.
These final regulations apply to taxable years ending after December 31, 2013.
For a copy of the final regulations, please click here.
For More Information:
If you have any comments or questions regarding any of above information, please do not hesitate to call me at (708) 717-9638 or e-mail at larry@larrygrudzien.com.
