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Health Care Reform

Notifications Due October 1, 2013

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) requires that employers notify their employees that they will have access to insurance coverage through the Insurance Exchange (Marketplace). To help you comply with the requirement,  two items for you are linked below;

 

  1. A LEGISLATIVE BRIEF THAT IS MEANT FOR EMPLOYERS AND IS NOT SENT TO EMPLOYEES.  - This notice provides you, the Employer with basic information concerning the requirement that a notice be sent to each employee. In Summary:

     

    • a. The Notice needs to be sent to Part Time Employees as well Full Time Employees, regardless of whether they are covered under your Health plan or not.
    • b. The notice must be delivered to all current employees by October 1st, 2013. For new employees hired on or after October 1st, they must be given the notice at the time of their hiring. For new employees hired in 2014, they must be given the notice within 14 days of their first day of employment.
    • c. The notice can be delivered by first class mail, or electronically if the employee has work related computer access or has agreed to accept electronically delivered mail at their homes. While not required, we recommend that a delivery receipt be sent with the notice if sent electronically. If mailed, we recommend that a note be put in the employees’ personnel file with the date the notice was mailed and the address it was sent to.  
    • d. Brief PDF here: ExchangeNoticeRequirementsforEmployers8-20-13-1.pdf

     

  2. THE ACTUAL NOTICE TO BE SENT TO THE EMPLOYEE – It is 3 Pages, however only The 1st Page is Mandatory and the other 2 are Optional.

     

    • a. Part A - First Page – It is mandatory that you send to each employee Part A (the first page). It provides general information to the employee about the Insurance Marketplace (Exchange)
    • b. Part B – Second & Third Page – You are not mandated to send it. It is optional. If you choose to include it, you will need to provide the information required in #3 - #11. You then would have to provide the information for the next three boxes, which are;
    • c. You Offer Health Insurance To: Check the Box for “Some Employees”. Eligible employees are Full Time Employees that work on a regularly scheduled basis of 25 hours or more per week.
    • d. You Do Offer Coverage To Dependents: They are defined as the legally married spouse, or domestic partner of the insured if applicable (please be aware that this needs to be set up with the carrier in advance. Groups of less than 50 employees, unless insured with BCBS, do not have domestic coverage available) and eligible children.
    • e. Minimum Value Standard: I recommend that you check the box to indicate that you are offering coverage that  meets the minimum value standard. It is important to realize that if your renewal is in 2013, you do not need to meet any of the minimum value standards until your renewal that is on or next following January 1st, 2014. If your renewal is January 1st, 2014 or later, you will meet the minimum standards at that time.
    • f. #’s 13 – 16: These do not need to be filled out and we recommend that you leave them blank.
    • g. Notice PDF here: ExchangeNoticetoEmployeesfromEmployerswithHealthCoverage.pdf

 

Please be aware that navigating the system is not easy.  We are here to assist you and your employees by providing insurance referrals, if necessary.  Please let us know if you have any questions.

You may also want to read the following, which outlines the Affordable Care Act with examples: ACA for Small Employers