This is your last issue of PlanAhead Direct - watch for your first illuminating issue of Enlighten in July!
Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight
Some analysts have predicted that upward of 100 new federal agencies will be created in response to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Recently announced is the Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (OCIIO), which became operational as a spinoff of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The new office will be responsible for ensuring compliance with the new insurance-market rules, such as the prohibitions on rescissions and on preexisting-condition exclusions for children, among other changes. It is anticipated that many pieces of guidance will be issued from the new office in the coming months and years. You can visit the Web site here: http://www.hhs.gov/ociio/.
Extended Coverage for Dependents under Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
Employers will need to work quickly to implement the expanded definition of dependent. For calendar year plans, extended coverage became effective January 1, 2010. Click here to read an informative article by the law firm Nelson Mullins.
The Culprit and The Cure
Because the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act may in the future restrict some traditional cost-sharing and plan design liberties long enjoyed by employers, it is worth remembering that participant behavior is the primary driver of group health plan costs. The Culprit and The Cure explains this phenomenon and how employers can take steps to drive that behavior. In summary:
- The health of the plan participant drives plan cost.
- Lifestyle is the culprit for America's poor health.
- Employers are leading the charge to improve America's health.
- Changing behavior is the solution.
We have a limited supply of The Culprit and The Cure available to our readership. If you would like a complimentary copy please contact the BSG Communications Department.
IRS Announces 2011 HSA Limits
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced the 2011 inflation adjusted amounts for health savings accounts (HSAs) in Revenue Procedure 2010-22.
Annual contribution limits for calendar year 2011 are unchanged from 2010 amounts:
- Deductions for an individual with self-only coverage under a high deductible health plan: $3,050
- Deductions for an individual with family coverage under a high deductible health plan $6,150
