Zane Benefits Publishes Health Care Reform Info

Zane Benefits has published new information on health care reform provisions. Zane Benefits, which provides comprehensive and flexible alternatives to traditional employer-sponsored health benefits, is the leader in defined contribution and health reimbursement arrangements.

According to Zane Benefits’ website, businesses large and small have many questions regarding the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and provides an overview of the major provisions impacting employers, individuals, medicare, medicaid and taxes.

According to Zane Benefits’ website, the major health care reform provisions impacting employers are:

• Being required to provide "affordable" and "qualified" coverage or pay tax penalties (firms with less than 50 full-time equivalent employees are not subject this requirement).
• A new small business tax credit to purchase coverage.
• New insurance exchanges for small-group and individual markets.
• Limits on underwriting.
• Elimination of tax deduction for retiree drug subsidies to employers.
• Restrictions on flexible spending account (FSA) salary deferral contributions.
• According to Zane Benefits, the major health care reform provisions impacting individuals are:
• Being required to purchase minimum essential coverage or pay tax penalties.
• New mandated benefits in individual markets.
• Tax subsidies to purchase individual health insurance coverage in an exchange.
• Limits on cost-sharing.
• Limits on underwriting.
• Increases in floor for itemized medical deduction from 7.5 percent to 10 percent.
• Restrictions on the use of HSAs, FSAs, HRAs for over the counter drugs.
• The major health care reform provisions impacting Medicare are:
• The part D coverage gap being closed over time.
• Payment reductions to hospitals, physicians, etc.
• Payment reductions to Medicare Advantage plans.
• It’s failure to address physician payment issue.
• New rebates on drugs.