Zane Benefits Publishes New Information on the ACA Employer Mandate
Park City, Utah (PRWEB) December 13, 2013 -- Today, Zane Benefits, the number one online small business health benefits solution, published new information on the ACA employer mandate.
According to Zane Benefits’ website, employers with over 50 employees are trying to figure out how to deal with the Affordable Care Act's 2015 "employer mandate" which requires applicable large employers to either offer health insurance, or else pay a tax penalty. While the employer mandate has been delayed until 2015, many employers are strategizing their approach now.
- To Play: Offer minimum, affordable group health insurance in 2015.
- To Pay: Do not offer minimum, affordable group health insurance in 2015, and pay any applicable penalties.
- To Play Differently with "Pure" Defined Contribution: Do not offer group health insurance in 2015, pay any applicable penalties, and offer a pure defined contribution plan..
A business that chooses to play will satisfies the employer mandate provision and will not be subject to penalties. Health benefits are an important part of the compensation offered to employees. Employees value health insurance as the number one fringe benefit, and there are tax savings on the group premiums for the business and employees.
However, group health insurance is expensive and even cost prohibitive for many businesses. By offering group health insurance, employees are disqualified from the individual health insurance subsidies. If family coverage is offered, employees' families are also disqualified from subsidies.
If a business chooses to not offer group health insurance, employees and their families have access to health insurance subsidies. They may pay less for health insurance than what they pay for health insurance premiums through the company.
According to Zane Benefits’ website, the cost of penalties in 2015 is generally much less than group health insurance premiums. Many businesses see paying the penalties as their contribution to employee's subsidies - subsidies they are allowing them to get by not offering group health insurance.
Not offering a formal health benefits program may negatively impact recruiting, retention, and morale. This is especially true if the business has offered health benefits in the past, and is canceling them.
A "pure" defined contribution approach gives employees a full choice of health insurance plans. Employees receive better, more flexible health insurance options - but may need extra education about individual health insurance - and penalties for the employer have been delayed until 2015.
Click here to read the full article.
--
About Zane Benefits
Zane Benefits was founded in 2006 to provide a revolutionized SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) administration platform ("ZaneHealth") for defined contribution health care. The flagship software provides a 100% paperless administration experience to small businesses and insurance professionals that want to offer better health benefits without a traditional group health insurance plan at lower costs. For more information about Zane Benefits, visit http://www.zanebenefits.com.
Christina Merhar, Zane Benefits, http://www.zanebenefits.com, +1 (800) 391-9209 Ext: 6725, [email protected]
Share this article