The Affordable Care Act adds an additional hospital insurance tax on income above certain amounts (the Additional Medicare Tax). The IRS recently released guidance for employers about the implementation of the Additional Medicare Tax.
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Employers must make sure to complete a form I-9 for each newly hired employee. Form I-9 is used for verifying the identity and employment for all workers hired in the United States. This form should be completed and maintained on file prior to running payroll for any employee, both citizens and non-citizens. Failure to maintain a properly completed Form I-9 can lead to fines.
Q.- An employee’s mother-in-law lives with him and is his tax dependent. Can the mother-in-law’s expenses be reimbursed through the employee’s FSA?
A.- You will first have to determine if your plan allows expenses of dependents other than children to be reimbursed. If it does,
- For the Health FSA- If the mother-in-law is a tax dependent for health care purposes, her eligible expenses may be reimbursed from the employee's Health FSA. He should consult his tax advisor to determine if the mother-in-law is a tax dependent for health care purposes.
- For the Dependent Day Care FSA- If the mother-in-law is physically or mentally incapable of caring for herself and lives with the employee for more than half of the year, and if the employee provides more than half of her support, her day care expenses may be reimbursed under the DFSA.
Under IRS rules, all flexible spending account plans must be captured in a written plan document. BAS can work with your organization to prepare the appropriate documentation.
Cottage Health System based in California notified over 32,000 patients that their personal information may have been accessible on Google.
Patients who were the subject of the second largest HIPAA breach to date have filed a class action lawsuit. The suit alleges that Advocate Health Care did not take the proper precautions necessary to protect patients’ health information.
On July 15, 2013, four unencrypted laptops were stolen from an Advocate Health Care facility in Illinois. The laptops contained protected health information and Social Security numbers of more than 4 million patients.
Under health care reform, certain small employers can receive a tax credit of up to 35% of the health insurance premiums they pay for employees. To qualify for the tax credit, employers must have less than 25 full-time-equivalent employees, pay salary of less than $50,000 on average per employee, and pay at least 50% of the premium for the qualifying health insurance. The credit amount varies based on number of employees.
The end of the calendar year is a busy time for many Human Resources departments. Holiday parties, vacation planning, open enrollment processes and plan renewals are major focuses in the last calendar quarter.
Q.- An employee is covering his child under our health plan based on a qualified medical child support order issued by the court. The child turned age 21 and no longer has to be covered according to the court order. The employee could keep the child on our plan until age 26, but he wants to voluntarily remove the child from coverage. If the employee voluntarily removes his child, do we have to send the child a COBRA notice?
Health care reform created a new reporting requirement intended to provide employees more information about the cost of their health coverage. Employers who filed 250 or more Forms W-2 for the 2012 tax year (250 Forms filed in January 2013) must report the total value of certain employer-sponsored health benefits on employees’ 2013 Form W-2 in Box 12 with Code DD. Employers should be thinking now about their obligation to report the cost of health coverage when the 2013 Forms W-2 are issued in January 2014.
Which Employers Must Report
Employers may wish to consider limiting the ability of employees to take photos in the workplace.
Q.- May I be reimbursed from my FSA for the premiums I pay for Medicare Part B coverage?
Employers with fewer than 50 full-time-equivalent employees are not required to offer health coverage to their workers under health care reform. However, the Affordable Care Act allows these employers to purchase coverage through the Small Business Health Options Program of the Exchange.
The IRS recently changed to the flexible spending account plan use-it-or-lose it rule to allow amounts to be carried over into the next plan year. Employers that have questions about how the new carryover operates may refer to these frequently asked questions for assistance.
Q.- We terminated an employee October 15 and gave him a COBRA election. His active coverage went through the end of October. He has contacted us and said he does not need coverage for November, but would like coverage for December. Do we have to allow this?
