The Affordable Care Act established the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) an organization tasked with improving the quality of health care and providing information to help consumers make informed health care decisions. Health plans must pay an annual fee based on covered lives to help fund the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Trust Fund. The amount of the fee for policy years and plan years that end on or after October 1, 2018 and before October 1, 2019 is $2.45. The fee for policy years and plan years that end on or after October 1, 2019 and before October 1, 2020 is $2.54.
The fee must be reported and paid on the second quarter IRS Form 720 (Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return) which is due July 31.
If a health plan is fully insured, the insurer is responsible for paying the PCORI fee. If a health plan is self-funded, the plan sponsor (employer) must pay the fee. Stand-alone dental or vision plans, EAPs, wellness programs, plans for employees outside of the U.S., HSAs, and almost all HRAs and FSAs are not required to pay the PCORI fee. The fee is a tax-deductible business expense for employers with self-insured plans.
A self-funded health plan determines the applicable fee by multiplying the fee amount by the average number of total lives covered by the plan. The rules allow employers with self-funded plans to select among three methods for determining the number of covered lives.
Insurers may select among four methods for determining the number of covered lives.
Employers with self-funded health plans should be sure to calculate and pay the required PCORI fee with their 2nd quarter tax filing.