There’s been a lot of discussion this year about “repeal and replace” of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and President Trump has signed some Executive Orders recently regarding the ACA. But the ACA is still the law in the United States and the “individual mandate” or “individual shared responsibility provisions” are still in place requiring taxpayers to either have qualifying health coverage called “minimum essential coverage” or qualify for a health coverage exemption. If you haven’t had coverage in place for all 12 months of 2017 and don’t meet the requirements of exemption, you will have to pay a “fine” with your 2017 taxes. For tax year 2017, the penalty is 2.5% of your total household adjusted gross income, or $695 per adult and $347.50 per child, up to a maximum of $2,085. If the law is not repealed or replaced, you will also need coverage for 2018.
For 2018, if you don’t have coverage through your employer or a private plan, you may want to buy coverage through the government run Health Insurance Marketplace (www.healthcare.gov). Open Enrollment for 2018 runs from November 1, 2017 to December 15, 2017. Clients may want to “wait and see” if there are any developments regarding the ACA before they make a decision on 2018 coverage. If you choose to “wait and see” and are planning on using the Health Insurance Marketplace, you should diary December 15th as that is the last day of the open enrollment period.
If your business has questions regarding its obligations under the ACA or employee benefits in general, please contact the attorneys at Allison & Mosby-Scott at 309-662-5084. Allison & Mosby-Scott wants to help your business meet its strategic goals.
