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California Allows Deduction of Health Insurance for Dependents up to age 27

On April 7, 2011 California enacted Assembly Bill 36 which allows employees and the self employed to deduct the cost of health insurance premium for dependents under the age of 27. This conforms California state tax law with the Federal guidelines passed into law with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) that extend eligibility for group health insurance to adult children, regardless of student status, through age 26. Thank goodness that California legislators fixed the discrepancy between Federal and State law regarding the deductibility of dependent health insurance premium. Allowing the deduction means that California forgoes the tax revenue on adult children's health insurance premium. At the same time allowing the deduction removes a major head ache for employers who have been trying to comply with conflicting State and Federal guidelines. Read the post here.

By |May 2nd, 2011 |Categories: Individual Medical Insurance Articles|

California Health Insurance Exchange – Update

I recently had the opportunity to hear Susan Kennedy speak at the Milken Institute Forum entitled: Federal Health Reform: Can It Achieve Its Goals? Susan Kennedy was Gov. Schwarzenegger’s chief of staff and she is his appointee to the board that will oversee the California Health Benefit Exchange. I was very impressed with Ms. Kennedy. Anyone interested in the future of health insurance of California should watch the video of her presentation, linked to here. Read on for my report of Susan Kenedy's presentation on the true cost of health care.

By |April 18th, 2011 |Categories: Small Business Articles|

Guaranteed Health Insurance for Children in California

One provision of the new Federal health insurance reform law (PPACA) that became effective on September 23, 2010 was the requirement that all health insurance companies approve children under age 19 without regard for health status. While the new law requires insurance companies to sell coverage there is no requirement for parents to buy health insurance for their children. Fearing "adverse selection" where people would wait until they got to the hospital to sign up for coverage then cancel it after they received treatment (like buying fire insurance when your house is on fire) virtually all of the insurance companies refused to sell children only health insurance. In response, Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 2244 into law September 20, 2010. This new law requires all California health insurance companies to offer children only individual policies on a "guarantee issue' (GI) basis beginning January 1, 2011. Failure to comply will cause the California health insurance company to be banned from selling individual health insurance plans for 5 years. This penalty is so sever that it forces insurance companies to either accept all children under these conditions, or go out of business. Read more about AB 2244 requirements and the law surrounding guaranteed health insurance for children in California.

By |October 18th, 2010 |Categories: Changes in Medical Care, Children's Health|

Assertions of Wellpoint Rescissions “Simply Wrong”

On Thursday, April 22, 2010, Reuters reported that "WellPoint ... has specifically targeted women with breast cancer for aggressive investigation with the intent to cancel their policies..." Wellpoint responded today by saying that "this is simply wrong." Interestingly, as I write this, the Reuters article with the allegations has been [...]

By |April 24th, 2010 |Categories: Small Business Articles|

Small Business Health Insurance Tax Credit – IRS Guidelines

The IRS has just issued preliminary guidelines on the health insurance tax credit for small businesses - and it looks good. This will make the cost of health insurance more affordable for many small employers. Of major importance is that the owner's wages/salary are not included in the average wage calculation when determining one's eligibility to qualify for the credit. (See answer to questions 13 & 14 in the IRS FAQ.) Businesses with fewer than 10 employees whose average wages are $25,000/yr. or less will qualify for the full credit. The medical insurance tax credit gradually reduces but is available to employers with fewer than 25 employees and average wages that are less than $50,000/yr. If these new guidelines apply to your small business, read on for a basic explanation of how to calculate the tax credit.

By |April 2nd, 2010 |Categories: Small Business Articles|

Aetna to Send COBRA Subsidy Notices

Aetna announced that on August 7, 2009 they will send a notice to former employees of their small business clients, terminated from employment between September 1, 2008 and May 10, 2009, advising them that they may be eligible for the Federal Subsidy for COBRA continuation of their health insurance. Aetna [...]

By |July 30th, 2009 |Categories: Changes in Medical Care, COBRA|Tags: |

Health Net Elect Open Access HMO is a Good Buy in Los Angeles

In the California small group health insurance market Health Net's HMO plans are always well priced. Effective August 1, 2009 for groups located in Los Angeles their Elect Open Access HMO plan will be 5 percent less expensive than the Health Net Standard Option HMO. The Standard and the [...]

By |July 19th, 2009 |Categories: Small Group Health Insurance|Tags: , , |
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