Client & Advisor Update - March 29, 2010
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Healthcare; What You Could See… 2010
Business tax credits: Businesses with no more than 25 employees and average annual wages of $40,000 would get tax credits to help provide insurance to employees. The credit would be up to 35% in 2010 of the employer's contribution if the employer pays 50% of the total premium cost. Effective date — 2010 tax year, with the tax credit increasing to up to 50% in 2014
Temporary reinsurance program: A $5 billion program would be created for employers to provide coverage for retirees over the age of 55 who are not eligible for Medicare. Effective date — June 2010 (expires Jan. 1, 2014)
Tanning salon tax: A tax of 10% would be imposed on the cost of indoor tanning services. Effective date — immediately
2010
Temporary high-risk insurance pool: A $5 billion pool would be created to provide health to individuals with pre-existing medical conditions who have been uninsured for at least six months. Effective date — June 2010 (expires Jan. 1, 2014)
Pre-existing conditions: Insurers would be barred from denying coverage to children who have pre-existing medical conditions. Effective date — Six months after enactment
Adult dependent children: Insurance companies would have to provide coverage for dependent children up to the age of 26. Effective date — Six months after enactment
2010
Insurance coverage limits: Insurance plans would be prohibited from placing lifetime limits on how much they pay out to individual policyholders and from rescinding coverage except in cases of fraud. Effective date — Six months after enactment
Preventive services: Health insurance plans would be required to cover preventive services such as immunizations for children and cancer screenings for women. Effective date — Six months after enactment
Medicare drug rebates: Medicare patients who face a gap in prescription drug coverage would receive a one-year, $250 rebate to help pay for medication. Effective date — immediately
2011
Tax changes on health care savings accounts: The federal tax on individuals who spend money from health-care savings accounts on ineligible medical expenses would double to 20%. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2011
Community health centers: Funding would increase by $11 billion for community health centers that provide medical care to patients who can't afford it. Effective date — Oct. 1, 2011
Medicare "doughnut hole": Drug companies would provide a 50% discount on brand name prescription drugs for seniors who face a gap in drug coverage. More subsidies would be phased in through 2020, when the coverage gap would be closed. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2011
2011
Primary care: Primary care doctors and general surgeons practicing in areas that lack primary care doctors would receive a 10% bonus payment under Medicare. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2011 through 2015
Long-term care: A voluntary long-term care program called CLASS would be created. After at least five years of contributions, enrollees would be entitled to a $50-a-day cash benefit to pay for long-term care. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2011
2011
New annual fees on drug makers: A total annual fee of $2.5 billion would be imposed on pharmaceutical manufacturers. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2011
Insurance rebates: Health insurance companies would be required to provide rebates to enrollees if they spend less than 85% of their premium dollars on health care as opposed to administrative costs. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2011
2012 – 2013
Annual fees on drug makers: The annual fee on pharmaceutical manufacturers would increase to $3 billion each year through 2016. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2012
Contribution limits on health care savings accounts: The limit on how much individuals could contribute to flexible savings accounts that let people set aside money tax free for health costs would be set at $2,500. Currently, employers set the limit. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2013
2012 – 2013
Itemized deductions for unreimbursed medical expenses: The threshold for deducting such expenses would increase from 7.5% of adjusted gross income to 10%. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2013
Medicare taxes: The Medicare tax rate would increase by 0.9 percentage points -- from 1.45% to 2.35% -- on earnings over $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for families. Also, for the first time, a 3.8% Medicare tax would be imposed on investment income. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2013
2014
Individual mandate: Most Americans would be required to buy health insurance or pay fines of $95 per individual up to $285 per family or 1% of taxable household income, whichever is greater. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2014
Employer requirements: Companies with 50 or more employees would pay a fine if any of their full-time workers qualified for federal health care subsidies. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2014
2017 – 2018
Annual fees on drug makers: The annual fee on pharmaceutical manufacturers would increase to $3.5 billion in 2017 and $4.2 billion in 2018. Effective date — Jan. 1
Annual fee on insurance companies: The annual fee on health insurance companies would increase to $13.9 billion in 2017 and $14.3 billion in 2018. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2017
Excise tax on high-cost insurance plans: A 40% excise tax would be imposed on health care plans that cost more than $10,200 for individual coverage and $27,500 for family coverage. Effective date — Jan. 1, 2018