As the old saying goes – “the more things change…the more they remain the same”! A little more than a month ago, we shared the news that the IRS had reduced the previously announced, 2018 family Health Savings Account (HSA) contribution limit by $50 (from $6,900 to $6,850).See – https://smstevensandassociates.com/irs-updates-2018-hsa-family-contribution-amount/ This “middle of the game” changeLEARN MORE
Earlier this week (4/9/2018) the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued final regulations and guidance that profoundly alter the Affordable Care Act (ACA) both immediately, and in 2019 and beyond. The objective of the new guidance is “…to increase coverage access in the ACALEARN MORE
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law in late December, 2017, contained some great news for folks that incur significant medical expenses AND itemize deductions on their tax return. Historically, the threshold used to determine the amount of eligible/deductible expenses has been 7.5% of adjusted gross income (AGI), until an increase to 10%LEARN MORE
On March 5, 2018, the IRS issued a bulletin which contained, among other things, revised cost of living adjustments (COLAs) for 2018. The previously passed tax reform law (i.e., Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) created the need for the revised COLAs, which have a direct impact in the employee benefits world affecting Health Savings AccountsLEARN MORE
The recently signed (1/22/2018) “short-term spending bill”, also referred to as the “continuing resolution” (CR) does more than keep the United States government open and fully functioning until February 8, 2018. It also delivers yet another set of Affordable Care Act (ACA) delays. Employers offering group health insurance to their employees can breathe a collectiveLEARN MORE
An important and often overlooked benefit of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is full coverage and benefits for preventive care. Specifically, the ACA established that virtually all private health plans must provide 100% coverage (i.e., no cost share) for a host of preventive healthcare services. The only exception to this requirement are so called “grandfathered”LEARN MORE
In order to accomplish its objective of “affordable health insurance coverage”, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) created three (3) separate, cost reducing initiatives: 1. Premium Tax Credits – reduce out of pocket PREMIUM costs; 2. Cost Sharing Reductions (CSR) – reduce point of service out of pocket costs such as copays, deductibles, and coinsurance; andLEARN MORE
This particular blog post is primarily directed to residents of my adopted home state of Nebraska. However it may shed light on some of the “when’s, who’s and what’s” that health care/insurance stakeholders may be facing in other parts of the country next year. As we inch closer to the 2018 individual health insurance openLEARN MORE
Those of you who read my previously released – “7-Point Health Care/Insurance Reform Plan” – may recall point no. 2, which was to entice and encourage insurers to come back to the markets and resume offering affordable coverage to willing, able, and ready buyers. (See – https://smstevensandassociates.com/my-7-point-health-care-insurance-reform-plan/) Several folks that read the blog outlining myLEARN MORE
Ordinarily, this Blog site is used to provide information, ideas, strategies, explanations; in short – clarity – for health care/insurance stakeholders. Today I’m departing from the usual fact based format to provide my thoughts and opinions on what would be a good way forward with respect to REAL healthcare/health insurance reform. These ideas are basedLEARN MORE
