InHealth Individual Premium Payments for 2015

Due to a high volume of interest and unforeseen delays in processing applications at the Federal Marketplace, InHealth is extending the payment deadline for January 1, 2015 coverage!

CURRENT Members (had coverage in 2014 with InHealth) will now have will have until January 30^th to pay without penalty for coverage effective January 1. Their new Member Kit and ID cards will be sent as soon as their payment is received. If they were already set up with automatic bill pay (ACH), their new premium payment will be deducted as in the past unless they informed us of a change.

If you not received an invoice yet? The invoice is on its way and should be received by January 5^th.

If you or the member has any questions or concerns, please call our Customer Care team at (800) 580-8502.

New members to InHealth and applied on the Federal Marketplace by December 15^th for January 1 coverage? They will have until January 15^th to pay for their coverage effective January 1st. Member Welcome Kits and ID cards will be sent once payment has been received.

To make a payment, new members should submit their payments as instructed on the invoice or call our Customer Care team at (800) 580-8502.

2015 Individual & Family Renewals

Due to changes in the health care law, we now have an Annual Open Enrollment Period.  As a result, insurance companies were required to change their renewal process.  If you applied for new individual/family coverage anytime in 2014 your renewal date will be January 1, 2015.    

During the upcoming open enrollment period, you will only have from November 15th - December 15th to make changes to your plan.   If you make changes after December 15th, your effective date will be later.  Please see the chart below for details on when you can make changes.

Completed Application	Effective
November  15 – December 15	January 1
December 16-January 15	February 1
January 16-February 15	March 1
After February 15 you must have a qualifying event to apply for coverage

This renewal date applies to:

• Anyone who has coverage through the Marketplace.
• Anyone who applied for new individual/family coverage in 2014.
• Anyone who enrolled during  the past open enrollment period
• Any new policy effective between June and December as a result of a qualifying event.  Please click on the following link for examples of a qualifying event

If you have any questions please contact us at (740) 967-0210.

Written By: Bud Fassnacht, Your Insurance Specialist

Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) What the Heck is It?

The Federal Government determines your eligibility for a premium subsidy and penalties for not having insurance on your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI). We get questions on this all the time.  To help simplify things (as much as taxes can be simplified) here is a quick explanation. (Please note, we are NOT tax professionals, this is NOT tax advice.)

What is MAGI?

Modified Adjusted Gross Income is your adjusted gross income (AGI) plus a few specific deductions.  In order to find your modified adjusted gross income, you first need to find your adjusted gross income.

Find Your AGI

Your adjusted gross income is your total or gross income minus certain deductions. You can find it on:

• Form 1040, line 38
• Form 1040A, line 22
• Form 1040EZ, line 4
• Form 1040NR, line 37

The Modified

Here is where the “modified” part comes into play. To find your MAGI you’ll have to add deductions some deductions back into your AGI:

• Non-taxable Social Security benefits
• Tax-exempt interest 
• Income from the foreign earned income exclusion
• Qualified Savings Bond interest income exclusion
• A few other things that are even rarer. . .

Once you add these deductions back to your AGI, you’ll have your MAGI.  Congratulations! 

The ever famous disclaimer:   This just an example.  We are not tax advisors, this is NOT tax advise!  Please contact your tax professional with any questions.  You can also find more detailed information here: UC Berkley Labor Center

Author, Tiffany Geiger, President

Where Can I Set Up an HSA Account?

You have a lot of options when setting up your HSA bank account.

• Your local bank
• Online banks
• Credit Unions

We recommend finding a place that does NOT charge setup or monthly of fees.

The 2 main places we recommend are:

Tower Bank or The HSA Authority .  They have no fees, easy set up and will work with employers to help make deductions easier. They know A LOT about HSAs.  If you have a question, they can answer it!

http://www.thehsaauthority.com/

The other local (Ohio) place we use is Powerco Credit Union.  They are great with local groups or individuals who really want a brick and mortar place.  They will even go out to an employer group and enroll employees.  This is great for groups with more than 15 employees on an HSA.    There are no monthly fees . The catch, the individual enrolling needs to either live, work, worship or attend school in Delaware, Franklin, Madison, or Union County.

http://www.pathwayscu.com/powerco/saving/health-savings-accounts/

We do not get any compensation from these places.  They have just done a good job in the past for our clients.

Author:Tiffany Geiger. President

Fees, Fees and More Fees! The What and Why

There are several fees that are added into your health insurance premium every month. These fees were designed to help pay for the costs of Healthcare Reform.  Here is a breakdown of some of these fees and why they exist.

Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Fee:

• $1 per member per year (includes spouse & children)
• Started in 2012 
• Fee goes to a Trust Fund that will fund research that evaluates and compares health outcomes and clinical effectiveness, risks, and benefits of two or more medical treatments and/or services
• Applies to fully insured groups, self funded groups and individuals

Transitional Reinsurance Fee (AKA Comparative Effectiveness Research Fee)

• Approximately $5.25 per member per month (includes spouse & children)
• Given to individual health insurance companies that have a disproportionate amount of insureds with high medical costs.
• Cost reduces every year from 2014-2016
  
• Applies to fully insured groups, self funded groups and individuals

Health Insurance Marketplace User Fee

• 3.5% of premium
• Pays for access to the marketplace funded by the federal government. State run Marketplaces can set their own fee. 
• Fee applies to all plans available on and off of the marketplace.
• Applies to fully insured small groups and individuals

Risk Adjustment Fee

• $0.08 per member per month
• Help spread the financial risk of health insurance issuers in the individual and small-group markets more evenly 
• Will go into effect in 2014 and is permanent.
• Fee applies to all plans available on and off of the marketplace.
• Applies to fully insured small groups and individuals.

Other Fees & Taxes Related to Healthcare Reform include:

• Extra 0.9% Medicare payroll tax on wages over $200,000
• Additional unearned income tax 3.8%
• Flexible spending accounts have a $2,500 maximum contribution
• Some states have an added premium tax  (Ohio's is 1.4%)
• Tax on indoor tanning

Need an extension? Check that box now!

Do you need overage through the federal marketplace? Good news ! The Government is giving consumers more time to complete your application! But there is a catch!

HHS and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, aren't officially changing the March 31 deadline for an individual to enroll in a health plan, but they will make a special enrollment period available to consumers who start the application process by March 31 and fail to complete the process by that date.

The catch - You have until mid-April to ask for the application time extension by checking a box on HealthCare.gov.

Buying Health Insurance After Open Enrollment

After the original Marketplace open enrollment, October 1, 2013–March 31, 2014, individuals and families can enroll in Marketplace insurance only if you have certain life events that give you a “special enrollment period.” These are usually referred to as "qualifying life events."

Qualifying life events that create a special enrollment period include:

• Getting married
• Having, adopting, or placement of a child
• Permanently moving to a new area that offers different health plan options. This can be in the same state, just a different area.
• Losing other health coverage due to: 

• job loss 
• divorce 
• loss of eligibility for Medicaid or CHIP 
• expiration of COBRA coverage 
• health plan being decertified 
• For people already enrolled in Marketplace coverage, having a change in income or household status that affects eligibility for tax credits or cost-sharing reductions.

The following are NOT considered qualifying life events:

• Losing coverage that is not "minimum essential coverage"
• Voluntarily quitting other health coverage
• Coverage being terminated for not paying your premiums 

Special enrollment periods

If you have a qualifying life event, you get a special enrollment period. This means you can enroll in or change your health insurance plan outside the open enrollment period.

Most special enrollment periods last for 60 days from the date of the qualifying life event. Though some events only last 30 days.

You can apply for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) any time. If you're qualified you can enroll right away.


So, you missed open enrollment and you need coverage. The next proposed open enrollment period is November 15, 2014 - February 15, 2015. – Yes, you have to wait unless you have a qualifying life event.

Information from www.healthcare.gov as of 3/11/14