Hello California Health Insurance shoppers and small business leaders: Have you been hearing much about something called The Affordable Care Act’s Early Retiree Reinsurance Program? Yes, well, we’re intent on spreading the word about this important new program here at the Vitality Blog:
The Early Retiree Reinsurance Program is all about helping provide financial relief to employers – large and small – so these same employers can maintain health coverage for early retirees age 55 and older who are not yet eligible for Medicare.
It’s probably no small understatement to say that individual California health insurance plan shoppers in their mid to late 50’s might have problems seeking coverage in the individual market. Factors including past and/or current health issues, and the possibility that the individual and/or a spouse are already taking prescription medications, make the individual market fraught with higher premiums if these plans are available at all.
The Affordable Care Act – with the aforementioned Early Retiree Reinsurance Program, and the establishment of a federally funded high risk pool here in California, are helping older Californians in need of reliable and affordable California health insurance coverage find viable health coverage strategies that can bridge the gap until Medicare and Medigap plan coverage can begin.
If you’re a California small business interested in finding out more about the Early Retiree Reinsurance Program and what it can mean for the lives of your valued employees, their physical and financial wellbeing, reach out to us and we’ll provide the experience and expertise that has made the us the go-to resource for business leaders seeking affordable California health insurance for small business.
Are you a California small business owner with questions about how The Affordable Care Act legislation passed earlier this past spring affected the California small group health insurance scene? Want to know more about the small business health care tax credit that is a big part of the changes California small business owners are seeing as a result of Health Reform? Well let’s talk about it here at the Vitality Blog – and remember: If you have questions about Health Reform and its effect on your strategic planning, the California health insurance professionals here at Vitality have answers!
Are you a small business or tax-exempt organization that pays at least half the cost of the health insurance coverage for your employees? Well, let’s take a look at how you may qualify for the small business health care tax credit:
What are the eligibility rules for the small business health care tax credit?
The credit is intended to help employers with low and moderate income workers who want to offer their employees health care coverage. In general, if you have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees and pay wages averaging less than $50,000 per employee per year you may qualify for the credit. Because the eligibility formula is based in part on the number of FTEs, and not the number of employees, employers that have more than 25 individual workers may also qualify if some of their employees are part-time.
How much is the credit and when did it kick in?
Effective January 1, 2010, tax credits are available to qualifying small businesses that offer health insurance to their employees. The tax credit is worth up to 35 percent of the premiums your business pays to cover its workers – 25 percent for nonprofit firms.  In 2014, the value of the credit will increase to 50 percent – 35 percent for nonprofits.
Want more information on the tax credit? Here are Frequently Asked Questions about the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit as provided by the IRS.
