Tuesday, May 27, 2014

The Mystery of BOcare Continues

I.R.S. Bars Employers From Dumping Workers Into Health Exchanges - NYTimes.com:

I can't understand what this article really says and I'm not sure that anyone can ... thus the continuing saga of manufactured uncertainty that craters business operations and individual planning in the current BO States of Amerika.

Many employers had thought they could shift health costs to the government by sending their employees to a health insurance exchange with a tax-free contribution of cash to help pay premiums, but the Obama administration has squelched the idea in a new ruling. Such arrangements do not satisfy Recent and archival news about healthcare reform.">health care law the administration said, and employers may be subject to a tax penalty of $100 a day — or $36,500 a year — for each employee who goes into the individual marketplace.
It seemed a certainty the way that the law was written that business would have little choice BUT to "dump employees onto the exchanges" since it would exchange a known fixed cost for a completely UNkown but growing future liability.  This was assumed to be the main reason that "the employer mandate" was delayed until late this year in hopes that the fallout of the 75% of Americans that have been covered under their employers finding that they no longer had coverage would be unhappy and vote accordingly ... the "other shoe" of the "if you like your healthcare you can keep it" lie of the year last year.
Andrew R. Biebl, a tax partner at CliftonLarsonAllen, a large accounting firm based in Minneapolis, said the ruling could disrupt arrangements used in many industries.
“For decades,” Mr. Biebl said, “employers have been assisting employees by reimbursing them for health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket costs. The new federal ruling eliminates many of those arrangements by imposing an unusually punitive penalty.”
When an employer reimburses employees for premiums, the arrangement is known as an employer payment plan. “These employer payment plans are considered to be group health plans,” the I.R.S. said, but they do not satisfy requirements of the Affordable Care Act.
Ok, so what has been working for 75% of the people for decades is now "not allowed", but what is?? At least I think we can all understand the following:
In a new regulation, the Department of Health and Human Services said it would provide financial assistance to certain insurers that experience unexpected financial losses this year. Administration officials hope the payments will stabilize premiums and prevent rate increases
 that could embarrass Democrats in this year’s midterm elections.
Certainly "The Party" (TP -- Democrat) doesn't want anything "that could embarrass Democrats in this year’s midterm elections." !! THAT we DO understand!! So there should be some major league payola to "do whatever it takes" to keep TP in as much power as possible! No matter what the costs to business and the 75% of folks that were doing just fine with healthcare prior to the BOcare fiasco!

So as near as I can tell, business and the rest of us are supposed to be left enough in the dark so that we don't discover the BIG LIE of BOcare screwing up healthcare for 75% of the people that used to be covered under their employers plans!
'via Blog this'

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