Exchanges

As pressure mounts on state-run public health insurance exchanges to be financially self-sufficient in time for 2016, consumer operated and oriented plans created under the Affordable Care Act face the same challenge. And with two recent troubling developments in the CO-OP space, there are renewed questions about the long-term viability of these nonprofit entities.

The IRS continues to seek industry input on the Affordable Care Act’s excise tax on high-cost employer-sponsored health plans.

Paid sick leave seems to be gaining traction in some parts of the United States, but it continues to face a lot of resistance.

Just last week, the DOL provided guidance about people treated as independent contractors, but who may really be your employees. That is just part of the trend. Another way you may have “extra” employees is through joint employment, most commonly through use of a staffing agency.

Commentary: Employers face an uphill battle in classifying a worker as an independent contractor due to DOL guidance that defines ‘employee’ so broadly that such a classification should only be reserved for a narrow subset of workers.

Waiting to see how private exchanges play out is no longer a business strategy; and to succeed, brokers must change their business practices, speaker at EBA/EBN Private Healthcare Exchanges conference says.

Narrow networks are more prevalent in public exchanges than the commercial market, and while this trend helps keep costs more manageable, it also significantly restricts any movement for consumers and could undermine network adequacy standards.

A new coalition representing the public and private sectors, as well as Republicans and Democrats, is seeking a full repeal of the ACA’s excise tax on high-cost group plans.

After more than 50 votes in Congress and two attempts before the U.S. Supreme Court to mothball the ACA and public exchange marketplace, some Republicans now see the budget reconciliation process as yet another avenue for achieving this long-time goal.