Department of the Treasury
IRS releases Draft Schedule H, instructions for tax-exempt hospitals
Posted on January 6, 2012
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a draft Schedule H and accompanying instructions for tax-exempt hospitals. As required by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), non-profit hospitals must respond to questions on financial assistance policies, billing and collection practices, emergency medical care, and individuals eligible for financial assistance, beginning with the 2011 tax filing year. The draft instructions have been revised to more clearly follow the statutory provision of Section 501(r) of the Internal Revenue Code. Several of the changes relate to billing and collections.
For more information on tax-exempt hospital requirements, click here and here.
Continue Reading "IRS releases Draft Schedule H, instructions for tax-exempt hospitals" »
Departments release FAQs on ACA, Mental Health Parity
Posted on November 22, 2011
According to a set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) recently released by the Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Treasury (DOT), and Labor (DOL), the final rule under an Affordable Care Act (ACA) provision, which requires health care insurers and group health plans to make available to consumers a standardized summary of the benefits and coverage for each plan they offer, will be released “as soon as possible.” The FAQs pertain to implementation of ACA market reform provisions and mental health parity requirements. Until this final rule is released, plans are not required to comply with the proposed rule’s provisions. The ACA requires plans to provide consumers with a standardized form containing definitions of benefits and information on coverage. Along with the benefits and coverage summary, the departments also included several FAQs addressing the implementation of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, which mandates equal treatment for medical and surgical care and mental health and substance use disorder care in areas such as out-of-pocket costs and benefit limits and practices.
Continue Reading "Departments release FAQs on ACA, Mental Health Parity" »
IRS issues RFC on potential safe harbor for large employers
Posted on September 15, 2011
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released a Request for Comment (RFC) on a potential safe harbor for large employers under the shared responsibility provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Under the ACA, employers with more than 50 employees must provide affordable health coverage to workers, or else face a penalty. This potential safe harbor would allow employers to base what constitutes affordable coverage on an employee’s wages rather than the employee’s household income, which is something more difficult for employers to know or easily determine.
Continue Reading "IRS issues RFC on potential safe harbor for large employers" »
IRS Notice and Request for Comments Regarding the Community Health Needs Assessment Requirements for Tax-Exempt Hospitals
Posted on August 23, 2011
On July 7, 2011, the Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a Notice and Request for Comments on a proposed policy regarding the Affordable Care Act’s new requirements related to tax exempt hospitals’ community health needs assessment (CHNA) obligations. Section 9007 of the Act added new Section 501(r) to the Internal Revenue Code, which delineates a series of statutory requirements, outlined in a previous implementation brief, applicable to nonprofit hospitals that seek tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3). The purpose of the Treasury/IRS Notice is to both describe the agencies’ approach to implementing hospital organizations’ CHNA obligations and to invite comments regarding their proposals. The CHNA requirements are effective for taxable years beginning after March 23, 2012. However, the Notice specifies that hospitals currently engaged in conducting CHNA-related activities — including development and wide publication of a needs assessment and adoption of an implementation strategy — can rely on the policies contained in the Notice as they move forward.
Treasury, DOL, HHS issue new rules on providing insurance information to consumers
Posted on August 17, 2011
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the U.S. Department of Treasury (Treasury), The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have jointly-released two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRMs) covering the disclosure of the Summary of Benefits and Coverage and the Uniform Glossary to insurance consumers, aimed at providing clear, consistent, and comparable information about their health plan. The rules apply to group health plans and health insurance coverage in the group and individual markets under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and include not only what must be disclosed to consumers, but also examples of the templates on which the information will be disclosed.
TIGTA releases final report regarding TE/GE Division’s planning activities for the ACA
Posted on August 17, 2011
The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) recently performed an audit on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. TIGTA performed the audit to review the Tax Exempt and Government Entities (TE/GE) Division’s initial planning activities for ACA implementation. The TIGTA review did not identify any concerns relating to the methodology the TE/GE Division is using to monitor and coordinate planning efforts.
HHS and IRS release NPRMs on exchange eligibility, tax credits, medicaid expansion
Posted on August 12, 2011
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have released Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Exchange eligibility and insurance premium tax credits, respectively. Additionally, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released an NPRM related to the Medicaid eligibility expansion authorized by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
All three NPRMs are designed to simplify Exchange eligibility and enrollment by coordinating with state Medicaid agencies and the IRS to determine eligibility for premium tax credits and Medicaid under the new expanded eligibility rules laid out in the ACA. Also addressed in the proposed rules is the eligibility and calculation of tax credits for small businesses.
For more information on the Medicaid eligibility expansion, click here. For more information on tax credits, click here. For more information on Exchange eligibility, click here. Finally, for more information on tax credits for small businesses, click here.
HHS issues amended preventive services IFR
Posted on August 1, 2011
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued an amended version of the previous Interim Final Rule on the coverage of preventive services by group health plans and health insurance issuers under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The amended rule reflects recent recommendations by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) regarding particular preventive services for women that should be covered at no cost by insurance companies. Services include screening and counseling for certain sexually transmitted infections, screening for gestational diabetes, and among others, counseling and contraception to prevent unintended pregnancies. The Internal Revenue Service has also issued an amended rule that reflects the coverage of these preventive services.
*** On August 3, 2011, HHS issued an amendment to the amended IFR, further clarifying the expemption of religious organizations from the contraception coverage requirement.
For more information on prevention, click here.
Continue Reading "HHS issues amended preventive services IFR" »
IRS issues notice, RFC on community health needs assessment requirement
Posted on July 7, 2011
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued a notice and request for comment (RFC) on the community health needs assessment requirement, which was established by the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Part of a broader group of new rules and requirements for certain tax-exempt, 501(r) organizations, the community health needs assessment (CHNA) must be done every 3 years by the tax-exempt hospital. The CHNA must be made available to the public and include an “implementation strategy” that focuses on the particular health needs of the communities that these not-for-profit hospitals serve.
Continue Reading "IRS issues notice, RFC on community health needs assessment requirement" »
DOL/IRS issue amendments to IFR on claims appeals
Posted on June 22, 2011
The US Department of Labor (DOL) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have issued separate amendments to the July 23, 2010 Interim Final Rule (IFR) on internal claims and appeals and external review processes for group health plans and health insurance issuers offering coverage in the group and individual markets. The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) of the Department of Labor has also issued new guidance on the subject.
The IFR, recent amendments, and recent guidance do not apply to grandfathered plans.
Continue Reading "DOL/IRS issue amendments to IFR on claims appeals" »
Stay Connected
Most Popular Content
- Constitutional Challenges Update: Florida et al. v United States Department of Health and Human Services posted on January 4, 2012
- The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation: A Year’s Progress posted on January 26, 2012
- Chronic Disease Management posted on February 23, 2011
- Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program posted on November 1, 2011
- Update to Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan (CO-OP) Program: Final Rule posted on January 18, 2012
Categories
- Congressional Action
- Disparities
- Expert Commentary
- Fraud and Abuse
- Health Care Quality and Delivery System Reform
- Health Information
- Health Insurance
- Implementation Briefs
- Judiciary
- Key Developments
- Agency Profile
- Department of Education
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Administration for Children & Families
- Administration on Aging
- Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality
- and Public Health Council
- Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
- Health Promotion
- Health Resources & Services Administration
- National Institutes of Health
- National Prevention
- Office of Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight
- Office of Inspector General
- Office of Minority Health
- Office of Public Health and Science
- Office of the Secretary
- Department of Justice
- Department of Labor
- Department of the Treasury
- Grants
- Legislation
- Rulemaking, Rules, and Guidance
- Legal Challenges
- Long Term Care
- Medicaid and CHIP
- Medicare
- Public Health
- Tax Policy
- Workforce and Access
Archives by Date
Recent Posts
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–NFIB on Severability
- House approves CLASS repeal
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–Health Law Professors on the mandate
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–Solicitor General on Severability
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence/Pacific Legal Foundation on Medicaid Expansion
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–AHA on the mandate
- HHS releases document listing largest three small group products by state
- GAO report suggests HHS address contractor performance and plan for needed measures
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–Senator Reid and Congresswoman Pelosi on the mandate
- Challenges to the Affordable Care Act: Highlights from the Supreme Court Briefs–BCBS of Mass. on the mandate
