Recently adopted new service is secure and user-friendly

Benefits Done Right recently changed our secured email process to help ensure that the sensitive emails and files we share with our clients are secure and encrypted and reasonably accessible. We are hopeful you will find this process more user-friendly. While recipients will still be required to verity their identity, the new software, ShareFile and Protected Trust, are simple and seamless after a short on-time registration session. Anyone at BDR is happy to walk you through the process if you have any questions.

Summary plan documents have always been a requirement for ERISA qualified plans, but recently, we've heard that the IRS and Department of Labor (DOL) have been looking much closer at the contents of these documents, especially the availability of Summary Plan Descriptions (SPDs) for each option in your benefits package. This comprehensive plan document tells participants what the plan provides and how it operates. It states when an employee can begin to participate in the plan, how service and benefits are calculated, when benefits become vested, when and in what form benefits are paid, and how to file a claim for benefits. If a plan is changed, participants must be informed, either through a revised summary plan description, or in a separate document, called a summary of material modifications.     

 

During every annual renewal beginning June 1, Benefits Done Right will work with you using a third party to create this document and to ensure your current one is audit-ready. Based on the extensive plan changes, we believe this is the best approach. If you have already renewed this year, we will be reaching out to you shortly to initiate this project.  

When contracts change, coverage can change as well

New legislation in California, which is set to be voted on in December, would allow a small employer health care service plan contract or a small employer health insurance policy that was in effect on December 31, 2013, that is still in effect as of the effective date of this act, and that does not qualify as a grandfathered health plan under PPACA, to be renewed until January 1, 2015, and continue to be in force until December 31, 2015. For some businesses, however, the cost may outweigh the benefit and carriers may choose not to participate. We will continue to keep an eye on the Capitol and let you know what is decided.

Your small business could receive a credit

Although we have not had any clients thus far find this tax credit more beneficial than their tax deductions of the medical coverage, recent changes to the credit could be beneficial to some small employers. For those with fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees, pay an average wage of less than $50,000 a year, and pay at least half of employee health insurance premiums, the following could apply for tax years beginning in 2014 or later:

• The maximum credit will increase to 50% of premiums paid for small business employers and 35% of premiums paid for small tax-exempt employers.  
• To be eligible for the credit, a  small employer must buy group health insurance offered through the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplace, and pay premiums on behalf of employees enrolled.  
• The credit will be available to eligible employers for two consecutive taxable years.