Tag Archive for: IRS

Individual HealthCare Waiver For Obamacare

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If I’m unemployed, do I have to pay the fee for not having coverage?      Yes.

Like other Americans, you must have minimum essential coverage or pay a fee. This is true regardless of your employment status.

There are several exemptions from the fee that may apply to people who have no income or very low incomes. If you have an exemption, you don’t need to pay the fee for being uncovered.

 

Hardship Application Link: https://marketplace.cms.gov/applications-and-forms/hardship-exemption.pdf

The individual shared responsibility provision requires you and each member of your family to have basic health insurance coverage (also known as minimum essential coverage), qualify for an exemption, or make an individual shared responsibility payment when you file your federal income tax return.

How you get the exemption depends upon the type of exemption for which you are eligible. You can obtain some exemptions only from the Marketplace in the area where you live, others only from the IRS, and yet others from either the Marketplace or the IRS.

that can sometimes lead to bankruptcy.

If you must make an individual shared responsibility payment with your return, the annual payment amount is the greater of a percentage of your household income or a flat dollar amount, but is capped at the national average premium for a bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace. You will owe 1/12th of the annual payment for each month you or your dependent(s) don’t have either coverage or an exemption.

For 2014, the annual payment amount is:

  • The greater of:
    • 1 percent of your household income that is above the tax return filing threshold for your filing status, or
    • Your family’s flat dollar amount, which is $95 per adult and $47.50 per child, limited to a family maximum of $285,
  • But capped at the cost of the national average premium for a bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace in 2014. For 2014, the annual national average premium for a bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace is $2,448 per individual ($204 per month per individual), but $12,240 for a family with five or more members ($1,020 per month for a family with five or more members).  See Rev. Proc. 2014-46.
  • http://www.irs.gov/Affordable-Care-Act/Individuals-and-Families/ACA-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Provision-Calculating-the-Payment

http://www.irs.gov/Affordable-Care-Act/Individuals-and-Families/ACA-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Provision-Exemptions

https://www.healthcare.gov/fees-exemptions/hardship-exemptions/

 

Qualifying for a Health Insurance Coverage Exemption

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The Affordable Care Act Known as ObamaCare requires individuals to have qualifying health insurance coverage for each month of the year, have an exemption, or make a shared responsibility payment when filing his or her federal income tax return starting in 2014.

You may be exempt from the requirement to maintain qualifying health insurance coverage, called minimum essential coverage, and may not have to make a shared responsibility payment when you file your next federal income tax return. If you are a married couple, the rules will be different than just covering a single person, checking out advice on health insurance for married couple will get you better prepared.

Exemptions are granted for the following:

  • You have no affordable coverage options because the minimum amount you must pay for the annual premiums is more than eight percent of your household income,
  • You have a gap in coverage for less than three consecutive months, or
  • You Qualify for an exemption for one of several other reasons, including having a hardship that prevents you from obtaining coverage or belonging to a group explicitly exempt from the requirement.

The IRS website, IRS.gov/aca, has a comprehensive list of the coverage exemptions at :

http://www.irs.gov/uac/ACA-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Provision-Exemptions

How to get an exemption depends upon the type of exemption. Some exemptions are only from the Marketplace in the area where you live, https://www.healthcare.gov/exemptions/ while others only from the IRS , and yet others from either the Marketplace or the IRS. Fun right?

Additional information about exemptions can be obtained at the Individual Shared Responsibility Provision web page on IRS.gov.

More Information

Find out more about the tax-related provisions of the health care law at IRS.gov/aca

Find out more about the health care law at HealthCare.gov and HealthCare.gov/exemptions.

Some direct links for Florida

http://www.irs.gov/uac/ACA-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Provision-Exemptions

http://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/Regulations-and-Guidance/Downloads/exemptions-guidance-6-26-2013.pdf

https://www.healthcare.gov/exemptions/

http://marketplace.cms.gov/getofficialresources/publications-and-articles/affordability-ffm-exemption.pdf

https://www.healthcare.gov/can-i-buy-a-catastrophic-plan/

Application for Exemption from the Shared Responsibility Payment for Individuals who are Unable to Afford Coverage and are in a State with a Federally Facilitated Marketplace (pdf)

Carol A. Lawson, Esq., 28870 U.S. Hwy19 #300, Hodusa Towers, Clearwater, FL 33761 Phone: (727) 410-2705; email: calh@gate.net

The Individual Shared Responsibility Payment

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As of January 2014, you and your family must either have health insurance coverage throughout the year, qualify for an exemption from coverage, or make a payment when you file your 2014 federal income tax return in 2015. Qualifying coverage does not include coverage that may provide limited benefits, such as coverage only for vision care or dental care, workers’ compensation, or coverage that only covers a specific disease or condition.

You may be exempt from the requirement to maintain qualified coverage if you:

  • Have no affordable coverage options because the minimum amount you must pay for the annual premiums is more than eight percent of your household income,

  • Have a gap in coverage for less than three consecutive months, or

  • Qualify for an exemption for one of several other reasons, including having a hardship that prevents you from obtaining coverage, or belonging to a group explicitly exempt from the requirement.

A special hardship exemption applies to individuals who purchase their insurance through the Marketplace during the initial enrollment period for 2014 but due to the enrollment process have a coverage gap at the beginning of 2014.

For any month in 2014 that you or any of your dependents don’t maintain coverage and don’t qualify for an exemption, you will need to make an individual shared responsibility payment with your 2014 tax return filed in 2015.

However, if you went without coverage for less than three consecutive months during the year you may qualify for the short coverage gap exemption and will not have to make a payment for those months. If you have more than one short coverage gap during a year, the short coverage gap exemption only applies to the first.

If you (or any of your dependents) do not maintain coverage and do not qualify for an exemption, you will need to make an individual shared responsibility payment with your return. In general, the payment amount is either a percentage of your income or a flat dollar amount, whichever is greater. You will owe 1/12th of the annual payment for each month you (or your dependents) do not have coverage and are not exempt. The annual payment amount for 2014 is the greater of:

  • 1 percent of your household income that is above the tax return threshold for your filing status, such as Married Filing Jointly or single, or

  • Your family’s flat dollar amount, which is $95 per adult and $47.50 per child, limited to a maximum of $285.

The individual shared responsibility payment is capped at the cost of the national average premium for the bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace in 2014. You will make the payment when you file your 2014 federal income tax return in 2015.

For example, a single adult under age 65 with household income less than $19,650 (but more than $10,150) would pay the $95 flat rate. However, a single adult under age 65 with household income greater than $19,650 would pay an annual payment based on the 1 percent rate.

Carol A. Lawson, Esq., 28870 U.S. Hwy19 #300, Hodusa Towers, Clearwater, FL 33761             Phone: (727) 410-2705;   email: calh@gate.net

www.irs.gov/aca.