The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently released Revenue Procedure 2018-34 which includes details about the affordability percentage related to the Employer Mandate for the upcoming year. In 2019, coverage will be considered affordable if an employee has to pay no more than 9.86% of their household income for self-only coverage. As most employers don’t know the household income of their employees, three alternative safe harbor methods may be used:

1. W-2 Safe Harbor Method: Coverage will be considered affordable if the employee has to pay no more than 9.86% of their current year wages according to Box 1 of their W-2.
2. Monthly Rate of Pay Method: Coverage will be considered affordable if the employee has to pay no more than 9.86% of their monthly rate of pay.
3. Federal Poverty Level Method: Coverage will be considered affordable if the employee has to pay no more than 9.86% of the most recently published mainland Federal Poverty Level (FPL) for a household of one.

A summary of the Employer Mandate affordability percentages since its inception has been provided below. If you recall, the Employer Mandate was originally set to take effect in 2014, but it was delayed until 2015. The original 9.5% affordability percentage has been adjusted each year for inflation.

Click here to learn how to calculate affordability under the Employer Mandate.

The original version of this article was published on January 15, 2016. It was updated on November 7, 2017, due to inflationary changes for 2018.  

The Employer Mandate guidelines state that coverage is affordable when an employee has to pay no more than 9.5% of their household income (inflation-adjusted to 9.56% for the 2018 plan year) for self-only coverage which is offered, but which employers know the household income of an employee? As a result, there are three alternative methods that an employer can rely upon when determining if the coverage they offer is affordable. These methods are explained below and some general examples on how to apply each method have also been provided. Assume in each example that the employer has a calendar plan year for 2018.

W-2 Safe Harbor Method

Coverage is deemed affordable if the employee is charged no more than 9.56% of current year wages according to Box 1 of their W-2. Please note that this method is relatively simple to apply, but it uses current year wages which won’t be known until the year is over. That means an employer may not know if coverage is affordable until the year is over.

Example 1: Joe is employed at XYZ Inc. for the entire year and is offered coverage for all 12 months. His wages according to Box 1 of his W-2 are $28,000. XYZ Inc. will be considered to offer affordable coverage provided Joe is not charged more than $223.07 per month for coverage. The formula is ($28,000 x .0956)/12 = $223.07.

Example 2: Joe is hired by XYZ Inc. on May 15, 2018, and is offered coverage on August 1, 2018. His W-2 wages according to Box 1 of his W-2 are $20,000. In this scenario, an adjustment can be made to the W-2 wages used in the affordability calculation since Joe was not employed for the entire year and he was subject to a waiting period before coverage was offered.

Formula = W-2 wages * (calendar months offered coverage / months of employment) = $20,000 * (5/8) = $12,500

The W-2 wages used in the affordability calculation are adjusted to $12,500 for the 5 months Joe is offered coverage. XYZ Inc. will be considered to offer affordable coverage provided Joe is not charged more than $239.00 per month for coverage. The formula is ($12,500 x .0956)/5 = $239.00.

Rate of Pay Safe Harbor Method

Coverage is deemed affordable if the employee is charged no more than 9.56% of their monthly rate of pay at the start of the coverage period. Always use 130 hours when determining the monthly rate of pay for hourly employees. For non-hourly employees, affordability is tied to the monthly salary at the start of the coverage period. The rate of pay method should not be used for employees who receive wages by virtue of tips or employees who are paid solely by commissions. 

Example 1: Kathy works for XYZ Inc. and makes $15 per hour as of the start of the plan year.  XYZ Inc. will be considered to offer affordable coverage provided Kathy is not charged more than $186.42 per month for coverage. The formula is ($15 x 130) x .0956 = $186.42.  

Federal Poverty Level (FPL) Safe Harbor Method

Coverage is deemed affordable if the employee is charged no more than 9.56% of the most recently published mainland FPL for a household of one. 

Example 1: The most recently published mainland FPL for a household of one is $12,060. XYZ Inc. will be considered to offer affordable coverage to employees who are not charged more than $96.08 per month for coverage. The formula is ($12,060 x .0956)/12 = $96.08.The materials contained within this communication are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute legal or tax advice. 

More employees than ever before are working beyond age 65, and this also happens to be the age when most people in the U.S. qualify for Medicare. Requirements of when an employee is eligible for both a group health plan and Medicare vary. Employers and plan administrators need to understand their options.  Let’s stating with understanding the basics of Medicare.

The ABCD’s of Medicare

Medicare is comprised of four parts, each of which is identified by a letter in the alphabet.

1. Part A covers hospitalizations and inpatient care. Most people can enroll in Part A without having to pay any premium.
2. Part B covers office visits and outpatient care. Most people must pay a premium to enroll in Part B. In 2017, the premium starts at $134/month and increases for higher income earners.

Parts A and B are referred to as Original Medicare, and the benefits are administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), a federal government agency.

1. Part C is more commonly called the Medicare Advantage program. Under the Medicare Advantage program, private insurance companies administer Part A and B benefits, and often provide more benefits than Original Medicare. There may be an additional premium charged by the private insurance company, although some plans have no additional premium.
2. Part D covers prescription drugs. Part D plans are also administered by private insurance companies. In addition, several Medicare Advantage plans include Part D coverage.

Although technically not a “part” of Medicare, there is one other plan to point out. Medicare Supplement plans, also known as Medigap plans, are available to people enrolled in Original Medicare. These plans cover some of the deductibles and out-of-pocket costs associated with Parts A and B. Parts A and B cover 80% of your deductible and out-of-pocket costs—Medicare Supplement covers the additional 20%.

Qualifying for Medicare

Most people qualify for Medicare on the first day of the month that they turn age 65. For example, if your birthday was on May 15, your eligibility for Medicare will start on May 1.

Some people qualify for Medicare under age 65 because of a disability. These people are eligible for Medicare on the first day of the 25th month of receiving Social Security Disability Income benefits. For example, those under age 65 with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or amyotropic lateral sclerosis (ALS) can qualify for Medicare earlier. 

Coordination of Benefits

As an Employer and plan administrator you should be prepared to answer questions from employees as they enroll or consider enrolling in Medicare while still working or having coverage through a spouse who is still working. The federal government has a set of rules in place, referred to as Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) rules that determines which health plan is primary and secondary when an employee is enrolled in both a group health plan and Medicare. This is primarily based on the size of the employer company/business, when determining the size, make sure you include all full-time and part-time employees in the count.

• Employers with fewer than20 full-time and/or part-time employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding year.
  • Medicare will be the primary payer of coverage. The group health plan will be the secondary payer of coverage.
• Employers with 20 or morefull-time and/or part-time employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding year.
  • The group health plan will be the primary coverage for those people who qualify for Medicare based on turning age 65. Medicare will be the secondary payer of coverage.
• Employers with 100 or more full-time and/or part-time employees on 50 percent or more of its business days during the previous calendar year.
  • The group health plan will be the primary coverage for those people who qualify for Medicare due to a disability. Medicare will be the secondary payer of coverage. Note: Special rules apply to individuals who qualify for Medicare based on a diagnosis of ESRD.
• Employers offering coverage to former employees, such as retirees.
  • Medicare will be the primary payer of coverage regardless of the employer’s size. The group health plan will be the secondary payer of coverage.

Options for Employers and Plan Administrators

You may be interested in providing an alternative benefit to employees who are eligible for Medicare. This alternative benefit generally involves a financial incentive to disenroll in the group health plan and pursue coverage exclusively through Medicare. This could create savings to the employer, coverage under Medicare may be better than the group health plan, or it could be a combination of both. The coverage under Medicare may be better than the group health plan and it may save you money to have less employees on the group plan, this combination is a win-win.

The MSP rules also dictate when a financial incentive encouraging disenrollment from the group health plan may be offered. These rules are in place to protect the solvency of the Medicare Program.

• When Medicare would be the primary coverage regardless of enrollment in the group health plan (usually, this will be employers with fewer than 20 employees), the employer may establish a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) which provides tax-free reimbursements to employees under the following circumstances:
  • The employee is offered a group major medical plan with minimum value; and
  • The employee is actually enrolled in Medicare Parts A & B; and
  • Premium reimbursements are only available to those employees enrolled in Parts A, B and/or D; and
  • Reimbursements are limited to Part B and D premiums, Medicare Supplement premiums, and excepted benefits (e.g. dental/vision). 

When Medicare would be the secondary payer of coverage if the employee were enrolled in both the group health plan and Medicare, the employer cannot offer any incentive (financial, or otherwise) that would encourage disenrollment from the group health plan. Penalties of up to $5,000 for each violation may apply.  In addition, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) may impose a penalty of up to 25% of the employer’s group health plan expenses for the relevant year.  It would not be advisable to pay or reimburse employees for Medicare premiums (with pre-tax or after-tax dollars) in situations where Medicare would be the secondary payer of coverage if the employee enrolled in the group health plan.     

• Employers offering retiree coverage may establish an HRA that reimburses Medicare premiums and/or medical expenses without having to offer a traditional group health plan. These HRAs allow employers to fix their contributions and expenses while at the same time providing a generous benefit to retirees.

Medicare and COBRA

Medicare entitlement of the employee is listed as a COBRA qualifying event, however, it is rarely a qualifying event. In situations where it is a qualifying event, it is only a qualifying event for the spouse or children that are covered under the group health plan.

For Medicare entitlement of the employee to be a qualifying event, the terms of the group health plan must specify that the employee is no longer eligible for coverage under the group health plan once entitled to Medicare. This is prohibited in most instances by the MSP rules, and thus, Medicare entitlement of the employee is rarely a COBRA qualifying event.

Here’s an example:

John works for XYZ Company which has 200 employees and is subject to COBRA and the MSP rules. John is enrolled in the group health plan offered by XYZ Company, and he also has elected to cover his spouse Jill under the plan. John just turned age 65 and has become eligible for Medicare, but Jill is only 62 years old and is not yet eligible for Medicare. John has decided to enroll in Medicare, and consequently, Jill will be losing coverage under the group health plan.

Does XYZ Company have to offer COBRA to Jill? No.

John voluntarily dropped coverage under the group health plan, XYZ Company did not. XYZ Company is prohibited from changing John’s eligibility for coverage under the group health plan because he enrolled in Medicare. John could have continued coverage under the group health plan even while enrolled in Medicare. As a result, John’s Medicare entitlement does not trigger a COBRA qualifying event for Jill.

Employers and plan administrators should educate themselves on the Medicare and group health plan relationship. It’s important for compliance reasons, but it’s also important to help employees understand what does (or doesn’t) change upon becoming eligible for Medicare.

Download your free copy of our Medicare guide that walks you through the basics of Medicare. You will learn about your coverage options including Part A,B,C, D, Medicare Supplement and Medicare Advantage.