Kevin Knauss: Health, History, Travel, Insurance
Posts on the development and implementation of the California health insurance market place, application, account, enrollment, termination.
Publication 974, released by the IRS in March 2015, is a fairly comprehensive review of the ACA health insurance premium tax credit rules. Its release is long overdue as many Americans have struggled to understand how the Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTC) afforded by the ACA interact with their federal taxes. Publication 974 addresses many different […]
I’m not above begging. That is essentially what I did when I addressed the Covered California Board at their March 5, 2015 meeting. Since I have not been paid a commission from Covered California’s small group SHOP division in over eight months, I was politely requesting if someone could look into the situation. My […]
The federal Department of Health and Human Services has published the 2015 federal poverty line (FPL) which includes a modest increase over the 2014 FPL. The FPL is used by Marketplace exchanges like Covered California to determine when an individual or family is eligible for either Medicaid, Medi-Cal in California, or tax credits to purchase […]
Numerous individuals with income below the ACA threshold to receive tax credits must weigh the consequences of selling assets in order to be eligible for the tax credits to purchase a private plan through a Marketplace exchange like Covered California. The prospect of selling retirement assets early in order to qualify for affordable health […]
Information from a consumer’s 1095-A Marketplace Statement reveals that Covered California continued to credit Anthem Blue Cross with Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTC) even after the consumer had transitioned to Medi-Cal. While there doesn’t appear to be any fraud, Anthem did receive at least $647 for an individual who was no longer a member of their […]
It’s great news that both Healthcare.gov and Covered California are offering a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) for individuals that are becoming aware of the individual mandate penalty for not having health insurance. Unfortunately, there will still be individuals and families that enroll during this SEP that will get hit with the IRS Shared Responsibility Payment (SRP) for […]
The Affordable Care Act has helped provide health insurance to millions of America’s citizens and residents. The accompanying bureaucracy has also created mental health meltdowns for thousands of individuals and families. Through a series of website glitches, bureaucratic rules and purposely designed narrow provider networks, the ACA is delivering unparalleled amounts of stress, anxiety, and for […]
It’s been over seven months since I heard anything from Covered California’s SHOP program and the commissions they owe me from the small group I helped enroll in their small business health options program. The lack of communication from SHOP is a flash back to over forty years ago when I wouldn’t hear from my […]
Most people are under the impression that if they purchase health insurance through a Marketplace exchange such as Covered California they have to accept all the monthly tax credit offered. Individuals and families don’t have to have any of the tax credit applied to their monthly health insurance premium. Covered California has introduced a new link on consumer’s […]
It was in February 2013 that I wrote a glowing post about the imminent launch of the Covered California website. Thousands of individuals and families across California were full of hope and optimism as Covered California looked to be on track to fulfill the long awaited promise of access to health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. Two […]
