FCICA has reminded its members about the requirements of the Affordable Care Act. The e-mail is reprinted in full below:

Employers must provide current employees with information about health insurance exchanges established under the Affordable Care Act no later than Oct. 1, 2013, whether or not they provide health insurance to their employees. Employers also must provide the notice to each new hire within 14 days of the employee’s start date. The notice must:

• Inform the employee of the existence of the Health Insurance Marketplace or Exchange, including a description of the services provided by the Marketplace, and the manner in which the employee may contact the Marketplace to request assistance.

• If the employer plan’s share of the total allowed costs of benefits provided under the plan is less than 60 percent of such costs that the employee may be eligible for a premium tax credit under 36B of the Internal Revenue Code if the employee purchased a qualified health plan through the Marketplace.

• If the employee purchases a qualified health plan through the Marketplace, the employee may lose the employer contribution (if any) to any health benefits plan offered by the employer and that all or a portion of such contribution may be excludable from income for Federal income tax purposes.

Employers may develop their own forms or use the forms provided by the U.S. Department of Labor for:
• Employers with existing plans.
• Employers without plans.

The notice must be in writing and in a manner calculated to be understood by the average employee. The notice must be provided by first class mail or provided electronically to those who typically have email access as part of their work environment. For additional guidance, see DOL Technical Release 2013-02.