The Federal Times discusses the one the FEHBP's best features -- the statutory provision allowing federal and postal employees with five years of FEHBP coverage preceding their civil service retirement date to carry their FEHB coverage into retirement with the full government contribution. For that reason, federal and postal employees who have been receiving coverage under a spouse's plan need to consider joining the FEHBP as they approach retirement. Open Season is the time to take this action. The Federal Times points out two exceptions to this rule.
Yesterday, the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") issued Notice 2019-63 which resolved an open issue for the FEHBlog. The Affordable Care Act ("ACA") requires health plans and insurers to furnish members and the IRS with Form 1095-B which documents the extent to which the recipient and family members held minimum essential coverage during the last calendar year. The Form 1095-B documents the recipient's compliance with the ACA's individual shared responsibility mandate. When Congress zeroed out that individual shared responsibility penalty for 2019, the FEHBlog expected that the IRS would not require production of the 1095-B for the 2019 tax years. The FEHBlog was wrong (mark the tape). Health plans and insurers must continue to prepare the Form 1095-Bs for 2019 and send them to to the IRS. However, they can furnish them to plan members upon request by placing a notice on their website. Mercer consulting offers a useful article about the intersection of 1095-B reporting and state reporting requirements for their own individual mandates.
A Washington University newsletter discusses a study published by one of its research professors that seeks to draw conslusions about rural health coverage from FEHB premiums offered by local plans in rural areas. Here's a link to the Health Affairs article which is behind a pay wall.
On the Centers for Disease Control front --
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