Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Cadillac Tax' On Generous Health Plans Expected To Hit A Quarter Of Employers, Report Finds
The Wall Street Journal: More Than A Quarter Of Employers Expected To Face ‘Cadillac Tax’
One in four companies are likely to be impacted by the “Cadillac tax” on high-cost health plans when it begins in 2018–and that could almost double in ten years, according to an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Under the Affordable Care Act, companies are subject to an excise tax on high-cost health plans, starting in 2018, also known as the “Cadillac tax.” Employers will have to pay a levy of 40% a year on the amount by which the cost of employee plans exceed government thresholds, which are $10,200 for individuals and $27,500 for families in the first year. (Chasen, 8/25)
The Washington Post's Wonkblog: 26% Of Employers Could Face The ‘Cadillac Tax’ On Health Insurance
"The 'Cadillac tax' will have a very powerful effect on health care costs, and that certainly a good thing. But the way the tax helps to keep health costs down is primarily by shifting it to workers," said Larry Levitt, a senior vice president at the Kaiser Family Foundation who did the analysis. "While it certainly sounds good to control heath care costs, the way it is likely to happen won’t feel very good to consumers." The opposition to the tax comes from a motley collection of unlikely allies, beyond the usual cast of anti-tax Republicans. (Johnson, 8/25)
NBC News: Obamacare 'Cadillac Tax' Will Lead Employers To Cut FSAs: Analysis
If you like your flexible spending account ... you might not be able to keep your flexible spending account. Obamacare's looming "Cadillac tax" on high-cost health plans threatens to hit one in four U.S. employers when it takes effect in 2018 — and will impact 42 percent of all employers by a decade later, according to a new analysis. And many of those employers will be subject to the heavy Obamacare tax because they offer popular health-care flexible spending accounts to workers, which, ironically, are designed to reduce the income tax burden to those employees. (Mangan, 8/25)
CQ Healthbeat: Health Law Tax Could Hit One In Four Employers In 2018, Study Shows
One in four employers offering health benefits could be subject to the 2010 health care law's tax on high-cost plans, with the share of those potentially affected growing to 42 percent by 2028, unless the companies revise their benefits, according to new projections from the Kaiser Family Foundation. The so-called Cadillac Tax is set to take effect in 2018 and funds coverage expansions under the law. It taxes plans at 40 percent of each worker's health benefits exceeding certain coverage thresholds -- $10,200 for self-only coverage and $27,500 for family coverage in the first year. (8/25)
