State health officials confirmed what MarylandReporter.com first reported two weeks ago — the Jan. 1 opening of the small business health insurance marketplace will be delayed.
According to a weekly report issued late last Friday by the Maryland Health Connection, the Small Business Health Options Program, known as SHOP, will not open Jan. 1 as scheduled. Instead, for the second time this year, SHOP’s opening has been pushed back, this time to April 1, 2014.
“Maryland has a well-functioning small group market which offers the same prices as those that will be offered through the small group exchange, known as the SHOP,” Exchange officials said in Friday’s report. “The Board approved a plan to open the SHOP on April 1, 2014, which will allow more time for testing and coordination over the next several months.”
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DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
5 comments:
Hey, wait a minute! I'm a small business owner and my group plan expires April 30th. The State assured me many times that I would have four months to pick a new, State subsidized, plan before the old one runs out. I even have a letter from the State to that effect. Just what an I supposed to do now?
ocare is going down in flames. don't worry about it.
They do not want employers to offer healthcare, they want a single payer system, and all individuals on state plans.
That is why the employer mandate was delayed and the individual isn't.
That is why they have you reporting your contributions to healthcare premiums on the W2, because they will eventually be taxing it as income.
They want you to tell your employees to sign up for ACA.
Sales tax on health insurance - just the start -
Beginning in 2014, the health reform law imposes a new sales tax on health insurance that will increase the cost of health care coverage.
The amount of the tax will be $8 billion in 2014, increasing to $14.3 billion in 2018, and increased based on premium trend thereafter. The Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that the health insurance tax will exceed $100 billion over the next ten years.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has said that this tax will be “largely passed through to consumers in the form of higher premiums.”
A 2011 analysis by Oliver Wyman estimates that this tax “will increase premiums in the insured market on average by 1.9% to 2.3% in 2014,” and by 2023 “will increase premiums 2.8% to 3.7%.”
Joe - here is the link showing taxes on heath insurance, drug policies and medical devices
http://www.ahipcoverage.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HIT_Maryland_4_1_13.jpg
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