Your Health Care Could Be Costing You More Than You Think

Navigating the Affordable Care Act (ACA) can be confusing…and have some unexpected ramifications.

With tax season just around the corner, we want to make sure there are no surprises waiting for you. That's why it's important to know that if you're currently reimbursed for health care, you may have to report it as taxable income. Effective Jan. 1, 2014, employers can no longer reimburse or directly pay premiums on a pre-tax basis for health insurance policies employees have acquired individually. Any such reimbursement will now need to be part of the employee's taxable income.

In other words, if you have secured health insurance on your own and your employer is paying an "allowance" to reimburse you for that premium, or your employer is paying the premium directly to the insurer, that amount should be included as income on the staff member's W-2 for 2014. This applies to clergy as well as laity.

The good news is there's an alternative: Purchasing your health care through Christian Church Health Care Benefit Trust (CCHCBT) allows you to keep the pre-tax benefit. Premiums paid by your employer would continue to be excludable from taxable income.

Pension Fund has worked diligently to ensure CCHCBT plans are compliant with the ACA. This means you'll no longer have to keep up with the changing rules of the ACA to make sure you are in compliance. We do that work for you. The other great benefit of purchasing your healthcare through CCHCBT is that there is a larger network of providers for you to choose from. More choices means you're in control of your family's health care needs.

Want more information? Contact Pension Fund today (866.495.PFCC or healthcare@pensionfund.org) and speak with one of our friendly staff members. You can also visit our Programs page to see all the plans CCHBT has to offer.