ACA / Healthcare Reform

Exchange Notice

Templates for Employing Entity Benefits Administrators

If you are a benefits administrator at an OEBB-participating entity, you may use the following templates to comply with the federal exchange notice requirements. Detailed instructions are available below the template links.

Name	Notes
Template New Hire Letter Benefits-Eligible	Use this template to notify benefits-eligible employees hired October 1, 2013 or later. (revised Apr. 20, 2021)
Template New Hire Letter Non-Benefits-Eligible	Use this template to notify employees who are not eligible for benefits. (revised Apr. 20, 2021)

Notify Employee

Beginning October 1, 2013, notify each new employee within their first 14 days of employment. The two templates above can be used to notify employees hired on or after October 1, 2013.

Note: Sending the notice via email will NOT comply with the federal requirement. In addition, other alternate delivery methods, such as making the notification available online, making multiple copies of the notification generally available in a common area, or providing a link to the notification rather than providing the full notice, will NOT comply with the federal requirement.

Employers must ensure that each new employee receives the proper notification within their first 14 days of employment either by mailing the notice first-class USPS mail or hand-delivering it directly to the employee.

Q&A

Q: Can the notice be delivered via email?

A: No, email will not satisfy the federal requirements. It must be mailed first class or hand-delivered.

Q: Do substitute teachers and student workers need to receive the notice?

A: Yes, it doesn't matter what position they hold or how many hours they work. As long as an employment relationship exists, that employee needs to receive the notice. This includes substitute teachers, student workers, temporary workers, and employees on approved leave of absence.

Spotlight on Healthcare Reform

Bulletins by Towers Watson

As federal guidance becomes available and new phases of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) are implemented, these bulletins will guide you through the changes and help you prepare for the future.

Name	Notes
ACA-Bulletin-1--July-23-2013	This bulletin was reviewed in April 2014 and no revision was needed.
ACA-Bulletin-2--September-25-2013	Revised April 2014
ACA-Bulletin-3--December-27-2013	Revised April 2014
ACA-Bulletin-4--February-4-2014	Revised April 2014
ACA-Bulletin-5--March-7-2014	Revised April 2014
ACA-Bulletin-6--July-15-2014
ACA-Bulletin-8A-Cash--October-2-2015
ACA-Bulletin-8B-FSA--October-2-2015
ACA-Bulletin-8C-LifeDis--October-2-2015
ACA-Bulletin-8D-HRA--October-2-2015
ACA-Bulletin-8E-HSA--October-2-2015
ACA-Bulletin-8F-NoOptOut--October-2-2015

Bulletin Notes

Bulletin 1

This first ACA Bulletin for OEBB-participating entities identifies the Affordable Care Act (ACA) provisions OEBB has already met on behalf of all educational entities participating in the OEBB benefits program, the requirements of the health insurance exchange notice, and the recent decision by the Obama administration that will delay the Play or Pay mandate and certain reposting requirements.

Bulletin 2

This second ACA Bulletin for OEBB-participating entities discusses the ACA's Employer Shared Responsibility Provisions, including when and how they may apply to the entities.

Bulletin 3

This third ACA Bulletin for OEBB-participating entities reviews the various measurement periods that can be used to determine full-time employee status under the ACA's Employer Shared Responsibility Provisions.

Bulletin 4

This fourth ACA Bulletin for OEBB-participating entities reviews the affordability provision that is used to determine the ACA's Employer Shared Responsibility penalties.

Bulletin 5

This fifth ACA Bulletin for OEBB-participating entities reviews the recently-released final regulations for the Shared Responsibility provision of the ACA. In particular, this bulletin will highlight changes from the previous proposed regulations. Due to these changes, three of the four previous bulletins above have also been revised to incorporate the latest information.

Bulletin 6

This sixth ACA Bulletin for OEBB-participating entities reviews the IRS reporting requirements intended to enforce the individual and employer mandates and support the determination of subsidy eligibility.

Bulletin 7

There currently is no Bulletin 7.

Bulletins 8-A through 8-F

These ACA Bulletins were prepared for OEBB-participating entities to allow an entity to review the ACA Affordability safe harbor calculation as well as the impact of opt-out credits on the safe harbor calculations. Affordability safe harbors are related to the Pay or play penalties of the Shared Responsibility provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Each bulletin in this series (8-A through 8-F) focuses on specific options available to the employee group:

Bulletin 8-A

Applicable to employee groups that receive a benefit contribution which may only be used to purchase medical, dental and vision benefit plans AND employees in the group have the option to receive a cash incentive (taxable income) from the entity when choosing not to enroll in an OEBB medical plan. This includes flat dollar contributions (insurance cap) and contributions representing a percentage of the premium.

Bulletin 8-B

Applicable to employee groups that receive a benefit contribution which may only be used for one or more of the following options: to purchase medical, dental and vision benefit plans, have a portion of the contribution go into a healthcare FSA (HCFSA) OR to receive a cash incentive (taxable income) from the entity when choosing not to enroll in an OEBB medical plan.

Bulletin 8-C

Applicable to employee groups that receive a benefit contribution from an entity which may be used to purchase medical, dental, vision, life, disability, AD&D, long term care or any other benefit available through the employer AND employees in the group have the option to receive a cash incentive (taxable income) from the entity when choosing not to enroll in an OEBB medical plan. This includes flat dollar contributions (insurance cap) and contributions representing a percentage of the premium.

Bulletin 8-D

Applicable to employee groups that receive a benefit contribution which may only be used for one or more of the following options: to purchase medical, dental, and/or vision benefit plans; have a portion of the contribution go into a healthcare flexible spending account (HCFSA); AND employees in the group have the option to receive a cash incentive (taxable income) or a contribution to a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA/VEBA) from the Entity when choosing not to enroll in an OEBB medical plan.

Bulletin 8-E

Applicable to employee groups that receive a benefit contribution which can be used for one of the following options: to purchase medical, dental and/or vision benefit plans; have excess funds contributed to a Health Savings Account (HSA); OR to receive a cash incentive (taxable income) from the entity when choosing not to enroll in an OEBB medical plan.

Bulletin 8-F

Applicable to employee groups that receive a benefit contribution which can only be used to purchase medical, dental and/or vision benefit plans. This includes flat dollar contributions (insurance cap) and contributions representing a percentage of the premium AND employees in this group are NOT eligible to receive cash for choosing not to enroll in an OEBB medical plan (i.e., employees only have the option to "waive" OEBB medical coverage).

Towers Watson Presentations/Webinars

On March 19, 2015, Towers Watson presented a webinar for all interested OEBB-participating entities and employee representatives to update them on the Affordable Care Act and the latest guidance on Affordability. A PDF of their presentation slides and a link to a recording of the webinar are available below.

Name	Notes
ACA Affordability Webinar March 19 2015	Presentation slides
ACA Affordability Webinar March 19 2015	Affordability Provision - Determining the ACAs Employer Shared Responsibility Penalties

On January 16, 2015, Towers Watson presented a webinar for all interested OEBB-participating entities and employee representatives to review the Affordable Care Act requirements and the latest guidance on Full-Time Employee Measurement & Reporting. A PDF of their presentation slides and a link to a recording of the webinar are available below.

Name	Notes
ACA Full-Time Employee Measurement Webinar January 16 2015	Presentation slides
Recording January 16 2015 Webinar

This webinar covered much of the same material that Towers Watson presented at the OASBO Conference November 13, 2014, so a link to the slides used in the OASBO presentation was made available so entities could familiarize themselves with the concepts and prepare any questions prior to the January webinar. That link remains below for reference.

Name	Notes
Employee Measurement and Reporting Guidelines November 13 2014	Presentation slides

On July 21, 2014, Towers Watson presented a webinar for all interested OEBB-participating entities and employee representatives to update them on the Affordable Care Act and the latest guidance on Full-Time Employee Measurement & Reporting. A PDF of their presentation slides and a link to a recording of the webinar are available below.

Name	Notes
ACA Full-Time Employee Measurement and Reporting Webinar July 21 2014	Presentation slides
Recording July 21 2014 Webinar