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COBRA Administration
COBRA requirements are much more complicated than many employers realize. They can expose employers to costly penalties and liabilities. Furthermore, based on new regulations, ERISA now expressly allows for personal liability to be imposed on the plan administrator for violations of COBRA notification requirements. When delegating the COBRA notice duty to an independent third-party administrator (TPA), it is important to be sure that the TPA has advanced systems and processes in place to handle these government-imposed responsibilities.
Hiring a COBRA administration partner relieves your company of burdensome tracking, notification, and billing processes. AmeriFlexýs system delivers a fast, highly automated, easy-to-use, cost-effective method for administration and compliance of many of your COBRA obligations. AmeriFlex's COBRA administration procedures and practices provide fair and equal treatment for all COBRA qualified beneficiaries. They also provide compliance advice for employers for difficult COBRA determinations that are certain to arise with qualified beneficiaries.
Cafeteria Plans, Section 125
Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs), commonly referred to as Section 125 plans or Cafeteria plans, were developed as part of Internal Revenue Code Section 125 to provide employees with tax relief for their un-reimbursed medical and dependent day-care costs. FSAs enable employees to utilize pre-tax dollars and save Federal, FICA, and, in most cases, state taxes when paying for eligible expenses not covered by traditional insurance plans.
Although FSAs have been available for many years, the emergence of consumer-driven healthcare and increased employee cost-sharing has made them an integral benefits solution that provides substantial tax savings to both employers and employees.
There are three types of Flexible Spending Accounts:
Premium-only Plan (POP): Provides documents that authorize the employer to make pre-tax payroll deductions for eligible healthcare insurance premiums. Provided at no cost to our clients.
Medical Reimbursement Accounts: Accounts used to pay for eligible un-reimbursed medical expenses such as co-pays, deductibles, dental, vision, prescription, over-the-counter drugs, and more.
Dependent Day-Care Reimbursement Accounts: Accounts used to pay for the daily care of an eligible child or adult dependent as defined by the IRS; and
Commuter Reimbursement Accounts: Accounts used to pay for eligible transportation and parking expenses.
Healthcare Reimbursement Account (HRA)
Health Reimbursement Accounts (HRAs) are rapidly becoming the foundation for many consumer-driven health plans. Incorporating the advantages of both Medical Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), HRAs combine the control and cost-saving tools employers are seeking with the flexibility and protection employees need.
With an HRA, employers fund individual reimbursement accounts for their employees and define what those funds can be used for i.e., specified out-of-pocket expenses such as deductibles and co-pays. HRAs allow an employer to realize substantial savings by migrating from first dollar coverage to a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) option without having to increase their employeesý out-of-pocket exposure. Many employers use the premium dollars saved from a benefits downgrade to fund the employeesý account making the change cost-neutral or possibly providing a savings to the benefits budget. As an extra advantage to the employer, HRA contributions and administrative costs are tax deductible, further enhancing the savings associated with an HRA plan design.
Health Savings Account (HSA)
With health insurance premiums ever on the rise, employers and employees must cope with higher co-payments, higher deductibles and increased provider restrictions. Many employers are now exploring alternatives to standard medical care that combine high-deductible health plans (HDHP) with Health Savings Accounts (HSA) to ease this burden.
If youýre offering a HDHP to your employees, a HSA just might be the perfect solution for you. A HSA makes health coverage more like insurance ý what health care coverage should be. HSAs can be funded by either an employee or an employer. The savings roll over into subsequent years, earning interest. This low-cost, tax-free alternative to traditional insurance is the biggest change to health policy in decades. Unexpected sickness or injury is never a part of your employeesý plan, but paying for it can be. Seize the HSA opportunity. | 
