Recent Articles
High Court narrows PPACA contraceptive mandate
June 30 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to President Barack Obama’s health-care law, ruling that closely held companies can refuse on religious grounds to offer birth- control coverage to their workers. Voting 5-4, the justices today said family-run...
CMS and HHS announced an extension for COBRA beneficiaries to enroll into Federal and State Exchanges up until July 1st.
Date: May 2, 2014 Subject: Special Enrollment Periods and Hardship Exemptions for Persons Meeting Certain Criteria This guidance provides information related to three types of special enrollment periods (SEPs) for persons seeking to enroll in qualified health plans...
IRS Releases 2015 HSA Limits
The maximum contributions that can be made to health savings accounts in 2015 will rise slightly. The following data for 2015 was recently released by the IRS for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs): The maximum contribution that can be made to an HSA in 2015 is $3,350 for...
BCBSIL Allows Changes to Policies Purchased On and Off Exchange
BlueCross and BlueShield of Illinois members who purchased Qualified Health Plans through Get Covered Illinois or directly through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) now have the ability to change policies through March 31, 2014 (the end of Open...
Obama to Allow Two-Year Renewal of Old Health Plans
March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Americans who kept their health plans that didn’t comply with Obamacare requirements will be able to renew those policies for two more years, according to a person familiar with the matter. The Obama administration, which has been deliberating...
BCBSIL launches new payment channel for members to make a one-time “check by phone” or online EFT payment
On Monday, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) launched a new payment channel for members to make a one-time “check by phone” or online electronic funds transfer (EFT) payment. We have contracted with Alactriti, a third party vendor, to use their automated...
BCBSIL extends Obamacare payment deadline to January 30th, 2014
The parent company of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois is extending the payment due date for health insurance plans that took effect on the first of the year to Jan. 30, the company said in a statement today. Chicago-based Health Care Service Corp., which also...
Deadline for Health Care Sign-Up Is Extended to December 24th, 2013
The White House has decided to allow an extra 24 hours for people to sign up for insurance on HealthCare.gov, through the end of the day Tuesday, to receive coverage beginning on Jan. 1, according to a senior official familiar with the change. The official deadline...
BCBSIL Announces Members Can Keep Their Existing Individual Polices
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois announced today that BCBSIL individual policyholders will be allowed to keep their existing policies.
What income and household information do I provide when I apply for Marketplace coverage?
If you want to find out if you qualify for lower costs on Marketplace coverage, you’ll need to provide information about your household members and income. The Marketplace application includes detailed instructions. It makes calculations using the information you...