Tax Law › Insurance

A Whiter Shade of Pale -- Building a Private Label Investment Program with Private Placement Life Insurance and Annuities

Overview - Poor John Paulsen! Now that's an oxymoron! He has to be the most radioactive man on the Planet when it comes to tax planning. Everything he touches in business seems to be couched in subversive tax planning...more

Florida Legislative Session 2013: Healthcare Summary

The 2013 Florida Legislative Session concluded on May 3, 2013. The following is a partial summary of healthcare-related bills that may impact your business or practice. Note that some of these bills have become law, but...more

Health Care Reform Update -- May 20th, 2013

In This Issue: Implementation of the Affordable Care Act; Other HHS and Federal Regulatory Initiatives; Other Congressional and State Initiatives; Other Health Care News; and Hearings and Mark-Ups...more

Obamacare Loophole Allows Large Employers To Offer Bare-Bones Health Plans

On May 20, 2013, the Wall Street Journal reported that many large employers are looking to comply with the Affordable Care Act’s (“ACA”) employer mandate by offering bare-bones coverage that does not even cover...more

IRS, Treasury Department Issue Proposed Rules Governing Minimum Value, Affordability, and Wellness Programs

A key policy goal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the “Act”) is the expansion of health insurance coverage to all Americans. The concepts of “minimum value” and its correlate “actuarial value” speak to the...more

Raising the Stakes of Worker Misclassification Yet Again

New requirements under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are set to intensify state and federal governments' crackdown on worker misclassification....more

Strategic Implementation of Employer Shared Responsibility Rules & 2014 Planning Considerations

In This Presentation: •Welcome •Overview of the Employer Shared Responsibility Rules - Impact on Corporate Structure - Time Line Examples to Demonstrate Application of Measurement, Administrative & Stability...more

IRS Releases Guidance on Wellness Programs and “Affordability” under the Employer Mandate

On May 3, 2013, the IRS released proposed regulations on certain provisions relating to the federal premium tax credits that eligible individuals will use to purchase subsidized health insurance coverage from public exchanges...more

The Obamacare “Play or Pay” Rules: A Practical Approach

The IRS recently released new proposed regulations to implement the Shared Responsibility or “Play or Pay” provisions of Health Care Reform. The proposed regulations provide a wealth of detail on key issues required to...more

DOL Releases Guidance on Employer Notices about Exchange Availability

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has published guidance on the notice that most employers must provide to their employees by October 1, 2013, about the insurance that will be available through health care marketplaces known...more

Tales from the Crypt -- Post-Mortem Planning Using Private Placement Insurance Products

Overview - This article discusses the use of private placement products - private placement deferred variable annuities (PPVA) and private placement life insurance (PPLI)- in post mortem income tax and transfer tax...more

Health Care Reform Update -- May 6, 2013

In This Issue: Implementation of the Affordable Care Act; Other HHS and Federal Regulatory Initiatives; Other Congressional and State Initiatives; Other Health Care News; and Hearings and Mark-Ups Scheduled....more

May and June Filing and Notice Deadlines for Qualified Retirement and Health and Welfare Plans

Employers and plan sponsors must comply with numerous filing and notice deadlines for their retirement and health and welfare plans. Failure to comply with these deadlines can result in costly penalties and excise taxes. To...more

Employer Responsibility – Will You Pay or Play?

Starting in 2014, provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act become effective known as “Pay or Play” or “Employer Shared Responsibility.” Large employers will be faced with the decision whether to offer...more

Health Care Reform Implementation Update - May 6, 2013

Last week the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new proposed regulations on FY 2014 payment updates and regulatory policy changes for inpatient and long term care hospitals, skilled nursing facilitates,...more

Health Care Reform Blog: IRS Releases 2014 Out of Pocket Maximum Limits

In 2014 non-grandfathered plans will not be allowed to have an out of pocket maximum greater than that allowed for high deductible health plans....more

Health Care Reform Blog: IRS Proposes Additional Minimum Value Rules

Last Friday the IRS released additional proposed regulations implementing the minimum value requirement for coverage sponsored by employers with 50 or more FTEs. The proposed rules provide that amounts contributed by...more

Legal Alert: FATCA NFFE Rules Subject Non-U.S. P&C Insurers and Reinsurers to Burdensome Reporting Requirements

The good news is that, under the recently released Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) regulations, most non-U.S. property and casualty (P&C) insurance and reinsurance companies will not be considered foreign financial...more

Recent Developments in New York's Taxation of Unauthorized Life Insurers

Prior to 2012, New York afforded surprisingly favorable tax treatment to life insurance companies that are not licensed to conduct business in New York ("unauthorized life insurers"), but that owned real estate investments in...more

Staffing Industry Compliance with the Employer Shared Responsibility (aka “Pay-or-Play”) Provisions of the Affordable Care Act:...

Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (the “Act”), the federal government, state governments, insurers, employers, and individuals all share responsibility to make affordable health insurance coverage widely...more

Benefits Update, No. 2, May 2013: Healthcare Reform: To Play Or Pay – That Is The Question

Probably the most important mandate for employers is the “play or pay” mandate, also known as the employer-shared responsibility, which will require large employers (those with the equivalent of 50 or more full-time...more

Wealth Management Update - May 2013

The May § 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 1.2%, which is a slight decrease from April's rate of 1.4%. The applicable federal rate ("AFR") for use with a sale to a...more

Halbig, et al. v. Sebelius, et al.

Lawsuit Challenging IRS “Subsidy Expansion Rule” (Full Text Copy)

Lawsuit filed by a group of small business owners and individuals against the Internal Revenue Service over the agency’s “Subsidy Expansion Rule.” From the Blog of Legal Times: “Objecting to what they term an ‘Obamacare...more

IRS Proposes Regulations on $500,000 Deduction Limit for Compensation Provided by Health Insurance Providers

On April 1, 2013, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) published proposed regulations clarifying the $500,000 deduction limit for compensation provided by certain health insurance providers, which is contained in section...more

Health Care Reform Implementation Update - April 26, 2013

Marilyn Tavenner received bipartisan support from members of the Senate Committee on Finance in her confirmation hearing to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) though a full Senate vote is being held up,...more