Dependent Eligibility

Описание: Uploaded by icyouhealth on Apr 19, 2010
One of the first large provisions to come out of the Healthcare Reform law affects dependent eligibility. Beginning September 23rd, 2010, insurance companies will be required to offer dependent coverage for children up to age 26. This applies to all individual and group policies that offer dependent coverage.
It means that young people between the ages of 18 and 26 who may have previously been dropped from their parents plan, will now have extended coverage. For example, this will cover recent [more]college graduates who might have otherwise gone without coverage until their first job.
So lets take Sarah, who is 24 and finished grad school. Before the healthcare reform law, Sarahs dependent eligibility was set to expire when she graduated. But now, shell be able to remain on her parents plan while she looks for a job.
Keep in mind, if your health insurance is provided through an employer, the cost of your dependents coverage will still be excluded from your taxable gross income. This means that when you add a dependent to your health policy, his or her coverage will remain tax-free.
Now there are some exclusions to the provision.
To qualify as a dependent, the child can not have a coverage option through their current employer. So if John works at Bobs Retail and Bobs Retail offers him insurance then John would not be allowed to remain on his parents policy. Also, this will not extend coverage to the child of an individual receiving dependent coverage. This means if a dependent has a child of their own, they will have to purchase a separate policy. So if Karen is 25, on her parents insurance, and has a baby Karen is covered but her baby is not. She will have to purchase a separate policy to cover him.
As we all sort through the details and learn about these changeswe hope this information has helped. You can find more information on this and other provisions on the Department of Health and Human Services website. http://dhhs.gov/



Dallas L Alford IV, CPA is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in the state of North Carolina and owner of Atlantic Financial Consulting, a consulting firm that provides comprehensive medical billing services, practice management consulting, coding audits, Medicare compliance, Medicare RAC support and other general medical practice consulting services.
To learn more about Atlantic Financial Consulting you may visit their website at
http://atlanticfinancial.us or contact Dallas L Alford IV, CPA directly at 1 888-428-2555, Ext. 200.