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10108 - Free Choice Vouchers

 
Implementation Status 
Statutory Text 

Summary

Requires employers offering minimum essential coverage and contributing to employees’ premiums to provide free choice vouchers to qualifying employees. Such employees’ required contribution to the employer-sponsored plan must be between 8% and 9.8% of their income, which must not exceed 400% FPL, and they must not enroll in the employer-sponsored plan. Free choice vouchers would be used to purchase a Qualified Health Plan (QHP) in an Exchange.

The voucher, excluded from employees’ gross income to the extent it is less than the total cost for the QHP, would be equivalent to what the employer’s contribution otherwise would have been to the employer-sponsored plan. Effective January 1, 2014.

#Health Insurance Exchanges, #Qualified Health Plans

Implementation Status

 
Summary 
Statutory Text 

The Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, enacted on April 15, 2011, repealed the free choice voucher requirement.

Statutory Text

 
Implementation Status 
Summary 

[Note: Section 10108 provides for Free Choice Vouchers as follows:]
SEC. 10108 [42 U.S.C. 18101]. FREE CHOICE VOUCHERS
[copied from title Xx and shown here for information purposes
Only].
(a) IN GENERAL.—An offering employer shall provide free choice
vouchers to each qualified employee of such employer.
(b) OFFERING EMPLOYER.—For purposes of this section, the term
‘‘offering employer’’ means any employer who—
(1) offers minimum essential coverage to its employees consisting
of coverage through an eligible employer-sponsored plan;
and
(2) pays any portion of the costs of such plan.
(c) QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE.—For purposes of this section—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘qualified employee’’ means,
with respect to any plan year of an offering employer, any employee—
(A) whose required contribution (as determined under
section 5000A(e)(1)(B)) for minimum essential coverage
through an eligible employer-sponsored plan—
(i) exceeds 8 percent of such employee’s household
income for the taxable year described in section
1412(b)(1)(B) which ends with or within in the plan
year; and
(ii) does not exceed 9.8 percent of such employee’s
household income for such taxable year;
(B) whose household income for such taxable year is
not greater than 400 percent of the poverty line for a family
of the size involved; and
(C) who does not participate in a health plan offered
by the offering employer.
(2) INDEXING.—In the case of any calendar year beginning
after 2014, the Secretary shall adjust the 8 percent under paragraph
(1)(A)(i) and 9.8 percent under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) for
the calendar year to reflect the rate of premium growth between
the preceding calendar year and 2013 over the rate of income
growth for such period.
(d) FREE CHOICE VOUCHER.—
(1) AMOUNT.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The amount of any free choice voucher
provided under subsection (a) shall be equal to the
monthly portion of the cost of the eligible employer-sponsored
plan which would have been paid by the employer if
the employee were covered under the plan with respect to
which the employer pays the largest portion of the cost of
the plan. Such amount shall be equal to the amount the
employer would pay for an employee with self-only coverage
unless such employee elects family coverage (in which case
such amount shall be the amount the employer would pay
for family coverage).
(B) DETERMINATION OF COST.—The cost of any health
plan shall be determined under the rules similar to the
rules of section 2204 of the Public Health Service Act, except
that such amount shall be adjusted for age and category
of enrollment in accordance with regulations established
by the Secretary.
(2) USE OF VOUCHERS.—An Exchange shall credit the
amount of any free choice voucher provided under subsection (a)
to the monthly premium of any qualified health plan in the Exchange
in which the qualified employee is enrolled and the offering
employer shall pay any amounts so credited to the Exchange.

(3) PAYMENT OF EXCESS AMOUNTS.—If the amount of the
free choice voucher exceeds the amount of the premium of the
qualified health plan in which the qualified employee is enrolled
for such month, such excess shall be paid to the employee.
(e) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—Any term used in this section which
is also used in section 5000A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
shall have the meaning given such term under such section 5000A.
(f) EXCLUSION FROM INCOME FOR EMPLOYEE.— (1) IN GENERAL.—Part III of subchapter B of chapter 1 of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting
after section 139C the following new section:
‘‘SEC. 139D. FREE CHOICE VOUCHERS.
‘‘Gross income shall not include the amount of any free choice
voucher provided by an employer under section 10108 of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act to the extent that the amount of
such voucher does not exceed the amount paid for a qualified health
plan (as defined in section 1301 of such Act) by the taxpayer.’’.
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections for part
III of subchapter B of chapter 1 of such Code is amended by
inserting after the item relating to section 139C the following
new item:
‘‘Sec. 139D. Free choice vouchers.’’.
(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this subsection
shall apply to vouchers provided after December 31,
2013.
(g) DEDUCTION ALLOWED TO EMPLOYER.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 162(a) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following
new sentence: ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (1), the amount of a
free choice voucher provided under section 10108 of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act shall be treated as an
amount for compensation for personal services actually rendered.’’.

(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this subsection
shall apply to vouchers provided after December 31,
2013.
(h) VOUCHER TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN DETERMINING PREMIUM
CREDIT.—
(1) [Added a subparagraph (D) to section 36(c)(2) of the
IRC, added by section 1401]
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by this subsection
shall apply to taxable years beginning after December
31, 2013.
(i) COORDINATION WITH EMPLOYER RESPONSIBILITIES.— (1) SHARED RESPONSIBILITY PENALTY.— (A) [Added a paragraph (3) to section 4980H(c) of the
IRC, added by section 1513]
(B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by this
paragraph shall apply to months beginning after December
31, 2013.
(2) [Amended section 18B(a)(3) of FLSA, added by section
1512]
(j) EMPLOYER REPORTING.— (1) [Amended section 6056(a) of the IRC, added by section
1514]
(2) [Replaced subsection (f) of section 6056 of the IRC,
added by section 1514]
(3) [Made miscellaneous conforming amendments to sections
6056 and 6724(d) of the IRC, added by section 1514, as
well as a table of sections amendment]
(4) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by this subsection
shall apply to periods beginning after December 31, 2013.

Browse ACA Titles

  • I-Quality, Affordable Health Care for all Americans
  • II-Role of Public Programs
  • III-Improving the Quality and Efficiency of Health Care
  • IV-Prevention of Chronic Disease and Improving Public Health
  • V-Health Care Workforce
  • VI-Transparency and Program Integrity
  • VII-Improving Access to Innovative Medical Therapies
  • VIII-Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS ACT)
  • IX-Revenue Provisions

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