On June 16, 2015, final regulations were published on the Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) requirement under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
The ACA established a penalty of up to $1,000 for each willful failure to provide the SBC. Also, failing to provide the SBC may trigger an excise tax of $100 per individual for each day of noncompliance. Thus, it’s important for employers to keep up-to-date with the latest regulations.
The final regulations generally apply to coverage that begins on or after September 1, 2015.
While there are not many significant changes from the proposed regulations that were released in December 2014, the final regulations:
- Clarify when and how a plan or issuer must provide an SBC
- Streamline the SBC template
- Add certain elements to the SBC template to make it more useful to consumers
However, it’s also important to note that the new template, instructions, and uniform glossary will not be finalized until January 2016.
For details on the final regulations, we encourage all clients to log-in to the CBGconnect portal and download a copy of the “Final Rule Updates the SBC Requirement” compliance bulletin. Or, you may request that a copy of this bulletin be sent to you via email.