MDWise and IU Health Starke Hospital Schedule Affordable Care Act Forum

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

Health care industry experts will be available Tuesday, Dec. 10 at IU Health Starke Hospital to answer your questions about the Affordable Care Act. Representatives from the nonprofit health insurance company MDwise will offer a presentation about the health insurance marketplace at 3 p.m. CST in the conference room of the Knox facility. It’s one of several “learn and enroll” events the hospital is putting on to answer questions about the effect of the Affordable Care Act, health insurance options and the consequences of not enrolling in a health plan. Hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers will be eligible for health insurance starting next year, but there’s still quite a bit of confusion about the enrollment process and various health plan options. The session is open to the public, and an RSVP is not required to attend.

HealthLinc to Host Coffee Talks on Affordable Care Act at SCPL

Posted on Author WKVI

 
 
HealthLinc will be hosting “coffee talks” on the Affordable Care Act and its enrollment today at the Starke County Library, where they will discuss provide an opportunity for individuals to learn about the Affordable Care Act and how the law affects them and their loved ones. Certified application counselors will be on hand to help people enroll in the Health Insurance Marketplace and help them find out if they qualify for subsidies that offset the cost of insurance coverage.

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Scammers Using Affordable Care Act to Swindle Money

Posted on Author WKVI

 
 
There is a lot of confusion surrounding the Affordable Care Act and scammers are making it even more confusing.

Scammers are exploiting the ACA as a way to fool you into sharing your personal information.

Here is how the scam works: a caller claims to be from the federal government. That “representative” will inform you that you’ve been selected to receive insurance cards through the new Affordable Care Act, but before you can receive the cards you must provide your bank’s routing number and your account number. Plus, they could ask for your Social Security number, Medicare ID or other personal information.

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Walorski Calls for Permanent Delay of Obamacare Implementation

Posted on Author WKVI
Congresswoman Jackie Walorski
Congresswoman Jackie Walorski

A local lawmaker is leading the call for President Obama to permanently delay implementation of the Affordable Care Act. U.S. Reps. Jackie Walorski (R-IN) and Rodney Davis (R-IL) led a letter signed by several House Republicans. It was sent following passage by the House of two bills to delay the employer and individual mandates in Obamacare for a year. The administration previously announced a year delay on implementation of the employer mandate. Continue reading →

Donnelly Proposes Change to Affordable Care Act Full-Time Worker Definition

Posted on Author WKVI
Joe Donnelly
U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly

Indiana Senator Joe Donnelly is the co-sponsor of a bipartisan measure to redefine full-time workers for purposes of the federal Affordable Care Act. Starting Jan. 1, the controversial health care law mandates employers with more than 50 employees offer insurance to anyone who averages 30 hours per week in order to avoid hefty fines. Donnelly and Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine are proposing the Affordable Care Act redefine a full-time employee as one who works 40 hours per week. Donnelly says this is the standard definition in all other aspects of the federal government. He adds several of his constituents have had their hours slashed from 35 to 29 hours per week and are facing financial challenges as a result of the 30 hour definition. The two senators have also sent a letter to President Obama asking for flexibility and time for small businesses to adjust to the changes without penalties.

 

Marshall County Commissioners Have Full Agenda

Posted on Author WKVI

 
 
The Marshall County Commissioners have a lot on their plate this morning as several items are listed on their agenda.

One of those items is an ordinance amendment concerning part-time hours in the personnel policy. The change reflects action taken to avoid running part-time workers logging more than 30 hours a week on a regular basis thus being eligible for insurance benefits as laid out in the Affordable Care Act.

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Marshall County Council Makes Decision Concerning Part-Time Employee Hours

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

The Marshall County Commission members and the council members met in a joint session Monday morning to discuss a personnel policy amendment concerning hours for part-time employees.

As explained by the county’s insurance representative, Tony Nyers, the Affordable Care Act requires that all businesses, including county government, offer insurance benefits for all employees that work a 30-hour work week on a six-month average. Those employees are now considered to be eligible for insurance benefits if they meet the requirements for insurance benefits.

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Starke Commissioners Reduce Part-Time Employees to 130 Hours Monthly

Posted on Author WKVI

 
 
Rather than be forced to provide employees working an average of more than 30 hours per week with insurance benefits, the Starke County Commissioners this week passed a motion preventing part-time employees from working more than 130 hours per month beginning July 1.

The Affordable Care Act will require businesses with at least 50 employees to offer health insurance to employees working at least 30 hours per week. Those that don’t provide the required coverage will be forced to pay a $2000 penalty per worker, excluding the first 30 employees. The act doesn’t take effect until Jan. 1, 2014, but in order to determine which employees average enough hours to qualify for the benefits, employers will have to go back three to 12 months from Jan. 1, 2014. To counteract that, many employers, including counties, are modifying their salary ordinances early.

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Affordable Care Act Causes Employers to Cut Back on Part-Time Hours

Posted on Author WKVI

 
 
Rather than benefit from the Affordable Care Act, many part-time employees across the nation are going to be suffering from reductions of hours. Pulaski County Auditor Shelia Garling said her county has cut back on the average number of hours for part-time employees; originally, part-timers were working between 30 and 32 hours per week, but now they’re cut down to 28 hours to prevent the county from being forced to provide them with insurance benefits.

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Supreme Court Upholds Affordable Care Act

Posted on Author WKVI
IU Health Starke Hospital
IU Health Starke Hospital

The Supreme Court has upheld President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act. The law requires individuals not covered by employer or government-sponsored insurance plans to maintain minimal essential health insurance coverage or pay a penalty unless exempted for religious beliefs or financial hardship.

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