#health-insurance
Health Insurance
Track health insurance costs and employee benefits
New Jersey's Medicaid Employer Assessment (A5324): What the First-in-the-Nation Law Means for Your Payroll
New Jersey's A5324, effective July 1, 2026, bills employers $325–$725 per year for each Medicaid-enrolled employee or dependent once 50 or more are enrolled — matched by the state, not self-reported. Here is how the tiered fees work, which workers are exempt now and in 2027, and how to prepare your books for a bill you didn't calculate.
Colorado's New NICU Leave Benefit: What Small Employers Need to Know About FAMLI in 2026
Colorado's FAMLI program now offers up to 12 weeks of paid Neonatal Care Leave for NICU stays, separate from the existing 12 weeks of bonding leave, funded by a 2026 payroll premium of 0.88% of wages split between employer and employee for businesses with 10 or more workers.
Small-Group Health Premiums Are Jumping 11% in 2026 — Here's How to Keep Coverage Without Blowing Your Budget
Small-group health insurance premiums are rising a median 11% in 2026, per Peterson-KFF analysis of 318 insurer rate filings, with 2–5 employee firms up 23% since 2022. What's driving it — GLP-1 drugs, a shrinking risk pool, 9% medical inflation — and seven concrete cost levers, from level-funded plans to ICHRAs.
2026 HSA Contribution Limits: What Small Business Owners Need to Know
The IRS raised 2026 HSA limits to $4,400 self-only and $8,750 family (Revenue Procedure 2025-19). A small business owner's guide to the S-corp more-than-2% shareholder rules, the 35% comparability excise tax, cafeteria plan workarounds, and how to avoid excess-contribution penalties.
Section 125 Cafeteria Plan Nondiscrimination Testing: A 2026 Guide for Small Businesses
Section 125 cafeteria plans must pass three IRS nondiscrimination tests each year — eligibility, benefits and contributions, and the 25% key employee concentration test. This guide covers the 2026 thresholds ($220,000 officer and $160,000 HCI compensation, $3,400 FSA and $7,500 DCAP limits), what a failed test costs your top earners, and when a Simple Cafeteria Plan under Section 125(j) lets employers with 100 or fewer employees skip testing entirely.
Direct Primary Care Meets Your HSA in 2026: The OBBBA Rule That Makes Monthly Doctor Fees Tax-Free
OBBBA Section 71308 and IRS Notice 2026-05 let you pair a Direct Primary Care membership of up to $150/month per adult ($300 family) with an HSA starting January 2026, reclassify all Bronze and Catastrophic marketplace plans as HSA-eligible, and make the telehealth pre-deductible safe harbor permanent. Here is how freelancers, solo S-corp owners, and small employers should stack DPC, marketplace coverage, HSAs, and QSEHRA/ICHRA reimbursements without double-dipping.
The 2026 ACA Subsidy Cliff Is Back: A Survival Guide for Self-Employed Owners, Freelancers, and Early Retirees
The enhanced premium tax credits expired January 1, 2026, restoring the 400% FPL cliff. This guide walks self-employed filers, S-corp owners, freelancers, and early retirees through the 2026 applicable percentage schedule, MAGI levers like Solo 401(k), SEP-IRA, HSA, and Section 162(l), and Form 8962 reconciliation strategies to avoid five-figure repayments.
Stacking the Self-Employed Health Insurance Deduction with the Premium Tax Credit, HSA, and Augusta Rule: A 2026 Owner Compensation Playbook
A field guide to coordinating the Section 162(l) self-employed health insurance deduction with the Premium Tax Credit's circular calculation, HSA contributions, and the Augusta Rule (Section 280A(g)) — including Form 7206 mechanics, S-corp W-2 Box 1 reporting under IRS Notice 2008-1, Medicare Part B and D deductibility, and 2026 contribution limits.
Form 1095-C and Section 4980H: 2026 ACA Employer Penalties and Safe Harbors
For 2026, ALEs face a $3,340 per-employee 4980H(a) penalty and a $5,010 per-employee 4980H(b) penalty, with affordability set at 9.96 percent of pay. This guide covers the FPL, W-2, and rate-of-pay safe harbors, line-by-line Form 1095-C coding, and the errors that drive Letter 226-J assessments.
Form 8889 in 2026: HSA Reporting Without Triggering the 6%, 10%, or 20% Penalty
A 2026 walkthrough of Form 8889 — HSA contribution limits ($4,400 self-only, $8,750 family), the triple tax advantage, the last-month rule's 13-month testing period, the Medicare six-month retroactive enrollment trap, and the six most common filing mistakes that trigger the 6% excess-contribution excise tax, 10% recapture, or 20% non-qualified-distribution penalty.
HSA vs FSA vs HRA in 2026: Stack a Limited-Purpose FSA With Your HSA and Beat the Use-It-or-Lose-It Trap
2026 rules for HSAs, FSAs, and HRAs — contribution limits, who owns each account, when each one wins, how to stack a Limited-Purpose FSA with an HSA without breaking eligibility, and how employees and employers avoid forfeitures.
HSA vs FSA vs HRA in 2026: The Practical Playbook for Picking, Stacking, and Not Forfeiting Your Health Dollars
A 2026 walk-through of HSA, FSA, and HRA rules with the new contribution limits, the limited-purpose FSA stack that adds up to $7,800 of pre-tax room, and how small employers can use ICHRA and QSEHRA to compete with corporate benefits.