Under the Affordable Care Act reporting obligations for large employers, is about to get complex. There are 2 new sections of the IRS code that every controller, accountant, broker, & insurance company are trying to understand.
6055 & 6056
In my own words, I will try to explain what the codes are and why they are important.
Under the ACA, it was decided the only way to track if an individual or company has or offers health insurance, is by using the IRS. Do to this, the IRS created these reporting requirement to do the following:
1. Confirm you have health insurance.
2. Confirm that your health insurance meets the standards set by the ACA.
What is 6055?
6055 is a form submitted to the IRS to confirm that health insurance is being offered by an employer. This will allow the IRS to confirm that the group coverage offers the minimum essential coverage under the ACA. IRS will then verify that the employee covered by the plan does meet the Individual mandate.
The good news on this reporting is the insurance company should handle this filing on behalf of the large group employer. If you are on a self-funded plan, this responsibility may fall on to the employer.
What is 6056?
6056 is the responsibility of the employer to file with the IRS and then provide each full time employee a copy 1095-C. Following this, the information provided will be used to confirm coverage.
This is an extremely complicated issue and a company would be wise to look at a third party to help with the admin.
