Health Insurance Providers Must Report Certain Information to the IRS and Covered Individuals

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Beginning in 2016, providers of minimum essential coverage must report certain information to the IRS and to covered individuals about the individual’s health coverage in 2015.

Taxpayers will use this information, which will be provided on Form 1095-B, Health Coverage Information Return or Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage, when they file their tax returns to verify the months that they had minimum essential coverage and satisfied the individual shared responsibility provision.  The IRS will use the information on the statements to verify the months of the individual’s coverage. You will need these forms in order to file your tax return. 

Employers that sponsor self-insured group health plans are subject to information reporting requirements, with respect to the self-insured group health plan coverage. This means employers of any workforce size that sponsor a self-insured group health plan must comply with these information reporting requirements.  An employer that is an applicable large employer must use Form 1094-C, Transmittal of Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage Information Returns, and Form 1095-C to report information for employees who enrolled in the employer-sponsored self-insured health coverage.  An employer that is not an applicable large employer should not file Forms 1094-C and 1095-C, but should instead file Forms 1094-B and 1095-B to report information for employees who enrolled in the employer-sponsored self-insured health coverage.  The deadlines for reporting about 2015 coverage are the same as those provided above: February 29, 2016 for filing this information with the IRS – or March 31, 2016 if filing el ectronically – and February 1, 2016 for sending the form to the employee. 

Other providers of minimum essential coverage will file Form 1094-B, Transmittal of Health Coverage Information Returns, and Form 1095-B, Health Coverage Information Return, with the IRS.  For entities that provided minimum essential coverage in 2015, the deadline is February 29, 2016 – or March 31, 2016 if filing electronically.  The Form 1095-B must contain the name and taxpayer identification numbers for each covered individual.  It must also include the months that each covered individual was enrolled in coverage and entitled to receive benefits for at least one day of that month. 

Coverage providers also must send the Form 1095-B to the person identified as the responsible individual on the form. The responsible individual generally is the person who enrolls one or more individuals, which may include him or herself, in minimum essential coverage. For 2015 coverage, the deadline for providing this form to individuals is February 1, 2016.

Seven Steps for Making Identity Protection Part of Your Routine

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The theft of your identity, especially personal information such as your name, Social Security number, address and children’s names, can be traumatic and frustrating. In this online era, it’s important to always be on guard.

The IRS has teamed up with state revenue departments and the tax industry to make sure you understand the dangers to your personal and financial data. Taxes. Security. Together. Working in partnership with you, we can make a difference.

Here are seven steps you can make part of your routine to protect your tax and financial information:

1. Read your credit card and banking statements carefully and often – watch for even the smallest charge that appears suspicious. (Neither your credit card nor bank – or the IRS – will send you emails asking for sensitive personal and financial information such as asking you to update your account.)

2. Review and respond to all notices and correspondence from the Internal Revenue Service. Warning signs of tax-related identity theft can include IRS notices about tax returns you did not file, income you did not receive or employers you’ve never heard of or where you’ve never worked.   3. Review each of your three credit reports at least once a year. Visit annualcreditreport.com to get your free reports.

4. Review your annual Social Security income statement for excessive income reported. You can sign up for an electronic account at www.SSA.gov.  

5. Read your health insurance statements; look for claims you never filed or care you never received.

6. Shred any documents with personal and financial information. Never toss documents with your personally identifiable information, especially your social security number, in the trash.

7. If you receive any routine federal deposit such as Social Security Administrator or Department of Veterans Affairs benefits, you probably receive those deposits electronically. You can use the same direct deposit process for your federal and state tax refund. IRS direct deposit is safe and secure and places your tax refund directly into the financial account of your choice.