Uncle Sam could take a bigger bite at tax time for consumers who received too much government help last year with their Obamacare premiums.
That may be just one of several surprises for millions of Americans in advance of the first tax deadline involving the Affordable Care Act.
The majority of Americans who get their health insurance at work should see few changes when filing their taxes. Most will just need to check a box on their tax return indicating they had coverage in 2014.
It stands to be more complicated for those individuals who purchased a private health plan in government-run exchanges or went without insurance at some point last year.
Obamacare launched a year ago, but it’s only now that people will incur tax penalties for being uninsured. Others will realize their federal premium subsidy was incorrect.
Experts project that 40% to 50% of families that qualified for financial assistance might have to repay some portion because their actual household income for 2014 was higher than what they estimated during enrollment.
Those repayments could range from a relatively small amount to thousands of dollars in some cases. In California, some of the first clues may emerge later this month when the state issues tax notices to 1 million consumers.
About 85% of the roughly 7 million Americans who signed up last year through government-run exchanges paid discounted premiums thanks to subsidies.
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Contact Steven G. Cosby, MHSA with questions or to request more information and to schedule a healthcare plan evaluation, savings analysis or group plan solution for your company.
