On July 9, the IRS issued Notice 2013-45, which formalizes the one-year delay in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) information reporting and employer "play or pay" rules first announced on July 2. The IRS states that it intends to issue proposed rules this summer regarding the information reporting. It encourages employers to voluntarily comply with the reporting rules for 2014 but acknowledges that there will be no penalties for failing to do so.
The IRS also states that the employer shared responsibility provisions of Internal Revenue Code Section 4980H will be delayed until 2015. In essence, this eliminates the play or pay penalties for 2014. The IRS encourages employers to voluntarily "maintain and expand health coverage" in 2014 in anticipation of the 2015 effective date for the penalties. However, employers are certainly not required to do so.
Importantly, this new announcement indicates that no other provisions of the ACA are affected by this delay. Specifically, individual premium credits will still be available at the Health Insurance Exchanges (HIX Marketplaces) if an individual meets the income guidelines and does not have minimum essential coverage elsewhere such as an eligible employer-sponsored plan that is "affordable" and provides "minimum value," as defined by the ACA.
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