News & Events

One of the provisions included in the health care reform legislation enacted in 2010 will subject certain individuals to a 3.8% tax on net investment income (or "unearned income"). The new law is effective in 2013 and imposes a tax on "net investment income" when an individual taxpayer’s modified adjusted gross income exceeds $200,000 for single filers and $250,000 for joint filers. The tax is equal to 3.8% of the lesser of the taxpayer’s "net investment income" or the amount by which the taxpayer’s modified adjusted gross income exceeds the threshold (i.e. $200,000 for single filers and $250,000 for joint filers). Trusts and estates are also subject to the new tax. For trusts and estates, the tax is equal to 3.8% of the lesser of the trust’s or estate’s undistributed net investment income or the adjusted gross income in excess of the highest tax bracket on trusts and estates (i.e., approximately $12,000 for 2013).

The 2010 enactment of the Affordable Care Act (“ACA” or the “Act”) ushered in an enormous social reform effort aimed at improving the nation’s health care system through a series of mandates, premium subsidies, and taxes. Although the full impact of the Act will not be known for years to come, its intended goals were to expand health insurance coverage and to reduce costs. After much discussion and debate, as well as legal challenges all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, implementation of the ACA is upon us. As a result, employers must comply with the Act’s myriad requirements, the most significant of which become effective on January 1, 2014. Regulatory guidance is pouring forth, and it is not too early for employers to determine how the rules of the Act apply to their businesses. In fact, employers with calendar-year plans may want to take action as soon as next month.