There is a new term in health insurance called the Family Glitch. What is it and how does it affect the consumer?
The family glitch is a term that means when determining whether someone is eligible for a subsidy to help pay health insurance premiums, only the employee’s income is used to calculate the subsidy.
That limit to determine the subsidy is based on the employee not spending more than 9.83% of their income on insurance premiums. If they do, then they are eligible for a subsidy from the federal government to help pay the insurance premiums.
The glitch is that it does not count the entire family’s income, just the employee’s income. So, having a spouse and children is not included in any calculation relating to a subsidy to help pay those insurance premiums.
The family glitch is a major factor in whether someone can afford the cost of health insurance. Eliminating the family as part of that subsidy makes the insurance unaffordable for most families in the US.
Congress needs to address this issue quickly as many families do not have health insurance because of the cost. Congress is also considering removing the deduction for health insurance premiums from your taxes. That would result in the largest tax increase for the middle class in history. We cannot afford that under any circumstances. Since Congress is not part of the affordable care act they would not be impacted by any change. That needs correcting by making them part of the affordable care act.
The Barend Agency Inc.
Len Barend, broker