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Latest Mistakes a Practitioner Makes When Dealing With Health Insurance Shared by Chhoda

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Nitin Chhoda, a private practice marketing and EMR expert, is helping practices streamline their billing efforts by regularly sharing his expertise on a variety of topics. On his website, emrnews.com, he recently shared the latest and complex issues of how physical therapy offices lose revenue through non-payment because the staff do not know how to accurately apply for health insurance reimbursement.

Denville, NJ (PRWEB) December 08, 2013

“The second most important thing in a private practice next to the delivery of the actual services is having the most effective physical therapy billing," said Chhoda. "That is why it is very crucial for the practice to have a correct submission of reimbursement request the first time."

He even added that when dealing with many billing issues, understanding the complex nature of insurance is very vital, especially in today's practices. Clinicians get themselves into trouble when they make mistakes in processing insurance claims. Chhoda recently revealed the latest. most common mistakes that practices make when it comes to insurance and how those mistakes cost a practice and lost revenue.

According to Chhoda, one of the biggest insurance mistakes that private practices recently commit is the failure to verify a client’s insurance information. People change jobs, they even move from one address to another or transfer policies. He said that if the information gathered is incorrect, the physical therapy documentation is affected, and it is almost a given that the insurance claim will be denied directly, affecting the practices’ bottom line.

Chhoda noted that similar to getting the correct insurance information, practices must also have the most current patient information on file in order to receive quick reimbursement and avoid denials. Even a simple misspelling for a patient’s name can result in insurance denial. Making the correct diagnosis and coding procedure is mandatory. Nothing results in an insurance denial faster than the billed service not matching the actual diagnosis.

Chhoda said that the best way to avoid these mistakes is by having sound physical therapy management and implementing effective physical therapy billing software. It is here where he relies on his EMR expertise to offer effective solutions that any physical therapist can implement to ensure the minimum loss of revenue.

Chhoda’s office can be reached by phone at 201-535-4475. For more information, visit the website at http://www.emrnews.com.

About Nitin Chhoda
Nitin Chhoda PT, DPT is a licensed physical therapist, a certified strength and conditioning specialist and an entrepreneur. He is the author of "Physical Therapy Marketing for the New Economy" and "Marketing for Physical Therapy Clinics" and is a prolific speaker, writer and creator of products and systems to streamline medical billing and coding, electronic medical records, health care practice management and marketing to increase referrals. He has been featured in numerous industry magazines, major radio and broadcast media, and is the founder of Referral Ignition training systems and the annual Private Practice Summit. Chhoda speaks extensively throughout the U.S., Canada and Asia. He is also the creator of the Therapy Newsletter and Clinical Contact, both web-based services to help private practices improve communication with patients, delivery better quality of care and boost patient retention. Reported by PRWeb 1 hour ago.

Ezekiel Emanuel: If You Like Your Doctor, You Can Pay More Under Obamacare

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Ezekiel Emanuel: If You Like Your Doctor, You Can Pay More Under Obamacare Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, the hapless, goalpost-shifting so-called "architect" of Obamacare, told Fox News' Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday that President Barack Obama's promise "if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor" was absolutely true--with one important caveat: if you like your doctor, "you can pay for it."

Wallace grilled Dr. Emanuel, challenging his false claims that California's enrollment was keeping pace with the percentage of the young population necessary to keep the system afloat, and pointing out that the president's promise on doctors would collapse once people lost their insurance or their doctors refused to participate.

Dr. Emanuel tried to defend Obamacare, claiming that "No one guaranteed you that your premium wouldn’t increase"--ignoring the president's repeated promise that health insurance premiums could drop by as much as $2500. He tried to claim that Obamacare's "glitches" were similar to those of popular devices like the iPhone.

"No one has launched a big PR campaign to get these people signed up," said Dr. Emanuel, blaming the website troubles that have plagued healthcare.gov--though he himself cited the need for such a campaign in May, long before the website's problems were widely known. There are just a few weeks left to the Dec. 23 deadline.

 
 
 
  Reported by Breitbart 37 minutes ago.

Insurance Agents Feel Left Out Of Obamacare

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MIAMI (AP) -- When insurance agent Kelly Fristoe recently spent 30 minutes helping a client pick a mid-level health plan and the federal marketplace website froze, he called the government's hotline and tried to finish the application. But the operator refused to credit Fristoe as an agent on the application, meaning he wouldn't get the commission or be listed as the follow-up contact if his client needed help again later.

The Wichita Falls, Texas, insurance agent is one of many brokers around the country finding frustration as they try to help customers navigate the Affordable Care Act's marketplaces while earning the commissions they've long built their businesses around. Some insurers and insurance agents are calling on President Barack Obama's administration to allow them to bypass healthcare.gov and enroll consumers directly amid growing complaints about problems with enrollment information generated from the website.

The so-called 'back-end' problems could mean that consumers who think they've successfully signed up for a health plan, may find themselves unable to access their coverage come January. The problems include enrollment information that's rendered practically useless by errors, duplication or garbles. Efforts to fix the issues are underway.

Nearly 70,000 agents and brokers have been certified nationwide to sell health insurance on the federal exchange. Many say they could be the troubled health law's best ambassadors with the potential to boost lackluster enrollment figures -- only about 27,000 had enrolled via the federal website nationwide in the first month. But instead, many agents said they're continually met by obstacles.

"You look at this dismal number they have of how many people have enrolled on healthcare.gov," said Fristoe. "If they would just relax and loosen up, because me and all of my associates across this nation want to help these consumers get enrolled into the market."

Federal health officials announced on Nov. 22 that they'd fixed some portions of the website to allow more insurers and insurance agents to enroll consumers directly. The feds are asking roughly 16 insurers, agents and brokers in Florida, Texas and Ohio to test it out and give detailed feedback about the fixes, hoping to expand it to other states in the coming weeks. Health officials have been vague about the scope of the botched applications insurers are receiving and what steps they're taking to fix the problems. One bug related to Social Security numbers, which federal health officials said accounted for more than 80 percent of insurers' problems, was fixed last weekend.

But the problems have persisted, prompting the head of the National Association of Health Underwriters to write the president Tuesday, urging him to make additional fixes a priority, saying agents have a significant backlog of clients with incomplete applications."We want to make it clear that a number of back-end technical obstacles still exist for health insurance agents and brokers trying to actively support the federal marketplace," said CEO Janet Trautwein.

Insurance industry executives also met with Obama last month and encouraged him to let them take a more active role in enrolling consumers in the 36 states relying on the federal website. Brokers' frustrations with the website are amplified by the pressure they face to add customers to offset reductions in their commissions under the law.

Among the complaints, agents say the website isn't always crediting brokers when they help enroll consumers -- meaning they're losing out on commissions. Once an application is started, consumers can't go back in and add a broker's name if they help midway through the process. Federal health officials said there are 975,000 customers who have started an application but not selected a plan.

Agents say they're also still waiting on the federal government to add a promised feature on the website that would easily connect consumers with local insurance brokers.

Insurers and insurance agents are allowed to sign consumers up for health plans through a "direct enrollment" process. Even though the process may start on the insurer's website, at some point it's redirected to the technology-plagued healthcare.gov website to determine if customers are eligible for subsidies, and then ideally transferred back to the insurer's site. But various points in the process have been mired in glitches. Federal health officials said they've fixed some of the problems, but skeptics fear the improvements still won't allow for a smooth shopping experience and are pushing for a way to bypass the website.

Brokers face similar problems in some of the states that are running their own exchanges, such as Oregon. It's easy for insurers to enroll customers who want a health plan and don't qualify for a subsidy. The trouble comes when insurers and agents need to sync to federal data hubs to verify income, citizenship and other personal information. Democratic Florida state Rep. Richard Stark, who is also an insurance agent, said many of his clients have received inaccurate subsidy estimates from the federal government for clients. For example, a client with twin children was told one is eligible for a subsidy, but not the other.

Like others stymied by website malfunctions, Ken Statz and other agents at his firm in Brecksville, Ohio, filled out paper applications and mailed them, but it was taking time to hear back from the federal government about whether clients are eligible for a subsidy. Then they tried to get creative, planning to fill out the applications with clients during the day and hire someone to input the information into healthcare.gov during off-hours after 11 p.m. But that didn't work either because the site asks personal identification questions that only the user would know.

"We don't have a clear pathway to get them enrolled into the plan. (The federal government) hasn't given us the ability to do that. They're kind of missing the mark on this. They need to realize that we are the best pathway," he said.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, recently sent a letter to federal health officials urging them to fix the barriers hampering brokers and possibly create a way to bypass the healthcare.gov site. She suggested a dedicated call-center line or mailing locations for paper applications.

Stark has noticed a chilly reception toward his industry when he's attended local outreach organizations on the health overhaul.

"They basically didn't want to work with insurance agents because they felt agents were going to steer a customer toward (a plan) where they think they will make the most money," said Stark. "If I steer someone incorrectly to a plan that doesn't meet their needs, there's a lot of hell to pay as an agent."

Navigators will likely be gone when enrollment ends in March. That's why Statz said it's important for federal health officials to empower agents to "help people now, but help them make decisions on their accounts moving forward."

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Follow Kelli Kennedy on Twitter at twitter.com/kkennedyAP Reported by Huffington Post 38 minutes ago.

Doctors Boycotting Obamacare in California

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California's state-run Obamacare health insurance exchange, Covered California, is touted by the Obama administration as a model of the policy's success. That was, in fact, the political strategy all along, as Obama's non-profit organization, Organizing for Action, focused on helping California's rollout effort. But in addition to inflated web traffic numbers and privacy concerns, Covered California now faces an acute doctor shortage.

An estimated 70% of California doctors will not participate in the Obamacare-compliant health insurance policies offered by Covered California, according to the California Medical Association, as reported by the Washington Examiner. Though Covered California claims that 85% of doctors will participate, many doctors listed as participating are expected to decline payment, having learned that reimbursements will be very low.

The shortage of physicians was already expected to be a challenge for Obamacare, given that millions of new patients would potentially be demanding medical services. However, that shortage may now be even more acute than expected, particularly in Obamacare's flagship state. Reimbursement rates in California for federal programs like Medicare were already among the lowest in the nation, the Examiner's Richard Pollock notes.

 
 
 
  Reported by Breitbart 3 minutes ago.

Doing the Math on Walmart: Average Take-Home Pay Barely Covers the Basics

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The past week has seen nationwide protests against low wages paid by Walmart, the nation's largest retailer and by fast-food chains. In an effort to counter the rising tide of criticism as demonstrations were staged at stores all across the country on the retailer's biggest shopping day of the year, Walmart's press releases said the company's wages are "on the higher end of retail" and that its employees make, on average "close to" $12 an hour.

As protests were taking place in Chicago, Dallas, Sacramento, Seattle, St. Paul, Secaucus, NJ, Washington, DC and in communities in southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, Massachusetts and Virginia, I began to wonder: In which of these communities can one live on $12.00 an hour, let alone anything less? So I decided to do some back-of-the-envelope math to pencil out what it would be like to try to get by on what Walmart says is its average wage.

As Walmart spokesperson Kory Lundberg explained in a phone call, typical hours for a full-time Walmart employee are 37 to 38 hours per week, 52 weeks a year. At $12/hour that comes to a an annual salary of $23,088 to $23,712. From a monthly perspective, which is how many of us budget expenses, we're looking at between $1,924 and $1,976. (Remember if $12 is being the "average" wages that means there are also people making less than that.) But working with the average offers some perspective on how much one might have at the end of the month to contribute to the 401K plan that Lundberg said "many" employees participate in (Walmart matches worker contributions up to 6 percent) or to put toward the company health insurance that begins at $18 per pay period (Walmart covers the first $250 in medical costs).

With the federal poverty level for a two-person household at $15,510 for 2013, a single parent of one child earning an average Walmart wage would be well above that poverty level and expect to pay federal taxes. Using the IRS withholding calculator and the Tax Policy Center's payroll tax calculator, we can see that head of household with one dependent who earns an annual salary of $23,088 can expect to pay somewhere between $2300 and about $2400 or so in taxes each year, which works out to about $200 per month. That would drop a $1,924-per-month paycheck to $1,724. (An actual budget would, of course, have to be refined to factor in any local taxes and tax credits.)

Looking at rents around the country where the Walmart "Black Friday" protests took place, an average one-bedroom within 10 miles of Chicago now goes for about $1500 or more a month ($950 if you're further out), in the DC area for $1375, while the average one-bedroom rents for $1005/month in Dallas, $760 in Sacramento, $890 in Ontario, CA, between $810 and $1060 in Seattle, and $975 in St. Paul. Clearly if you live within 10 miles of central Chicago (or another high-rent community) you're going to have to have a rent paying roommate, partner or family member but on the low end, let's look at Sacramento. If your monthly after-tax pay is $1724 (at the $12/hours for 37 hours a week rate) after paying the rent, you have $964 left for the month. It is from this sum you'll be paying an average utility bill of about $150/month, and if in Sacramento a transit pass of about $100. (A Chicago monthly pass will also cost $100 while in DC a month of bus passes costs $64 but a monthly Metrorail pass $230.) If you have opted to go without a landline telephone and manage to find a $50/month cell phone plan after paying rent and these utilities, you're left with $664 to cover the rest of your monthly expenses, including food.

Using US Department of Agriculture (USDA) figures for monthly groceries, you might spend between about $165 if you are on the USDA "thrifty plan" to about $300 on the "liberal plan" for a single person. Split the difference and estimate $232.50 for a single person. If you are also feeding a six-year-old child, add in another $202.40 and remaining spending money for the month drops to $229.10. (Without a child to feed you'd have $431.50 left to work with.) Add a child's monthly bus pass to your budget at $50 and you're at $179.10. If you take advantage of Walmart's health insurance plan and pay $18 twice a month your remaining spending money for the month is $143.10 If you need to pay for a preschooler's daycare at going commercial rates, you're out of luck, as that's going to cost you at least $550 a month.

So in a lower cost-of-living city like Sacramento, a single person would be spending about $1,292.50 and a parent and child about $1,545.90, for bare-bones expenses each month. Shift this to a higher-cost community, like Chicago, while utilities, food and public transportation costs will be similar, housing costs will mean you almost certainly need to be sharing rent.

So after paying for housing, utilities, transportation, food -- and Walmart's most basic health insurance -- a single person living in a relatively low-cost community would have about $395.50 to cover the rest of the month's expenses; a parent with a 6-year-old, about $143.10. For the parent and child household this works out to about $36 a week, or about $5 a day -- and this budget includes no toiletries, clothing or other household purchases. It also does not include any kind of savings to build up any financial cushion, money to take classes at a community college or take other steps that can improve an individual's longer-term financial outlook.

If you'd managed to save up for a home computer or other Internet-enabled device, you might want to try and cover a basic service of about $40 a month that would reduce your monthly available spending money to $103.10 and weekly spare cash to about $26. Not much room for emergencies or education costs, let alone savings or a 401K contribution. Sure, you could put yourself on the "thrifty" USDA food budget and put more spending money back in the budget but spending less than $70 a week to feed mom and a six-year-old, will take some serious budgeting, planning, and figuring out what to do without, at current food prices.

This is the the kind of challenge facing at least half of Walmart's 1.3 million US employees. So while Walmart said the company would be providing its "associates" with "holiday pay equal to an additional day's work" and "a 25 percent discount on an entire basket of goods for their extraordinary efforts" on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, that's unlikely to make up for the chronic penny-pinching necessary to meet basic household needs.

At the same time, other numbers released by Walmart aimed to cast doubt on the involvement of company workers in the protests. Walmart spokesperson Lundberg said that fewer than 20 "associates" were involved in the November 29 protests and no more than six of these Black Friday protests included any Walmart employees. Protest organizers say this assessment isn't accurate. "It's not a fair argument to make given the high level of risk for employees who protest," noted Alex Barrios, spokesperson for California State Senator Norma Torres' who attended a November 29 Walmart protest in Ontario, California. What Barrios was referring to is the retaliatory action Walmart took against workers who joined similar protests in 2012, action that included threatening, disciplining, firing and having employees "surveilled," all of which the said last week was not legal.

"Across the country, there are countless Walmart workers who are paid poverty wages, cannot get enough hours, and have erratic work schedules that make it difficult to survive," said US Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Ed Markey (D-MA), and Representatives Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Judy Chu (D-CA), William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Gwen Moore (D-WI), and Jim McDermott (D-WA), in a statement released to coincide with the Black Friday protests. "We stand with the courageous Walmart workers who are demanding better wages and an end to illegal retaliation," they said. "Walmart, the largest private employer in the United States, has a responsibility to their employees and our country to respect workers and their rights. No one should have to fear losing their jobs just for speaking up."

"The company can do better," said Rep. Schakowsky's spokesperson in a phone call.

"Of course, we have entry-level jobs and we always will. The real issue isn't where you start. It's where you can go once you've started," wrote Walmart on "Black Friday," touting its advancement and promotion records. Right now, however, more than half a million employees of the United States' largest retailer, with net sales of more than $450 billion, can't get very far. Their current wages will barely cover one extra Chicago round-trip transit fare and a dollar cup of coffee to warm their hands while waiting for the bus.

An earlier version of this post appeared on The Pump Handle. Reported by Huffington Post 7 minutes ago.

Vacationing Maryland Health Insurance Exchange Leader Resigns; State Tackles Tech Issues

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Vacationing Maryland Health Insurance Exchange Leader Resigns; State Tackles Tech Issues Patch Savage-Guilford, MD --

As technical issues prevented Marylanders from signing up for health insurance, the exchange's executive director left for a week in the Caribbean. Reported by Patch 16 hours ago.

Catholic School Fires Unwed Pregnant Couple, Leaving Mother Without Health Insurance

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Catholic School Fires Unwed Pregnant Couple, Leaving Mother Without Health Insurance Catholic School Fires Unwed Pregnant Couple, Leaving Mother Without Health Insurance
Health
Legal
Nation
Religion
Lawrence Catholic Academy

Two teachers at a Catholic School in Lawrence, Massachusetts were fired from the school after announcing that they were expecting a child together.

The teachers, Sean Houlihan and Natalie Ferland, have both been teaching at Lawrence Catholic Academy for years. Houlihan teaches social studies to 7th and 8th graders while Ferland teaches 2nd graders.

The couple started dating in March. Things quickly became serious between the two and –surprise!- Ferland found out she was pregnant in October. While the couple is elated to have a child together, their employer isn’t so enthusiastic. Soon after finding out about the pregnancy, school leaders fired both teachers.

When asked why they were being fired, the couple was told their pregnancy was not in line with the teaching and values of the Catholic Church. As most of you probably know, the church condemns sex outside of marriage.

The couple is now accusing the church of hypocrisy after pointing out that other school unwed school staff members have become pregnant in recent years and retained their jobs. Several staff members are divorced as well. Both of these actions are condemned by the church just as the couple’s pregnancy is, so why are they being fired?

“We were role models and effective educators. We cooperated with our colleagues and were committed to social justice in Lawrence,” said Houlihan. “It’s certainly not a Catholic value to throw two people out on the street at the holidays. I am not perfect. But what they did to us was wrong.”

Not only have both of these future parents lost their incomes, but they’ve lost their health insurance as well. As a pregnant mother, Ferland will now be left struggling to pay for imminent prenatal care bills.

School principal Jorge Hernandez declined to answer questions about the couple’s firing from the Eagle Tribune. He referred all inquiries to the Archdiocese of Boston, which released the following statement:

“Lawrence Catholic Academy is committed to providing a Catholic faith-based education as part of an exceptional overall experience. Our teachers sign an agreement to adhere to the teachings and principles of the Catholic Church, among many other criteria essential for employment. When that contract is violated, it is the school’s responsibility to make a determination as to whether a member of the staff can remain based on the facts of the matter.” 

Sources: Eagle Tribune, CBS Boston

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1 Reported by Opposing Views 11 hours ago.

Hawaii releases cost comparisons for health insurance plans under Affordable Care Act

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The Hawaii Insurance Division released a cost comparison sheet on Tuesday that allows individuals and small business owners to see how a health-care plan purchased through the Hawaii Health Connector stacks up against an existing plan. The spreadsheet lists Affordable Care Act-compliant individual and small group plans from Kaiser Permanente Hawaii and the Hawaii Medical Service Association — the only two health insurers participating on the state’s online health-insurance exchange. Individual… Reported by bizjournals 13 hours ago.

Rep. Louie Gohmert Claims Obama is Allowing Evil People to Take Over World (Audio)

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Rep. Louie Gohmert Claims Obama is Allowing Evil People to Take Over World (Audio) Rep. Louie Gohmert Claims Obama is Allowing Evil People to Take Over World (Audio)
Nation
Politics
Religion
Rep. Louie Gohmert Evil People

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) recently claimed that President Obama is trying to “achieve peace by allowing evil people to take over the world.”

According to RightWingWatch.org, Rep. Gohmert was part of a conference call last week that was organized by Pastor Rick Scarborough, who started the group Tea Party Unity (audio below).

Rep. Gohmert didn't provide any proof that "evil people" were taking over the world, but may have been referring to President Obama's recent deal with Iran to stop their enrichment of uranium.

The Tea Party congressman also warned of dire consequences when the "United States is not around with its protective hand in the world to protect freedom and liberty," but failed to mention the US invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as the US drone bombing Pakistan and Yemen.

"Let me tell you folks, when the United States is not around with its protective hand in the world to protect freedom and liberty and freedom from abuse, then there is no other place to go," claimed Rep. Gohmert. "Maybe Israel. But when God removes his protective hand from America, this isn’t a safe place either. I hope and pray people will wake up. You cannot achieve peace by allowing evil people to take over the world, that’s not how it works."

Rep. Gohmert also recently announced that he was going to go without health insurance (and risk financial ruin if he gets sick).

"I've pledged that I'm not taking the subsidy," Rep. Gohmert told Politico.com. "Too many people in my district have lost their insurance because of Obamacare... and because of Obamacare, the remaining insurance is just too expensive. So I'm not going to have insurance, it looks like."

Sources: RightWingWatch.org and Politico.com

1 Reported by Opposing Views 10 hours ago.

Your Year-End Financial To-Do List

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Your Year-End Financial To-Do List Filed under: Personal Finance, 529 Plans, Retirement Plans, Tax Deductions, Financial Education

*Alamy*

By Kimberly Lankford

What should I do before the end of the year to help with my finances?

Here are 10 ways to take advantage of tax breaks, financial strategies and opportunities to boost your savings by year-end.

*1. Add more money to your 401(k).* You can contribute up to $17,500 to your 401(k) for 2013 ($23,000 if you're 50 or older or will be by the end of the year), and you have until Dec. 31 to reach that limit. You can't just add extra money into the account yourself; the pre-tax contributions must be made through payroll deduction. Ask your employer's payroll department what steps you need to take to increase your contributions starting with your next December payday. Some employers also let you contribute a lump sum directly from a year-end bonus, before the money is paid and taxed. See How to Increase 401(k) Contributions for more information about giving your retirement plan a boost at the end of the year.

*2. Consider a Roth conversion.* You have until Dec. 31 to convert money from a traditional IRA to a Roth for 2013. You'll pay taxes on the conversion, but you'll be able to withdraw the money tax-free from the Roth in retirement. Making a Roth conversion is a particularly good idea if your income was lower in 2013 than in previous years. Ted Sarenski, a CPA and financial planner in Syracuse, N.Y., recommends looking at your income each year and calculating how much you could convert without bumping any of the money into the next tax bracket. Spreading your conversions over several years, especially after you retire, can help you avoid having to take big required minimum distributions after age 70½, which could trigger taxes on your Social Security benefits. If you convert and later change your mind because your tax situation changes -- say, because you lose your job before the tax bill is due next year or your investments lose money -- you have until Oct. 15, 2014, to undo the conversion (called "recharacterization").
"You have almost a whole year to look at it and see if you made the right move or not," says Sarenski. If you do recharacterize, you'll get the money back that you paid in taxes, and you can reconvert later, ideally with a lower tax bill. For more information about recharacterization, see Do-Over for a Roth Conversion. For more information about Roth conversion strategies, see The Complexities of Roth Conversions and our Roth IRA Special Report.

*3. Take your required minimum distributions.* If you're older than 70½, you generally need to take required minimum distributions from traditional IRAs, 401(k)s and other retirement-savings plans by Dec. 31 (except for the year you turn 70½, when you're given a extension until April 1 to make your first withdrawal; also, you don't need to take RMDs from your current employer's 401(k) while you're still working). If you miss the deadline, the penalties can be big -- see IRS Cracks Down on Retirees Who Don't Take RMDs. If you haven't taken your RMD yet, contact your administrator soon so you have plenty of time to meet the Dec. 31 deadline. See Calculating Your Required Minimum Distributions and our Required Minimum Distribution Special Report for more information. Also keep in mind that people older than age 70½ can contribute up to $100,000 from their IRAs to charity this year, which counts as their RMD but doesn't boost their adjusted gross income. See Tax-Free Transfers From IRAs to Charity Still Allowed for details.

*4. Make the most tax-effective charitable gifts.* Giving money to charity before the end of the year is a great way to boost your deductions if you itemize. You can deduct all kinds of charitable contributions, including cash, stock and non-cash donations, such as the cost of ingredients you buy for a soup kitchen. Some giving strategies can stretch the tax benefits even further. For example, if you have highly appreciated stock you were planning on selling, consider giving the stock to the charity instead of cash. That way, you get a deduction for the full amount, but you avoid paying capital-gains taxes on the increase in value since you've owned it. See Charities: Give Stocks Instead for details. For a few ideas of ways you can give, see Expand Your Options for Charitable Giving, How to Set Up a Scholarship Fund and Donor-Advised Funds: Contribute Now, Donate Later.

*5. Make energy-efficient home improvements.* If you haven't claimed a tax credit of up to $500 in energy-efficient home improvements since 2006, you have until Dec. 31 to do so. The break applies to 10 percent of the purchase price (not installation costs) of certain insulation materials, energy-efficient windows (which have a $200 limit), external doors and skylights, and roofing materials. You can count both materials and labor costs for certain energy-efficient central air conditioners, electric heat pumps, biomass stoves and water heaters powered by an electric heat pump (up to $300 each, with a maximum credit of $500), or up to $150 for an eligible natural gas, propane or oil furnace or hot water boiler. For more information, see Time Is Running Out on Energy-Efficient Home Improvement Tax Credits.

*6. Check the deadline for cleaning out your flexible spending account.* Until recently, many people had to deplete their FSAs by Dec. 31 or lose whatever money was left in it. That meant December was a time of frantic spending as people raced to spend money at, say, the eye doctor or dentist. Recently, however, the U.S. Treasury Department and IRS changed the FSA rules to allow employers to let people carry over $500 in their FSAs from one year to the next (see Big Change to Flexible Spending Accounts for details). Some employers already offered a grace period until March 15, thanks to an earlier change in the rules by the IRS. But a few employers still require you to use the money by Dec. 31 or lose it. In that case, now is a good time to order contact lenses, visit the eye doctor or dentist, buy new glasses or prescription sunglasses, or pay for other eligible medical expenses. See 7 Smart Uses for Your Flex Account Money for some more ideas.

*7. Open a solo 401(k) for self-employment income*. A solo 401(k) is one of the best ways for self-employed people to save for retirement. You can contribute up to $17,500 ($23,000 if you are 50 or older) plus up to 20 percent of your net self-employment income, up to a maximum contribution of $51,000 for 2013. You have until April 15, 2014, to make contributions for 2013, but you have to open the account by Dec. 31 if you don't already have one. See How the Self-Employed Can Save for Retirement for details. Self-employed people should also time their equipment purchases and other expenses carefully over the next few weeks to make the most of the deductions for 2013. See Last-Minute Tax Breaks for the Self-Employed and Moonlighters for details.

*8. Contribute to a 529 college-savings plan*. This strategy is a win-win: The beneficiary of the account (for instance, your child, grandchild or the child of a friend) can use the money tax-free for college tuition, room and board, and fees. Plus, in many states, you get a state income tax deduction for your contribution. Many 529 plans require you to make your contributions by Dec. 31 to count for that tax year (although some give you until April 15 of the following year). For details, see SavingforCollege.com. Also see Tax Breaks for Grandparents Who Help With College Costs.

*9. Buy health insurance on the exchanges*. For coverage that takes effect on January 1, you must buy the policy before Dec. 23 (the deadline was extended from Dec. 15 because of the problems with HealthCare.gov). If your income is below 400 percent of the federal poverty level -- about $46,000 for an individual and $94,000 for a family of four -- you may qualify for a subsidy to help with the premiums. See Calculating the Health Insurance Subsidy for details. After a very rocky start, HealthCare.gov is working better, and many states that run their own exchanges have improved their websites, too. See Navigating Around the Obamacare Sign-Up Problems for more ways to sign up for coverage.

*10. Take advantage of other tax breaks*. If you were planning to sell stocks soon, pulling the trigger before December could make a difference in your tax bill. See 4 Year-End Moves to Trim Your 2013 Tax Bill and 12 Smart Tax Moves to Make Now for more information about timing your capital gains and losses and other tax moves to make before New Year's Eve.

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-*More from Kiplinger:*-

· 12 Smart Tax Moves to Make Now
· 24 Stocks for 2014
· 15 Gifts That Keep on Giving

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Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments Reported by DailyFinance 3 hours ago.

Sebelius launches review of botched launch of Obamacare’s HealthCare.gov

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Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius has launched an internal review to determine what department policies and management failures might have contributed to the botched rollout of HealthCare.gov, the online health insurance marketplace supporting the health-care law. Reported by Washington Post 56 minutes ago.

Sebelius Requests HealthCare.gov Investigation

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Recognizing that deeper problems may lurk behind the botched rollout of the health care website, President Barack Obama's top health official Wednesday called for an investigation into management and contracting decisions.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a blog post early Wednesday that she is asking the department's inspector general to investigate the contracting process, management, performance and payment issues that may have contributed to the flawed launch of HealthCare.gov. The website was supposed to have been the online portal to coverage under the new health care law, but technical problems turned it into a frustrating bottleneck for millions of consumers. It's working better now after two months of repairs.

The announcement comes as Sebelius heads to Capitol Hill for another round of grilling Wednesday before the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Lawmakers want explanations for dozens of questions about the website's design, workability and security. They also want to know why Sebelius and other top officials repeatedly assured them everything was on track.

Although Republicans have called for Sebelius to resign, and some Democrats have urged Obama to fire those responsible, the White House has given no indication that a house-cleaning is coming. Instead, it has brought in outside management to help Sebelius and her department cope. The secretary's unusual pre-dawn announcement of an inspector general probe indicates that she realizes she has some explaining to do.

"I believe strongly in the need for accountability, and in the importance of being good stewards of taxpayer dollars," Sebelius said in her announcement. The website has cost taxpayers more than $600 million so far, according to the congressional Government Accountability Office.

In addition to the inspector general review, Sebelius said she has ordered the hiring of a new "chief risk officer" at the Medicare agency, which also oversees the new programs created to expand health insurance coverage under Obama's law. That official will focus on making sure technology programs work as advertised.

Sebelius also said she's ordered a retraining of her department on best practices for outside contracting.

"The launch of HealthCare.gov was flawed and simply unacceptable," Sebelius wrote. "As we continue our relentless efforts to enhance Healthcare.gov — and as we continue to adapt and improve based on the feedback we are getting from customers and issuers — we must take concrete action to prevent these problems in the future." Reported by Huffington Post 28 minutes ago.

Consumer Reports finds many people still mystified by the new health care law

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*Consumer Reports finds many people still mystified by the new health care law*

More than a month into the first open enrollment in the new Health Insurance Marketplaces, chances are you are as confused as ever about how the Affordable Care Act works and how it affects you. That’s the conclusion the Consumer Reports National Research Center drew from a telephone survey of a nationally representative sample of 1,000 adults taken Nov. 8 throiugh 10. Consumers can’t figure out which media reports, ads, or politicians are providing accurate information—which may explain why they don’t know much about the law even now.

That's especially unfortunate considering that anyone who needs new health insurance to start on Jan. 1, 2014, only has until Dec. 23 to get it.

Some particulars from the survey:

· 38 percent said they’d become less informed about the new law over the previous month, compared with 35 percent who felt they knew more it.
· The most often-cited sources of information about the new law were network and cable news, and the internet, followed closely by friends, family, and co-workers. Only 15 percent said they’d sought information from an insurance company.
· 90 percent chose at least one item from a list of sources of inaccurate information that cause them not to know what to believe about the law.

As a a result, many people people can’t separate real provisions of the law from fake ones. For instance, 36 percent believe it gives the government the ability to control the doctors you see. It doesn’t. Encouragingly though, 56 percent knew that the law ends the practice of denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions, and that it gives financial help to enable low- and moderate-income families to afford insurance.

Here’s the complete list of features we asked about (we’ve put the correct answers next to the questions):

*To the best of your knowledge, do you think each of the following statements about the law are true, false, or are you just not sure?*
* *

*TRUE*

*FALSE*

*NOT SURE*

*The law establishes a government-run health insurance plan (FALSE)*

*48%*

*21%*

*31%*

*The law prohibits lifetime caps, or limits, on insurance coverage (TRUE)*

*32%*

*19%*

*49%*

*The law creates government panels that will make decisions about end-of-life care (FALSE)*

*30%*

*27%*

*43%*

*The law prohibits insurance companies from denying coverage to an individual because of their past and current health condition (TRUE)*

*56%*

*19%*

*25%*

*The law gives the government the ability to control the doctors you see (FALSE)*

*36%*

*24%*

*30%*

*The law creates tax credits for low and moderate income Americans who don’t have employer coverage to help purchase private health insurance (TRUE)*

*56%*

*13%*

*31%*

If you are among the befuddled, a suggestions.

Our free interactive tool, HealthLawHelper.org, will give you personalized information on what, if anything, you need to do about the new law. For instance, if your plan is being discontinued at the end of the year, it will tell you whether you are likely to qualify for financial help with premiums or out-of-pocket costs, and it will also send you off to the correct state Health Insurance Market to buy your new plan.

Got a question for our health insurance expert? Ask it here; be sure to include the state you live in. And if you can't get enough health insurance news here, follow me on Twitter @NancyMetcalf.

*Health reform countdown: We are doing an article a day on the new health care law until Jan. 1, 2014, when it takes full effect. (Read the previous posts in the series.) To get health insurance advice tailored to your situation, use our Health Law Helper, below.*

*Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers or sponsors on this website. Copyright © 2007-2013 Consumers Union of U.S.*

*Subscribe now!*
Subscribe to *ConsumerReports.org* for expert Ratings, buying advice and reliability on hundreds of products.
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Update your feed preferences Reported by Consumer Reports 18 minutes ago.

What to Look for When Shopping for Health Insurance

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What to Look for When Shopping for Health Insurance ORANGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Now it's easy to find a health plan that addresses your individual health needs and satisfies the Affordable Care Act "individual mandate." Reported by Business Wire 28 minutes ago.

Sebelius asks for investigation of flawed website

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Recognizing that deeper problems may lurk behind the botched rollout of the health care website, President Barack Obama's top health official Wednesday called for an investigation into management and contracting decisions. The website was supposed to have been the online portal to coverage under the new health care law, but technical problems turned it into a frustrating bottleneck for millions of consumers. In addition to the inspector general review, Sebelius said she has ordered the hiring of a new "chief risk officer" at the Medicare agency, which also oversees the new programs created to expand health insurance coverage under Obama's law. Reported by SeattlePI.com 14 minutes ago.

4 in 10 Americans Would Rather Pay Fine Than Buy Health Insurance

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SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Approximately four in 10 Americans (38%) would rather pay a fine than buy health insurance, according to a new insuranceQuotes.com report. 65% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 would buy health insurance versus 57% of Americans... Reported by PR Newswire 2 days ago.

Zane Benefits Publishes New Information on Defined Contribution and Health Insurance

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We've answered the top questions about defined contribution and health insurance.

Park City, Utah (PRWEB) December 11, 2013

Today, Zane Benefits, the number one online small business health benefits solution, published new information on defined contribution and health insurance.

According to Zane Benefits’ website, when considering defined contribution health benefits, one of the first questions employers and employees ask is about the health insurance coverage they'll have access to.

Pure defined contribution health benefits are an emerging employee health benefits solution, gaining popularity with small and medium sized businesses in the US. The basic concept is that the company offers employees health insurance allowances as an alternative group health insurance, which is often unaffordable to small and mid-size companies. This strategy works well because it offers predictable costs while giving employees access to quality health insurance.

Pure defined contribution health benefits by themselves are not health insurance. What the company offers is a healthcare reimbursement plan rather than specific health insurance benefits.

Individual health insurance is a type of policy that an employee purchases for himself and/or his family - just like car insurance. Employees own the policy and can take it with them if they leave the company. Employees pay for their policy, and can use their defined contribution health benefits to reimburse themselves for the premium.

Employees can purchase health insurance from any insurance company in their state. Because of new health reform changes, buying an individual health insurance policy has gotten easier. Employees are no longer asked medical history information on the application, and cannot be denied or charged more because of a pre-existing condition. Employees can purchase insurance through a licensed health insurance agent, online, or through the Health Insurance Marketplace in their state.

Click here to read the full article.

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About Zane Benefits
Zane Benefits was founded in 2006 to provide a revolutionized SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) administration platform ("ZaneHealth") for defined contribution health care. The flagship software provides a 100% paperless administration experience to small businesses and insurance professionals that want to offer better health benefits without a traditional group health insurance plan at lower costs. For more information about Zane Benefits, visit http://www.zanebenefits.com. Reported by PRWeb 2 days ago.

Floridians lead enrollment in federal health insurance marketplace

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More Floridians are signing up for the new federal health insurance program than residents in any other state, with nearly 18,000 registering over the last two months.

According to figures released Wednesday, nearly 14,500 Floridians signed up under the Affordable Care Act in November. That compares to about 11,000 in Texas.

Florida's November enrollment figures are considerably higher than the 3,500 in October when sign-ups were dwarfed by technical glitches with healthcare.gov. But it's still far less than what officials originally had projected.

Enrollment statistics from the Health and Human Services Department show that 364,682 people nationwide have signed up for private coverage as of Nov. 30. That figure is less than one-third of the 1.2 million people officials had originally projected would enroll nationwide by the end of November. Reported by Click Orlando 2 days ago.

How many Californians completed applications for health insurance?

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A total of 107,087 Californians competed applications for health insurance through the state health benefit exchange and picked a health plan by the end of November, according to new federal data. That’s three times the 35,364 figure for October, Covered California’s first month of operation. And it’s almost 30 percent of the 364,682 sign-ups nationwide since October 1. Not only is California a leader in enrollment for coverage under the Affordable Care Act, it’s way out front. Second-place… Reported by bizjournals 2 days ago.

Waiting for a health insurance bill could cause trouble

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If you're buying a policy on the federal Health Insurance Marketplace, your premium payment must be received by the insurance company by Dec. 31 or your insurance will not be effective Jan. 1 and you will have to start the enrollment process all over again. Reported by KansasCity.com 2 days ago.
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