{ "id": "R44438", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "R", "number": "R44438", "active": true, "source": "CRSReports.Congress.gov, EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source_dir": "crsreports.congress.gov", "title": "The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief", "retrieved": "2020-09-07T12:21:52.167757", "id": "R44438_13_2020-08-25", "formats": [ { "filename": "files/2020-08-25_R44438_ecc242dad5e3a7670a00813a872b0f4277da98bf.pdf", "format": "PDF", "url": "https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R44438/13", "sha1": "ecc242dad5e3a7670a00813a872b0f4277da98bf" }, { "format": "HTML", "filename": "files/2020-08-25_R44438_ecc242dad5e3a7670a00813a872b0f4277da98bf.html" } ], "date": "2020-08-25", "summary": null, "source": "CRSReports.Congress.gov", "typeId": "R", "active": true, "sourceLink": "https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/details?prodcode=R44438", "type": "CRS Report" }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 585215, "date": "2018-03-19", "retrieved": "2019-12-20T21:42:16.860309", "title": "The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief", "summary": "The individual mandate, as established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended), has been in effect since 2014. The mandate requires most individuals to maintain health insurance coverage, but some individuals are exempt from the mandate. Those who are not exempt and who do not maintain coverage are subject to a penalty for noncompliance implemented through the Internal Revenue Code. \nThe penalty for noncompliance is assessed for each month in which an individual does not have coverage or is not exempt from the mandate. The annual penalty is the greater of a flat dollar amount or a percentage of applicable income. For 2017 and 2018, the flat dollar amount is $695 and the percentage of income is 2.5%. Beginning in 2019, the penalty will be effectively eliminated because the flat dollar amount will be $0 and the percentage of income will be 0%. \nThe effective elimination of the penalty was included in the 2017 tax revision, P.L. 115-97, which was enacted on December 22, 2017. The 2017 tax revision does not make any other substantive changes to the statutory language establishing the mandate and its associated penalty. As of the date of this report, guidance has not been issued regarding the effective elimination of the individual mandate penalty in 2019. \nThere are a number of different exemptions from the mandate for which individuals may qualify. For example, individuals with certain religious beliefs and those whose household income is below the filing threshold for federal income taxes are not subject to the mandate and its associated penalty. Individuals can either apply for exemptions through the health insurance exchanges or claim exemptions when they file their federal tax returns. \nIndividual mandate penalty data are available for tax year (TY) 2014 and TY2015. Data for TY2014\u2014the first year the individual mandate was in effect\u2014indicate that 8.1 million tax returns reported a total of about $1.7 billion in individual mandate payments. More than 13.3 million taxpayers claimed an exemption from the mandate in TY2014. Data for TY2015 indicate that approximately 6.7 million tax returns reported penalty payments totaling $3.1 billion in TY2015. Preliminary data on the exemption suggest that approximately 12.7 million taxpayers claimed an exemption in TY2015.\nThis report provides a brief overview of the individual mandate, its associated penalty, and the exemptions from the mandate. The report includes some national- and state-level data on the application of the mandate\u2019s penalty in TY2014 and TY2015.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44438", "sha1": "7584d47caf2666f48779ee80588d250bc6c47a0f", "filename": "files/20180319_R44438_7584d47caf2666f48779ee80588d250bc6c47a0f.html", "images": {} }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44438", "sha1": "db037d12712ce709688cf9b0d5dfbc01df81ee10", "filename": "files/20180319_R44438_db037d12712ce709688cf9b0d5dfbc01df81ee10.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4790, "name": "Private Health Insurance" } ] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 575522, "date": "2017-11-16", "retrieved": "2017-11-28T14:38:44.085628", "title": "The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief", "summary": "Since 2014, most individuals have been required to maintain health insurance coverage. Some individuals are exempt from this individual mandate. Those who are not exempt and who do not maintain coverage are subject to a penalty for noncompliance implemented through the Internal Revenue Code. The requirement was established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended). \nThere are a number of different exemptions for which individuals may qualify. For example, individuals with certain religious beliefs and those whose household income is below the filing threshold for federal income taxes are not subject to the mandate and its associated penalty. Individuals can either apply for exemptions through the health insurance exchanges or claim exemptions when they file their federal tax returns. \nIndividuals who do not maintain minimum essential coverage and are not exempt from the mandate must pay a penalty for each month of noncompliance with the mandate. The penalty is the greater of a flat dollar amount or a percentage of applicable income. For 2017, the flat dollar amount is $695 and the percentage of income is 2.5%. \nData for tax year (TY) 2014\u2014the first year the individual mandate was in effect\u2014indicate that 8.1 million tax returns reported a total of about $1.7 billion in individual mandate payments. More than 13.3 million taxpayers claimed an exemption from the mandate in TY2014. Data for TY2015 indicate that approximately 6.7 million tax returns reported penalty payments totaling $3.1 billion in TY2015. Preliminary data on the exemption suggests that approximately 12.7 million taxpayers claimed an exemption in TY2015.\nThis report provides a brief overview of the individual mandate, its associated penalty, and the exemptions from the mandate. The report includes some national- and state-level data on the application of the mandate\u2019s penalty in TY2014 and TY2015.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44438", "sha1": "f18c15176d8396de7629afff79261d29926ed8d5", "filename": "files/20171116_R44438_f18c15176d8396de7629afff79261d29926ed8d5.html", "images": {} }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44438", "sha1": "4dd1e4b4f0e4cceecba2948d09d6d19e78bc2660", "filename": "files/20171116_R44438_4dd1e4b4f0e4cceecba2948d09d6d19e78bc2660.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4790, "name": "Private Health Insurance" } ] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 574036, "date": "2017-10-11", "retrieved": "2017-10-17T14:20:00.321703", "title": "The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief", "summary": "Since 2014, most individuals have been required to maintain health insurance coverage. Some individuals are exempt from this individual mandate. Those who are not exempt and who do not maintain coverage are subject to a penalty for noncompliance implemented through the Internal Revenue Code. The requirement was established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended). \nThere are a number of different exemptions for which individuals may qualify. For example, individuals with certain religious beliefs and those whose household income is below the filing threshold for federal income taxes are not subject to the mandate and its associated penalty. Individuals can either apply for exemptions through the health insurance exchanges or claim exemptions when they file their federal tax returns. \nIndividuals who do not maintain minimum essential coverage and are not exempt from the mandate must pay a penalty for each month of noncompliance with the mandate. The penalty is the greater of a flat dollar amount or a percentage of applicable income. For 2017, the flat dollar amount is $695 and the percentage of income is 2.5%. \nData for tax year (TY) 2014\u2014the first year the individual mandate was in effect\u2014indicate that 8.1 million tax returns reported a total of about $1.7 billion in individual mandate payments. More than 13.3 million taxpayers claimed an exemption from the mandate in TY2014. Data for TY2015 indicate that approximately 6.7 million tax returns reported penalty payments totaling $3.1 billion in TY2015. Preliminary data on the exemption suggests that approximately 12.7 million taxpayers claimed an exemption in TY2015.\nThis report provides a brief overview of the individual mandate, its associated penalty, and the exemptions from the mandate. The report includes some national- and state-level data on the application of the mandate\u2019s penalty in TY2014 and TY2015.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44438", "sha1": "b7a1813d54438fdae1011a335102126068e3eac7", "filename": "files/20171011_R44438_b7a1813d54438fdae1011a335102126068e3eac7.html", "images": {} }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44438", "sha1": "8c059e294c6d16b8d9f3498109c2f9dbf10fe3ce", "filename": "files/20171011_R44438_8c059e294c6d16b8d9f3498109c2f9dbf10fe3ce.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4790, "name": "Private Health Insurance" } ] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 463262, "date": "2017-08-14", "retrieved": "2017-08-22T13:24:29.652990", "title": "The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief", "summary": "Since 2014, most individuals have been required to maintain health insurance coverage. Some individuals are exempt from this individual mandate. Those who are not exempt and who do not maintain coverage are subject to a penalty for noncompliance implemented through the Internal Revenue Code. The requirement was established under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended). \nThere are a number of different exemptions for which individuals may qualify. For example, individuals with certain religious beliefs and those whose household income is below the filing threshold for federal income taxes are not subject to the mandate and its associated penalty. Individuals can either apply for exemptions through the health insurance exchanges or claim exemptions when they file their federal tax returns. \nIndividuals who do not maintain minimum essential coverage and are not exempt from the mandate must pay a penalty for each month of noncompliance with the mandate. The penalty is the greater of a flat dollar amount or a percentage of applicable income. For 2017, the flat dollar amount is $695 and the percentage of income is 2.5%. \nData for tax year (TY) 2014\u2014the first year the individual mandate was in effect\u2014indicate that 8.1 million tax returns reported a total of about $1.7 billion in individual mandate payments. More than 13.3 million taxpayers claimed an exemption from the mandate in TY2014. Preliminary data for TY2015 indicate that approximately 6.6 million tax returns reported penalty payments totaling $3.0 billion in TY2015. Approximately 12.7 million taxpayers claimed an exemption in TY2015, according to the preliminary data.\nThis report provides a brief overview of the individual mandate, its associated penalty, and the exemptions from the mandate. The report includes some national- and state-level data on the application of the mandate\u2019s penalty in TY2014 and TY2015.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44438", "sha1": "01ecac576d4ff57a2a39a3bd54c39d2f72eb5bbf", "filename": "files/20170814_R44438_01ecac576d4ff57a2a39a3bd54c39d2f72eb5bbf.html", "images": {} }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44438", "sha1": "51a969319b2674c1c20a052a63935f79680258ff", "filename": "files/20170814_R44438_51a969319b2674c1c20a052a63935f79680258ff.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4790, "name": "Private Health Insurance" } ] }, { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 451228, "date": "2016-03-30", "retrieved": "2016-04-06T16:50:18.580447", "title": "The Individual Mandate for Health Insurance Coverage: In Brief", "summary": "Since 2014, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA; P.L. 111-148, as amended) has required most individuals to maintain health insurance coverage. Some individuals are exempt from this requirement. Those who are not exempt and who do not maintain coverage are subject to a penalty for noncompliance. \nThere are a number of different exemptions for which individuals may qualify. For example, individuals with certain religious beliefs and those whose household income is below the filing threshold for federal income taxes are not subject to the mandate and its associated penalty. Individuals can either apply for exemptions through the health insurance exchanges or claim exemptions when they file their federal tax returns. \nIndividuals who do not maintain minimum essential coverage and are not exempt from the mandate must pay a penalty for each month of noncompliance with the mandate. The penalty is the greater of a flat dollar amount or a percentage of applicable income. For 2016, the flat dollar amount is $695 and the percentage of income is 2.5%. \nThis report provides a brief overview of the individual mandate, its associated penalty, and the exemptions from the mandate.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/R44438", "sha1": "9629772952813ee3892b8ce85ef4a7c94d252c12", "filename": "files/20160330_R44438_9629772952813ee3892b8ce85ef4a7c94d252c12.html", "images": null }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R44438", "sha1": "2c6ca4c529f9afd15482aafb1d7b83d5966e969c", "filename": "files/20160330_R44438_2c6ca4c529f9afd15482aafb1d7b83d5966e969c.pdf", "images": null } ], "topics": [] } ], "topics": [ "Health Policy" ] }