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It’s still a year away but for tax years beginning after 2010, your W-2 form will contain some handy new information – the amount your healthcare coverage really costs. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires this disclosure by businesses and my guess is that most employees will be shocked at the number they see.

 

The official term to describe the number you will see is “aggregate cost of applicable employer-sponsored coverage.” This includes healthcare plans such as major medical coverage and Health Reimbursement arrangements as well as the value of on-site medical clinics and employer contributions to Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) and Health Savings Accounts. The “aggregate” part of that term means that both employer and employee contributions to medical coverage will be shown.

 

Specific regulatory guidance is still being formulated, of course. But the bottom line for employers is that the real cost of the healthcare benefits you provide will soon be out in the open for your employees to see.