Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Southwest Portland Post. (Portland, Oregon) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 2013)
November 2013 NEWS The Southwest Portland Post • 7 Donnerberg offers Hillsdale merchants a crash course in healthcare OBAMACARE 101 By Erik Vidstrand The Southwest Portland Post Enrollment for new national health insurance options has be- gun! The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, provides more options for health insurance. Oregon Health Plan (OHP) will be available for many more clients and others will be able to buy sub- sidized health insurance plans. Undoubtedly, as a business own- er or employee, questions are aris- ing about how to enroll, eligibility, Fast Track enrollment, and more. And on top of it all, the government website has been full of bugs and is being repaired. Lyndsey Donnerberg, of Client First Group, Inc., was on hand at the October Hillsdale Business Association meeting to help small business owners navigate the sys- tem. First, it is a misconception that all businesses have to provide health insurance for their employees. If your business has less than 50 full- time employees, no group plan is required. If your business already has a health plan in place, you need do nothing. Large employers (greater than 50 employees) must offer fulltime em- ployees, and their dependents, the “Employee Mandate” (also known as “Pay or Play”) but have until January 2015 without any penalties. Of course, employers are still en- couraged to maintain health cover- age in 2014, but there won’t be any penalties in 2014 for not meeting the “employee mandate’. For individuals, self employed, sole proprietor, or employees in small businesses who don’t have insurance, have many options and tax credits are available. This ap- plies to over half of Oregonians. A small employer has the choice of offering coverage directly with a carrier or through the insurance marketplace called Cover Oregon. Cover Oregon is taking enroll- ments for Jan. 1, 2014, by hand until the computer glitches are fixed. “Individual carriers participat- ing with Cover Oregon, at the moment,” Donnerberg explained, “include Kaiser, HealthNet, Life- Wise, Moda (formerly ODS), Pacific Source, and Providence.” Client First Group encourages a small business owner to discon- tinue group plans and consider pay raises to account for the premium savings. This places the employer out of the decision making and administration process. It gives employees and their families the ability to shop through Cover Oregon and take advantage of any financial assistance avail- able. This allows employees and owners to plan decisions that fit their personal needs. The uniqueness of this plan is that there is no refusal for pre-existing conditions. If you’re still with me, there are many other rules and details and this article cannot fully cover ev- erything. “Please be patient!” Donnerberg stressed. “This is a very big en- deavor and everyone is frustrated from President Obama on down!” As is any health insurance in- formation, all employers were not willing to discuss the intricacies of their coverage offering. Local employers this reporter spoke to are either are too small and it doesn’t apply, or were still working out details. Mike Roach, owner of Paloma Clothing in Hillsdale supports the reform. In fact, he advocated for it in front of the US Senate committee in April 2008. Roach has lent his voice to the Small Business Majority, a separate organization that supports the Af- fordable Care Act. They discussed how the law has already begun to help small business owners through small business tax credits, rate review, the Medical Loss Ratio provision, and more. Roach also belongs to the Na- tional Federation of Independent Businesses, a Tennessee based lobbying group, which joined 26 states in challenging the 2010 Af- fordable Care Act which is fighting the measure. “Use a broker. The broker does not cost the consumer anything,” Roach said. “And don’t be fooled by scam artists. The broker acts like the travel agent and gets reimbursed by the insurance companies” “Call anytime,” Donnerberg whispered. “Really.” For more information, please contact Lyndsey Donnerberg at Client First Group at 503-597-6332 or lyndsey@ clientfirstgroup.com or drop by Paloma Clothing to find owner Mike Roach. PoSt a to Z BuSineSS CaRd diReCtoRy 503-244-6933 PRECISION HOME REPAIR & DRYWALL JON A. GOSCH The IDEA Today … The SIGN Tomorrow! Phone: 503-643-3517 •SIGNS •BANNERS •GRAPHICS E-mail: precision17@frontier.com Quality work at affordable rates! Mention this ad and receive 10% off your next job! •MAGNETICS •LETTERING •LOGOS&MORE 503.244.0980 Licensed•Bonded•Insured•CCB#77073 9220 SW Barbur Blvd. #111 - Portland - OR - 97219 Check out our Website! View current and past issues of the Post online. www.swportlandpost.com Transformation Massage Neuromuscular Therapy ∞ Trigger Point Therapy Reiki Master ∞ Pain & Stress Relief Experienced Business and Family Attorney Since 1985 Est. 1996 503.226.4644 Hours: 9:30am - 6:30pm Tuesday and Thursday Real Estate – Foreclosures, Sales and Disputes Family Law and Custody Probate, Conservator, Guardianships 9663 SW Barbur Blvd., Port., OR. 97219 ∞ 503.739.1108 www.transformation8massage.com Rebecca Hart MFA, LMT OR #6353 ∞ WA #MA8962 www.woodworthlaw.com www.portlanddivorcelawyer.com
