ACE Webinar on Providing Subsidized Student Health Insurance to Graduate Students Now Available
May 27, 2016

A free video and PowerPoint slides (381 KB PDF) are now available of the May 12 ACE webinar exploring whether helping graduate students pay for student health insurance could trigger penalties for colleges and universities under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Last spring, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) raised questions about whether institutions providing subsidized student health insurance to their graduate students are in violation of the ACA. On Feb. 5, 2016, the IRS and several other agencies issued a notice that provides temporary transition relief for institutions that provide such subsidies. You can find an analysis of this notice and potential options for schools from Ernst & Young LLP here (260 KB PDF).

Webinar attendees learned more about the IRS notice and its implications for student health plans, including:

  • When can a contribution to a student health plan trigger a penalty?
  • How are the penalties calculated?
  • What are the implications for graduate students?
  • How are other institutions responding?

The ACE-hosted webinar featured two experts from Ernst & Young: Helen Morrison, a principal in the firm’s National Tax Department, and Heather Meade, who advises policy makers, trade associations and others on a broad range of health and tax-exempt issues as part of Ernst & Young’s Washington Council practice.