Important Health Savings Account Requirements

Individuals who make Health Savings Account (HSA) contributions, including employer contributions, will receive Form 5498-SA from their financial institution or HSA trustee and Form 1099-SA will be issued if an HSA distribution was made. All individuals who have an HSA must file Form 8889 as an attachment to their Form 1040 for any year in which they make or receive HSA contributions or for any year in which they receive an HSA distribution. For further information, visit www.irs.gov/form8889 or contact your tax accountant.

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Winterizing Your Home

Here are a few helpful hints from Paul Davis Restoration on winterizing your home:
1. Get the Furnace Ready:
a. Call an HVAC professional to inspect furnace and clean ducts.
b. If home is heated by a hot water radiator, bleed the valves by opening them slightly and when water appears, close them.
2. Get the Fireplace Ready:
a. Cap or screen the top of the chimney to keep out rodents and birds.
b. If the chimney hasn’t been cleaned for a while, call a chimney sweep to remove soot and creosote.
3. Check the Exterior, Doors, and Windows:
a. Inspect exterior for crevice cracks and exposed entry points around pipes; seal them.
b. Use weather stripping around doors to prevent warm air from creeping to your roof, causing ice dams.
4. Inspect Roof, Gutters and Downspouts:
a. Adding extra insulation to the attic will prevent warm air from creeping to your roof.
b. Clean out the gutters and use a hose to spray water down the downspouts.
5. Install Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors:
a. Buy extra smoke detector batteries and change them when daylight savings ends.
b. Install a carbon monoxide detector near your furnace/water heater.
6. Prevent Plumbing Freezes:
a. Locate your water main in the event you need to shut it off in an emergency.
b. Drain all garden hoses.
c. Insulate exposed plumbing pipe.s
d. Drain AC pipes and if your AC has a shut off valve, turn it off.
e. If you go on vacation, leave the heat set to at least 55 degrees.

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Reminder to Employers to Distribute Creditable Coverage Notice to Medicare-Eligible Participants by October 15, 2011

http://emersonreid.dmplocal.com/main/index.php?wd=ArticleGateway&article_id=2163&smart_skin_id=58&viewers_email=corinne@bowersinsurance.com&id=2759&ids=57c37dac136252a6e724eb6274a29eef01e9fe8a&utm_source=DMC&utm_medium=EMAIL&utm_content=G1sQC1teByFSChVUSxURWhEXR1EMAlVLAV5U&utm_campaign=2759:Market%2520Beat%2520Newsletter%2520-%2520with%2520auto%2520trigger

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Health Reform Update- Small Employer Tax Credit

As you know, the Affordable Care Act allows certain employers
to be eligible for a tax credit. Specifically, the credit is geared
toward employers with 25 or fewer employees with average
income of $50,000 or less. Small employers face two important
deadlines in the coming weeks:
• September 15 – Corporations that file on a calendar year
basis and requested an extension to file to September
15 can calculate the small employer health care credit on
Form 8941 and claim it as part of the general business
credit on Form 3800, which they would include with their
corporate income tax return.
• October 17 – Sole proprietors who file Form 1040 and
partners and S-corporation shareholders who report their
income on Form 1040 have until October 17 to complete
their returns. They would also use Form 8941 to
calculate the small employer health care credit and claim
it as a general business credit on Form 3800, reflected on
line 53 of Form 1040.
In addition, tax –exempt organizations that file on a calendar
year basis and requested an extension to file to November 15
can use Form 8941 and then claim the credit on Form 990-T,
Line 44f.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),
along with the IRS, will be targeting small businesses and tax
preparers through a new outreach campaign that includes
YouTube videos, emails and tweets to remind employers about
the upcoming extension deadlines and provide details on other
important information about the credit including:
• Business who have already filed can still claim the
credit.
o For small businesses that have already filed and later
determine they are eligible for the credit, they can
always file an amended 2010 tax return. Corporations
use Form 1120X and individual sole proprietors use
Form 1040X.
• Businesses without tax liability this year can still
benefit.
o The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 provided that
for Tax Year 2010, eligible small businesses may carry
back unused general business credits (including
the small employer health care tax credit) five years.
Previously these credits could only be carried back one
year. Small businesses that did not have tax liability to
offset in 2010 should still evaluate eligibility for the small
business health care tax credit in light of this expanded
carry back opportunity.
• Businesses that couldn’t use the credit in 2010 can
claim it in future years.
o Some businesses that already locked into health
insurance plan structures and contributions for 2010
may not have had the opportunity to make any needed
adjustments to qualify for the credit for 2010. These
businesses may be eligible to claim the credit on 2011
returns or in years beyond. Small employers can claim
the credit for 2010 through 2013 and for two additional
years beginning in 2014.
Additional information about eligibility requirements and
calculating the credit can be found on the Small Business
Health Care Tax Credit for Small Employers page of IRS.gov.

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Pool Safety

- Always watch children when they are in or around the pool.
- Teach children basic water safety tips (no running, how to recognize when someone is in danger of drowning, etc.)
- Know how to shut off pool equipment in case of an emergency and post instructions so others can quickly do so.
- Never leave toys or floats in the pool when not in use – they can make tempting targets for toddlers to reach out for.
- Share safety instructions and pool rules with anyone who might at some point be in or around the pool.
- Teach your children to swim or enroll them in swimming lessons. Be sure you know how to swim as well.
- Learn how to do CPR on children and adults and update these skills regularly.
- Keep the pool area free from electrical devices, glass, and other hazards.
- Never let anyone swim alone.
- Limit alcohol use around the pool area. (The CDC reports that alcohol is a factor in many adolescent and adult deaths related to water recreation.)
- Place life-saving devices such as rings and poles within easy reach of the pool.
- Install pool and gate alarms along with a 4 foot tall fence around the perimeter of the pool.

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June 16th Workplace Privacy Seminar

Smith & Downey will be sponsoring a free breakfast seminar on June 16th to discuss Workplace Privacy. See the attached for further details on topics and how to register.

We have seen a substantial increase in the number of inquiries regarding privacy-related issues. These questions pertain to both the acquisition of “private” information about employees and job applicants and the protection of an employer’s “private” information such as its trade secrets.

In response, we are sponsoring a breakfast seminar that will discuss the following issues:

ACQUISITION OF PRIVATE INFORMATION ABOUT EMPLOYEES/APPLICANTS
1. Background checks, including an overview of applicable federal (e.g., Fair Credit Reporting Act) and state (e.g., Maryland Job Applicant Fairness Act) laws;
2. The non-health plan-related laws governing an employer's acquisition of employee medical and genetic information;
3. Drug and alcohol testing;
4. Criminal history considerations;
5. Social media considerations;
6. Social Security numbers (and related issues); and
7. Miscellaneous privacy issues, including employee use of employer telephones and computers.

PROTECTION OF EMPLOYER’S PRIVATE INFORMATION
1. Overview of Uniform Trade Secrets Act; and
2. Use of non-disclosure, non-compete and trade secret agreements.

The seminar will be held at Abilities Network, 8503 Lasalle Road, Towson, Maryland 21286, from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 16, 2011.

Continental breakfast will be provided and there is no charge for the seminar. Space is limited, so please contact Jamie Pasko at jpasko@smithdowney.com or 410-321-9000 if you would like to reserve a spot.

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Managing Health Care Costs

With the rising cost of gas prices we all need to look for ways to reduce other expenses. One way is to review your health care costs by using generic prescription drugs and in-network health care providers. CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield has useful tools on their website to help you with this task. Go to the following link to see how you can reduce your health care costs.

https://member.carefirst.com/wps/portal/Member/FinancialResources/CareCosts?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wcmwps/wcm/connect/Content-Member/CareFirst/MemberPortal/FinancialResources/noTabStandard/ManagingCareCosts

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