CERCA:
Healthcare Working Group
Fall Meeting
October 12, 2011
Healthcare Working Group:
Background

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) calls for the IRS to
implement and administer a large number of provisions

ACA established the need for most legal residents of the United States to
obtain health insurance.

Implementation will impact critical IRS systems including:

The ACA will also have a significant impact on external stakeholders:
◦ Submissions processing, account management, document matching, notice
generation, and multiple compliance programs.
◦ Establishment of significant new processes
◦ Development of new technology solutions
◦
◦
◦
◦
Tax preparers
Taxpayers
Software developers
Education providers
Healthcare Working Group:
Purpose

Facilitates information sharing between CERCA
members and the IRS

Address primarily from an IRS perspective, while
considering inter-agency interoperability (e.g., HHS,
SSA, and States), and other stakeholders

HCWG will support IRS to meet their objectives to
efficiently implement and administer ACA knowing it
will have a significant impact on electronic tax
administration
Healthcare Working Group:
How we will Operate

Gather, analyze and understand available information on IRS
implementation

Analyze IRS progress and determine its impact on the tax
ecosystem.

Facilitate dissemination of information via CERCA channels

Work with IRS officials on ACA topics, proposed by HCWG
members or the IRS

Act as a sounding board for the IRS

Provide feedback to the IRS, as appropriate
Healthcare Working Group:
Identified Areas of Possible Focus










Stakeholder Analysis (Roles, Risks, Impacts)
Interagency Dependencies
Development of Technology Infrastructure
Defining Standards
Security & Privacy in ACA Implementations
Tax Gap, Threats and Implications
Complexity of Compliance
Ownership by the taxpayers
Fraud, Threats and Prevention
Consistent Interfaces
Healthcare Working Group:
Progress

Charter approved by the CERCA Board in
March of 2011

Originally chaired by Jerry Anderson of CSC

Has met four times in DC since the beginning
of 2011

Lauretta Brown of Capgemini, and Kerri
Gibson of CCH, have been appointed as cochairs of the CERCA Health Care
Healthcare Working Group:
Highlights of Progress

IRS ACA leadership participated in the August 2011
Meeting
◦
◦
◦
◦
Confirmed Charter and Goals of HCWG
They are looking for our assistance
They still have many unanswered questions
They will seek our input on specific topics

IRS ACA leadership met with CERCA Board and HCWG
co-chairs at the September 2011 board meeting to
specifically address the Small Business Health Care
Tax Credit

Finalizing Stakeholder Analysis
Key Stakeholders
The reaching impact of ACA is very broad; the HCWG has identified
the following key stakeholder categories that by focusing on we can
provide value to the industry and the IRS





IRS
Tax preparers
Taxpayers
Software developers
Education providers
Key Stakeholders:
IRS
Short-term needs
Long-term needs
Preparer Education/Outreach
Taxpayer Education/Outreach
(SB Credit)
Identify & Create Tools
Creation of inter-agency
touch points
Partnerships with key
stakeholders
Inter-agency data exchange
IRS
Partnerships with key
stakeholders
Release of information timely to
stakeholders
Access to hard-to reach
stakeholders
Effectively manage multi-year
rollout
Key Stakeholders:
Tax preparers
Short-term needs
Long-term needs
Self/Staff Education
New requirements rolled out
over multiple years
Calculation of small business
credit and individual subsidy
Continued client training
Client Education/Outreach
Tax
preparers
Accessibility to tools
Understand Data/Record
keeping requirement
Client Planning
Bill time vs. Taxpayer benefit
Understand process life cycle
Key Stakeholders:
Taxpayers
Short-term needs
Long-term needs
Education of immediate impacts
and requirements
Reporting Requirements:
timing, what are they
Easy access to information
Timing of reporting
requirements
Individuals: Understanding
of subsidy eligibility,
coverage requirements &
options
Business: Understanding
employee benefit responsibility
Business: Understanding tax
liabilities & benefits (SB
Credit)
Taxpayers
New requirements rolled out
over multiple years
Understanding of various
agency responsibility
Accessibility to tools
Key Stakeholders:
Software Developers
Short-term needs
Long-term needs
Intermediate between IRS
and other key stakeholders
Raising awareness of current
components (SB Credit)
Implementation of components
that impact the tax return
Product changes to include
tools and diagnostics to aid in
accurate reporting
Creation of preparer education
content
Multi-year rollout
implementation
Software
Developers
On-going education of
components
Timely release of specs and
documentation from IRS
Consistent messaging to
preparers and taxpayers
Key Stakeholders:
Education providers
Short-term needs
Long-term needs
Timely release of instruction,
specs, pubs
Consistent messaging to
preparers and taxpayers
Clarification around vague
information
Intermediary between IRS and
other stakeholders
Education
Providers
Requirements rolled out
over multiple years
Manage and update content
timely
Healthcare Working Group:
Proposed Solutions

Information: Create one go-to
destination

Education: Provide multiple channels of
education to reach different
stakeholders

Tools: Create calculators (FTE,
estimator calculators)