§ 2001 § 2001. Purpose
For the purpose of more equitably distributing the costs of health care to uninsured residents of this state an employers' health care fund contribution is established to provide a fair and reasonable method for sharing health care costs with employers who do not offer their employees health care coverage. (Added 2005, No. 191 (Adj. Sess.), § 34, eff. April 1, 2007; amended 2007, No. 70, § 27.)
§ 2002 § 2002. Definitions
For the purposes of this chapter:
(1) "Employee" means an individual over the age of majority employed full-time or part-time by an employer to perform services in this state.
(2) "Employer" means a person who is required under subchapter 4 of chapter 151 of Title 32 to withhold income taxes from payments of income with respect to services, but shall not include the government of the United States.
(3) "Full-time equivalent" or "FTE" means the number of employees expressed as the number of employee hours worked during a calendar quarter divided by 520. "Full-time equivalent" shall not include any employee hours attributable to a seasonal employee or part-time employee of an employer who offers health care coverage to all of its regular full-time employees, provided that the seasonal employee or part-time employee has health care coverage under either a private or any public plan except VHAP or Medicaid.
(4) "Seasonal employee" means an employee who:
(A) works for an employer for 20 weeks or fewer in a calendar year; and
(B) works in a job scheduled to last 20 weeks or fewer.
(5) "Uncovered employee" means:
(A) an employee of an employer who does not offer to pay any part of the cost of health care coverage for its employees;
(B) an employee who is not eligible for health care coverage offered by an employer to any other employees; or
(C) an employee who is offered and is eligible for coverage by the employer but elects not to accept the coverage and has no other health care coverage under either a private or public plan.
(6) "Part-time employee" shall mean an employee who works for an employer for fewer than 30 hours a week. (Added 2005, No. 191 (Adj. Sess.), § 34, eff. April 1, 2007; amended 2007, No. 70, § 27.)
§ 2003 § 2003. Health care fund contribution assessment
(a) The commissioner of labor shall assess and an employer shall pay a quarterly health care fund contribution for each full-time equivalent uncovered employee employed during that quarter in excess of:
(1) eight full-time equivalent employees in fiscal years 2007 and 2008;
(2) six full-time equivalent employees in fiscal year 2009; and
(3) four full-time equivalent employees in fiscal years 2010 and thereafter.
(b) For any quarter in fiscal years 2007 and 2008, the amount of the health care fund contribution shall be $91.25 for each full-time equivalent employee in excess of eight. For each fiscal year after fiscal year 2008, the number of excluded full-time equivalent employees shall be adjusted in accordance with subsection (a) of this section, and the amount of the health care fund contribution shall be adjusted by a percentage equal to any percentage change in premiums for Catamount Health for that fiscal year; provided, however, that to the extent that Catamount Health premiums decrease due to changes in benefit design or deductible amounts, the health care fund contribution shall not be decreased by the percentage change attributable to such benefit design or deductible changes.
(c) Health care fund contribution assessments under this chapter shall be determined on a calendar quarter basis, due and payable 30 days after the close of each quarter. Late filings, late payments and underpayments of the health care fund contribution assessments due shall be subject to the same fees, interest and penalties as pertain to contributions for unemployment compensation under chapter 17 of this title. Liability for contributions, payments, penalties, interest and costs imposed under this section may be collected and enforced in a civil action maintained under sections 1334 of this title, and under the procedures authorized by section 1336 of this title. The commissioner shall establish rules for the administration and collection of health care fund contributions under this chapter. The department shall develop a form that inquires of the health coverage status of an employee in a manner that, to the greatest extent possible, preserves the confidentiality of the type of
coverage possessed by the employee. For the purpose of the employer assessment, employers shall only use this form to determine the health coverage status of an employee. To the extent feasible any reports required of employers under this chapter shall be combined with other reports and information collected from employers by the department of labor.
(d) Revenues from the health care fund contributions collected shall be deposited into the state health care resources fund established under 33 V.S.A. § 1901d for the purpose of financing health care coverage under Catamount Health assistance, as provided under 33 V.S.A. chapter 19, subchapter 3a. (Added 2005, No. 191 (Adj. Sess.), § 34, eff. April 1, 2007; amended 2007, No. 70, § 27; 2009, No. 156 (Adj. Sess.), § E.309.6; 2011, No. 75 (Adj. Sess.), § 106.)
§ 2004 § 2004. Health benefit costs
(a) Employers shall provide their employees with an annual statement indicating:
(1) the total monthly premium cost paid for any employer-sponsored health benefit plan;
(2) the employer's share and the employee's share of the total monthly premium; and
(3) any amount the employer contributes toward the employee's cost-sharing requirement or other out-of-pocket expenses.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, an employer who reports the cost of coverage under an employer-sponsored health benefit plan as required by 26 U.S.C. § 6051(a)(14) shall be deemed to be in full compliance with the requirements of this section. (Added 2011, No. 48, § 16, eff. Jan. 1, 2012.)