Blog | Michael R Lewis, ASJA

October 1, 2013January 1, 2024

Should You Purchase Health Insurance or Pay the Penalty?

Obamacare is right around the corner, with most of the Affordable Care Act policy changes taking place in early 2014. But one recent change to the ACA could drastically affect many individuals who thought their employer would provide the requisite coverage.

A major component of the ACA is the requirement of organizations with 50 or more employees to provide health insurance benefits to their full-time staff. However, this component was postponed until January 1, 2015. That means that the employees of companies who fall into this category may not immediately receive health benefits through their employer or coverage that is sufficient to meet the criteria, and will be required to either purchase individual health insurance by March 31, 2014 or pay a fine that will be collected when filing 2014 income taxes.

E-Cigarettes – Risks, Regulations, & How They Work

Electronic cigarettes – colloquially known as “e-cigarettes,” and initially introduced into the United States in 2007 – target smokers who are increasingly forbidden to indulge their habit in public places. Sales reached $500 million in 2012 and are expected to double to $1 billion in 2013, and double again in 2014.

Despite the growth year-to-year, total sales for e-cigarettes are just a fraction of the total tobacco product sales in the U.S., projected to reach more than $106 billion in 2015 with a total global market of almost $890 billion.

What Is an Electronic Cigarette?

An e-cigarette is a nicotine delivery device designed to resemble and mimic the visual appearance of an actual lit tobacco cigarette. The nicotine is delivered to the user in the form of a vapor, rather than in the smoke of combusted tobacco. As a consequence, an e-cigarette eliminates the harmful chemicals associated with cancer and heart disease. The same mechanism is used in nicotine replacement therapy inhalers.

The National Debt Ceiling Deja Vu

The circus is coming back to town, seemingly an annual occurrence following the 2010 Congressional elections. Republicans gained control of the House of Representatives with the most House seats since 1938 (242 Republicans, 193 Democrats), while Democrats retained control of the Senate with 53 seats. And even though Democratic President Barack Obama won reelection in 2012, Congress remains divided between the Republican-controlled House and the Democratic-controlled Senate.

It’s not just a divided Congress that contributes to the annual political circus. The 2010 elections also introduced an ultra-conservative movement into the Republican Party – a unique coalition of politicians combining anti-tax, reduced government spending, libertarian, social conservative, and anti-immigration groups centered in rural areas and the Deep South. Aided by years of gerrymandering by both political parties to create safe seats, 87 freshman House Republicans came to Washington committed to the tea party movement, reflecting the group’s influence on Congressional elections and party primaries, pushing the Republicans to the right and further embracing a “no compromise” stance.