California Personal Injury and Insurance Blog

Many Small Businesses Not Aware of Health Insurance Tax Credits

Although virtually all business owners are aware of the recently-enacted health care reform law, many do not know that tax credits for small businesses that provide health insurance to their workers take effect this year. In California alone, over 400,000 small businesses could qualify for the credit.

 

Under the law, companies with no more than 25 workers, and whose average salaries are less than $50,000, are eligible for a tax credit of up to 35 percent of the employer’s contribution for health insurance premiums. The maximum credit for non-profit small businesses is 25 percent. Companies must pay 50 percent of its employees’ health care premiums to qualify for the credit. Almost 80 percent of small businesses are expected to qualify for the credit. There are approximately 4 million small businesses nationwide.

 

The credit was designed as an incentive for more companies to offer health benefits to their employees. Small companies typically pay 18 percent more for insurance than large companies. The credits will last until 2014, when health insurance exchanges will be available to help small businesses provide health insurance to employees.

 

Under the new law, companies with at least 50 employees will have to pay penalties if they do not offer health insurance to workers.

California Could Dump Asbestos-Containing State Rock

Serpentine, the state rock of California, faces a “rocky” future, as its role as state rock may soon come to an end. A California lawmaker is proposing that serpentine lose its official state rock status.

 

California named serpentine the state rock in 1965 because it symbolized California during the Gold Rush. Serpentine is plentiful in the same areas in California in which gold was found. It was also named the state rock because it contains a mineral, asbestos, that was used in construction materials, household appliances and other products.

 

However, since 1965, asbestos, which is no longer mined in the U.S., has been found to cause mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is an incurable cancer that has spawned countless personal injury lawsuits, and can be contracted when asbestos fibers are inhaled. Defendants have paid out more than $70 billion in asbestos litigation since lawsuits began, and the average award to a mesothelioma victim is $4 million. About 2,500 Americans die from mesothelioma each year.

 

Opponents of removing serpentine as the state rock point out that few mesothelioma deaths are from exposure to naturally occurring asbestos, such as that contained in serpentine. They also point out that the EPA says that naturally occurring asbestos that remains underground poses no health risk.

 

The state Senate approved the law removing serpentine as official state rock. The Assembly is expected to vote on the measure, but it then must be voted on by the Senate again because it was amended.

Kids in California May be Required to Wear Helmets While Skiing

California may soon become the first state in the country to require children to wear helmets on the ski slopes.

 

SB 880 requires those under 18 to wear helmets while downhill skiing or snowboarding. Parents would be responsible for following SB 880 and would receive a $25 fine if a child is found to be not wearing a helmet on the slopes. The bill passed the California Senate in June and is awaiting a vote in the Assembly.

 

However, SB 880 is tied to another bill, AB 1652, which in its current form requires ski resorts to educate their patrons about helmet safety, prepare an annual safety plan, and create monthly accident reports. If one of the bills fails to pass, neither will pass. The bills are expected to be voted on by August 31, before the Legislature adjourns for the year.

 

According to a study by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than half of all deaths on the ski slopes every year are due to head injuries. The study found that more than 7,000 head and brain injuries that occur on the slopes could be prevented each year with the use of helmets. Currently, the highest percentage of helmet wearers are children. Approximately 57 percent of all skiers and snowboarders wear helmets.

New Insurance Pool for High-Risk Californians Created

At the end of June, Govhigh-risk individualsernor Schwarzenegger signed two bills that create insurance pools for  who have been denied insurance due to pre-existing conditions. The program is restricted to individuals who have been without health insurance for at least six months.

 

The program will receive about $761 million in federal funding but will be run by the state. It is expected to provide approximately 25,000 to 30,000 Californians obtain health insurance. Currently, about 250,000 Californians have been denied insurance coverage because of pre-existing health care problems.

 

The high-risk is designed to provide health insurance for high-risk individuals until 2014, when insurers will be prevented from denying health insurance to adults with pre-existing conditions. Beginning in September, insurers will no longer be able to deny health insurance coverage to children with pre-existing conditions.

 

The new insurance pool will be operated by California’s Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board. The Board has begun taking names of individuals interested in the program, although it hasn’t yet designed the insurance applications or the policies. The applications are expected to be available within a month.  To learn more about the insurance pools or to request an application, visit http://www.mrmib.ca.gov/.