Frequently Asked Questions

An Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA—pronounced ‘ick-rah’) is an employer-funded, tax-free health benefit used to reimburse employees for individual health insurance premiums and other qualified medical expenses. By offering an ICHRA, employers are able to define contribution amounts and have more flexibility in plan design that will better fit the unique needs of each employee. The employer establishes the reimbursement allowance for each employee class created.

In October 2018, the U.S. Department of Labor, Health and Human Services proposed new regulations to expand the usability of Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs). The rules were finalized in June 2019. The new rules state that, if certain guidelines are followed, HRAs may integrate with individual health insurance for any size business. As a result of the ruling Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements were created.

Effective January 1, 2020 employers of all sizes may offer ICHRAs to their employees.

Trovia is a health insurance marketplace that is intelligently designed to simplify the process of offering health insurance benefits—from shopping to managing and everything in between. Trovia provides easy access to fully insured, Affordable Care Act-compliant individual health plans from top rated insurance companies.

Any employer with two or more employees can access Trovia.

No!

One of the great things about offering an ICHRA is that, despite the fact that it is a group health plan, it has no participation requirements. No more being denied by an insurance carrier because not enough employees want to participate in the plan!

No!

Trovia manages payments just like other group health plans. You receive one monthly consolidated bill for all employee plans, withhold the employee portion from their pay, and make one pre-tax payment for all employees. Trovia takes care of paying each carrier for you!

No, not at this time.

No, employees in the same class can only be offered a traditional group plan or an ICHRA – not both in the same year.

Yes. You can accomplish this by dividing your employees into “classes”. There are 11 different classes of employees (e.g. full-time, part-time, geographic, salaried, non-salaried). We will work with you to explain the best options that support you and your company’s goals.

When an employer offers an ICHRA, it must be offered on the same terms to all individuals within a class of employees. Employers can choose to structure the eligibility and contribution criteria using the 11 employee classes defined by the ICHRA regulations.

• Full-time employees
• Part-time employees
• Seasonal employees
• Salaried employees
• Non-salaried employees (such as hourly)
• Employees covered by a particular collective bargaining arrangement (different bargaining units can be separate classes)
• Employees who have not satisfied a waiting period
• Temporary employees of staffing firms
• Non-resident aliens with no U.S.-based income
• Employees working in the same insurance rating area (i.e., the same geographic location such as state or multi-state region)
• Any combination of two or more of the above

Yes!

When properly structured, an ICHRA can help employers avoid both the large “A” penalty (in 2020 that’s $2,570 per employee after the first 30 employees), and the smaller “B’ penalty for “affordability”. The Trovia team will work with you to tailor a health benefit package to meet your needs.