General FAQs
The TOTAL Wellness Program is a type of Level Self Funded employee benefits known as a Wellness and Integrated Medical Plan Expense Reimbursement or “WIMPER”.
A WIMPER, or Wellness Integrated Medical Plan Expense Reimbursement is a qualified HRA under IRS Section105b. This HRA combined with a level funded accident & sickness plan acts as a compliment to your existing health insurance & provides access to an array of mental health, preventive care/chronic disease management tools and services. There are considerable tax savings available to participants and employers for implementing a qualified WIMPER.
Yes! An estimated 1.5+ million Americans are enrolled in a WIMPER or similar Employee Benefit. In fact, In January 2021 CPA Journal published an article by a respected Tax Attorney and Educator from New York highlighting the value of qualified WIMPER Programs bringing more attention to an already flourishing benefit option.
While the acronym W.I.M.P.E.R. is new, the Section 105 HRA laws that dictate Wellness Integrated Medical Plan Expense Reimbursement are over 30 years old and there are no changes expected in the near future. Should there be changes, our ERISA Attorneys will advise Safe Harbor and our clients on how we may be affected.
Safe Harbor charges a per member per month fee for providing Open Enrollment, Member Support, Vendor Contracting, Compliance, Tracking and Communication services associated with the TWP.
Employers FAQs
Employee contributions to a qualified Section 125 Benefit are Payroll Tax free. Therefore every dollar employees spend on the program creates a 7.65% immediate tax savings beginning in the first payroll cycle following implementation.
Best of all, since Safe Harbor only charges a small fee and has net 30 day terms, companies spend $0 out of pocket to initiate the TOTAL Wellness Program.
A WIMPER, or Wellness Integrated Medical Plan Expense Reimbursement is a qualified HRA under IRS Section105b. This HRA combined with a level funded accident & sickness plan acts as a compliment to your existing health insurance & provides access to an array of mental health, preventive care/chronic disease management tools and services. There are considerable tax savings available to participants and employers for implementing a qualified WIMPER.
Employee FAQs
Employees are not subject to taxes on contributions to an Accident & Health plans like the TWP. Employees may also receive reimbursement for qualified expenses from their Employer without being taxed.
This means that you can pay for your TWP and receive Reimbursements for participation that pay you back 100%.
This results in a net savings of $150+ per month for our average participant. This savings estimate includes paying the Administrative Fee.
The short answer is NO! The TWP is an ACA Compliant Participatory Wellness Program, NOT health insurance. This means you DO NOT have to change your current health plan to participate. In fact, you don’t have to get your health plan from your employer. You can simply add this preventive health and chronic disease management benefit to any existing group or individual healthcare plan.
To maintain eligibility for the TOTAL Wellness Program members agree to participate in a minimum number of Qualified Medical Services or “QMS’s” per year that are available through the TOTAL Wellness Program portal. Because the program is a Participatory Wellness Program you do not have to meet any specific outcome, you simply need to engage in the services available on the portal to continue to qualify for the program.
Safe Harbor Health will make every attempt to contact employees that fall behind on meeting program requirements. This includes contacting the employee directly via email, text or phone as well as reaching out to the employer and the broker to assist in helping the member catch up on Qualified Medical Services.
However, if an employee is not able to meet basic program requirements they will be dropped from the program at the next Open Enrollment period. Because there are tax benefits to enrollment that may be affected by not meeting these plan requirements, the member may have to pay back a portion of the payroll tax savings they received during the plan year.
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