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US Department of Health & Human Services urges states to educate immigrants about Medicaid

Washington D.C. – Insurance News by Insurance Market 360 - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reaffirmed on July 22, 2021, through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), that the 2019 public charge final rule will apply to states' Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Programs (CHIP). – “Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds” – has been repealed and states need to encourage eligible immigrants to receive public health and housing benefits.

Access to Medicaid benefits, for example, will usually have no bearing on anyone's immigration status, consistent with Homeland Security (DHS) guidance currently applicable on public charge inadmissibility. In the informational bulletin, DHS highlights that it is no longer using the 2019 Rule and that the federal government should work with federal partners to ensure that eligible immigrants are informed of these changes and their right to access public benefits such as Medicaid.

If determining whether an applicant is a public charge, DHS no longer considers Medicaid receipt (except Medicaid for long-term institutionalization).

“As President Biden made clear in his executive order restoring faith in our legal immigration systems, we must reduce fear and confusion among immigrant communities who rely on critical benefits that are available to them by law,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “We invite states and our community partners to spread this message far and wide: we are here to help and the public charge rule is no longer in effect. All our communities deserve the peace of mind that comes with having access to quality care.”

In an effort to provide important information about Medicaid and CHIP to individuals who need it, CMS is reaching out to states to encourage them to work with their local partners and community groups. The public charge rule did not apply to CHIP, but CMS acknowledges that some families were deterred from obtaining this coverage because of misinformation and fears of retribution. Medicaid and CHIP coverage is vital to ensuring the health and safety of eligible immigrants and their families.

“Health care is a right, not a privilege, and no one should be deterred from accessing the care they need out of fear. Accessing health coverage through Medicaid or CHIP will not risk immigration status,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. “The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to making sure people have access to programs that keep them safe and healthy.”

Medicaid applicants' and Medicaid beneficiaries' information may not be shared for reasons other than administering the state's Medicaid plan, such as determining eligibility or providing services.

If you wish to read the entire Informational Bulletin, please visit:https://www.medicaid.gov/federal-policy-guidance/downloads/cib072221.pdf - PDF.

Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services

Link: https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2021/07/22/hhs-encourages-states-to-educate-eligible-immigrants-about-medicaid-coverage.html?utm_source=news-releases-email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=july-25-2021

https://www.insurancemarket360.com/insurance-news/us-department-of-health-human-services-urges-states-to-educate-immigrants-about-medicaid

US Department Of Health & Human Services Urges States To Educate Immigrants About Medicaid Washington D.C. – Insurance News by Insurance Market 360 - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reaffirmed on July 22, 2021, through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), that the 2019 public charge final rule will apply to states' Medicaid and Children's Health Ins...

In May, Unemployment Declined to 5.8 Percent

(Washington, DC, Insurance News by Insurance Market 360) - The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the unemployment declined by 0.3 to 5.8 percent. Nonfarm payroll employment soared by 559,000 in May 2021. Leisure and hospitality, public and private education, and health care and social assistance sectors experienced significant job gains.

In May, the number of unemployed dropped by 496,000 to 9.3 million. Prior to Covid pandemic, these numbers were significantly higher in April 2020.

The establishment and household surveys provide the statistics for this report. Nonfarm employment, earning by industry and hours stats are provided by establishment survey and the household survey provides the statistics for unemployment, and labor force status.

Source: The U.S. Bureau of Labor

Reference: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm

https://www.insurancemarket360.com/insurance-news/in-may-unemployment-declined-to-5-8-percent

In May, Unemployment Declined To 5.8 Percent June 10, 2021.(Washington, DC, Insurance News by Insurance Market 360) - The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the unemployment declined by 0.3 to 5.8 percent.  Nonfarm payroll employment soared by 559,000 in May 2021. Leisure and hospitality, public and private education, and health c...

Life insurance agents in Europe will see their earnings under pressure in 2021

(London, Insurance News by Insurance Market 360) - Life insurance agents in Europe will see their earnings under pressure in 2021, according to a new report from Fitch Ratings. This will mean that investment margins are reduced, and insurers will face difficulty in financing policyholders’ liability with capital guarantees.

These insurers may be exposed to risk through asset leverage and product guarantees, but the lengthy period of time with low insurance rates have caused problems. European insurers have moved toward capital-light hybrid products and away from traditional savings contracts. The hybrid products combine traditional savings and unit-linked product features.

European insurers accelerated corporate digitalization plans; this brings more regulatory oversight and reporting requirements, even though it does reduce costs and streamline business operations.

Read Fitch Ratings’ special report: Eurozone Life Insurers Face Mounting Earnings Pressure Amid Ultra-Low Rates.

Source: Fitch Ratings, Inc.

Life Insurance Agents In Europe Will See Their Earnings Under Pressure In 2021 June 07, 2021.(London, Insurance News by Insurance Market 360) -  Life insurance agents in Europe will see their earnings under pressure in 2021, according to a new report from Fitch Ratings. This will mean that investment margins are reduced, and insurers will face difficulty in financing policyho...

Switzerland’s Largest Insurance Company and Three Subsidiaries Admit to Conspiring with U.S. Taxpayers to Hide Assets and Income in Offshore Accounts

Swiss Life Holding AG, Swiss Life (Liechtenstein) AG, Swiss Life (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., and Swiss Life (Luxembourg) S.A. Enter into Deferred Prosecution Agreement for Criminal Misconduct; Agree to Collectively Pay More than $77 Million

The Department of Justice today filed a criminal information charging Swiss Life Holding AG (Swiss Life Holding), Swiss Life (Liechtenstein) AG (Swiss Life Liechtenstein), Swiss Life (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (Swiss Life Singapore), and Swiss Life (Luxembourg) S.A. (Swiss Life Luxembourg), collectively, the “Swiss Life Entities,” with conspiring with U.S. taxpayers and others to conceal from the IRS more than $1.452 billion in offshore insurance policies, including more than 1,600 insurance wrapper policies, and related policy investment accounts in banks around the world and the income generated in these accounts.

The Justice Department also announced a deferred prosecution agreement with the Swiss Life Entities (“the Agreement”) under which they agreed to accept responsibility for their criminal conduct by stipulating to the accuracy of the Statement of Facts attached to the Agreement. The Agreement requires the Swiss Life Entities to refrain from all future criminal conduct, enhance remedial measures, and continue to cooperate fully with further investigations into hidden insurance policies and related policy investment accounts. Further, as part of today’s resolution, the Swiss Life Entities agreed to pay approximately $77.3 million to the U.S. Treasury, which includes restitution, forfeiture of all gross fees, and a penalty component. If the Swiss Life Entities abide by all of the terms of the Agreement, the government will defer prosecution on the information for three years and then seek to dismiss the charge.

“Swiss Life today is held responsible for creating and marketing specially designed insurance products to U.S. tax evaders seeking a new way to hide their offshore assets, in light of heightened Justice Department and IRS tax enforcement efforts,” said Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Financial enablers here and abroad – and the taxpayers seeking their services – should know that we will continue to identify and unmask such schemes.”

“As they admit, Swiss Life and its subsidiaries sought out and offered their services to U.S. taxpayers to help them become U.S. tax evaders,” said U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss for the Southern District of New York. “The Swiss Life Entities offered private placement life insurance policies and related investment accounts to U.S. customers, and provided services that concealed the policies and other assets from the IRS. Indeed, the Swiss Life Entities saw U.S. authorities’ stepped-up offshore tax enforcement as an opportunity to pitch themselves to tax-evading U.S. customers as an alternative to Swiss banks. Under the terms of today’s agreement, Swiss Life will turn over more than $77 million and be required to continue to cooperate with the United States in identifying U.S. tax evaders.”

“The successful resolution of this investigation is an important victory for the American taxpayer for two primary reasons,” said Chief James C. Lee of the IRS Criminal Investigation. “First, the recovery of more $77 million owed to the U.S. government sends an unequivocal message that offshore evasion is still a high priority of IRS Criminal Investigation. Secondly, this agreement further requires Swiss Life Entities to continue to cooperate with the government and does not shield them from future civil or criminal sanctions, which should put every entity engaged in offshore evasion on notice.”

According to documents filed today in Manhattan federal court:

Swiss Life Holding is the ultimate parent company of the Swiss Life group of companies (Swiss Life), a Switzerland-based provider of comprehensive life insurance and pension products for individuals and corporations, as well as asset management and financial planning services. From 2005 to 2014, Swiss Life through affiliated insurance carriers in Liechtenstein (Swiss Life Liechtenstein), Luxembourg (Swiss Life Luxembourg), and Singapore (Swiss Life Singapore), (collectively, the PPLI Carriers) maintained approximately 1,608 Private Placement Life Insurance (PPLI) policies. The PPLI Carriers’ issuance and administration of those policies (colloquially known as “insurance wrappers”) and the related investment accounts were often done in a manner to assist U.S. taxpayers in evading U.S. taxes and reporting requirements and concealing the ownership of offshore assets.

Moreover, beginning as early as the summer of 2008, the PPLI Carriers were aware that UBS and other Swiss banks were terminating or reevaluating their business relationships with U.S. clients in response to increasing offshore tax enforcement efforts by U.S. authorities. Certain management and sales personnel within the Swiss Life PPLI Business Unit viewed these developments as a business opportunity to expand the PPLI Business by onboarding U.S. clients who were fleeing UBS and other Swiss banks. Such clients with undeclared assets were typically referred within Swiss Life as “non-comprehensive advice seeking,” which was frequently abbreviated to “NCAS.” Because Swiss Life would be identified as the owner of the policy investment accounts, rather than the U.S. policyholder and/or ultimate beneficial owner of the assets, the insurance wrapper policies could be and were used by unscrupulous U.S. taxpayers to hide undeclared assets and income and to evade taxes. In turn, Swiss Life grew its PPLI business and earned fees on those policies. Members of management of the PPLI Business Unit knew about and authorized the onboarding of U.S. clients without regard to whether they were declared or undeclared.

Swiss Life engaged in other misconduct with respect to U.S.-related policies:

U.S.-related PPLI Policies were funded or terminated through asset transfers from/to an account maintained by a third party associated with the policyholder, such as an offshore law firm or intermediary.

Swiss Life PPLI personnel assisted U.S. taxpayers in establishing and maintaining Swiss Life PPLI policies in the name of a foreign relative with the effect of obscuring the U.S. nexus of the assets used to fund the policy or to repatriate the U.S. taxpayer’s undeclared assets through a sham death payout.

Certain U.S.-related PPLI Policies issued by Swiss Life Liechtenstein involved transfers of physical gold, other precious metals, or precious gemstones into or out of the policy investment account, presumably for the purpose of avoiding detection by U.S. authorities.

The PPLI Carriers allowed policyholders to designate an authorized recipient – typically the policyholder’s asset manager or other foreign representative – to receive policy documents and custodian investment account statements, rather than having those documents sent directly to the policyholder.

Certain Swiss Life Liechtenstein personnel promoted the use of Swiss Life products to turn U.S. taxpayers’ undeclared or so-called “black” money into so-called “white” money by parking the funds in a Swiss Life insurance policy until the clock had run on the perceived statute of limitations for tax offenses.

Corporate premium bank accounts were also misused as a transitory account to help conceal the movement of U.S. clients’ funds.

Under today’s resolution, the Swiss Life Entities are required to continue to cooperate fully with ongoing investigations and affirmatively disclose any information they may later uncover regarding U.S.-related insurance policies and related policy investment accounts. The Swiss Life Entities are also required to disclose information consistent with the Department of Justice’s Swiss Bank Program relating to accounts closed between Jan. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31, 2019. The Agreement provides no protection from criminal or civil prosecution for any individuals.

Swiss Life Holding will pay a total of $77,374,337, which has three parts. First, Swiss Life Holding has agreed to pay $16,345,454 in restitution to the IRS, which represents the approximate unpaid taxes resulting from the Swiss Life Entities’ participation in the conspiracy. Second, Swiss Life Holding has agreed to forfeit $35,782,375 to the United States, which represents the approximate gross fees (not profits) that the Swiss Life Entities earned on the penalized insurance policies and related policy investment accounts between 2005 and 2014. Finally, Swiss Life Holding has agreed to pay a penalty of $25,246,508.

The penalty amount takes into consideration that Swiss Life conducted a robust internal investigation, supplied client-related data, facilitated the acquisition by the Justice Department of information relating to custodian banks, asset managers, and other entities and individuals related to Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Singapore, and otherwise meaningfully assisted the department’s cross-border tax enforcement efforts. In addition, Swiss Life conducted extensive outreach to current and former U.S. clients to confirm historical tax compliance, and to encourage disclosure to the IRS when policyholders’ historical tax compliance issues had not yet been resolved. Swiss Life further implemented remedial measures to protect against the use of its services for tax evasion in the future.

The IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating this case.

This prosecution is being handled by the Department of Justice’s Tax Division and the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Senior Litigation Counsel Nanette Davis and Trial Attorney Jack Morgan of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas Folly and Olga I. Zverovich of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York are in charge of the prosecution.


Source: U.S. Department of Justice.

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/switzerland-s-largest-insurance-company-and-three-subsidiaries-admit-conspiring-us-taxpayers

U.S. Department of Justice issued the above Press Release on May 14, 2021.

https://www.insurancemarket360.com/insurance-news/switzerland%E2%80%99s-largest-insurance-company-and-three-subsidiaries-admit-to-conspiring-with-u-s-taxpayers-to-hide-assets-and-income-in-offshore-accounts

Switzerland’s Largest Insurance Company And Three Subsidiaries Admit To Conspiring With U.S. Taxpayers To Hide Assets And Income In Offshore Accounts Swiss Life Holding AG, Swiss Life (Liechtenstein) AG, Swiss Life (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., and Swiss Life (Luxembourg) S.A. Enter into Deferred Prosecution Agreement for Criminal Misconduct; Agree to Collectively Pay More than $77 MillionThe Department of Justice today filed a criminal information char...