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LEARNING RESOURCE

this is less common than before same-sex marriage
Retirement Planning Certificate Program
was legalized, some employer plans still extend
health insurance coverage to employees’ domestic Designed for practitioners who want a thorough
understanding of retirement planning, the AICPA’s
partners as long as they can demonstrate a level of
Retirement Planning Certificate Program is a series
financial interdependence and a certain longev- of courses covering the retirement planning life
ity of their relationship. This includes providing cycle, including planning for aging and chronically
proof such as a shared lease agreement, joint home ill clients.
ownership, joint bank accounts, etc.
CPE SELF-STUDY
Marketplace plans
Turning to the HealthCare.gov marketplace is an For more information or to make a purchase, go to
obvious option for early retirement that is some- aicpa.org/cpe-learning or call the Institute at 888-777-7077.
times unexamined. Because insurance is state regu-
lated beyond the ACA requirements, each state’s
insurance marketplace options, providers, plans, answer yes without hesitation. Note that COBRA
and costs will vary, which is a crucial consideration premiums can also be paid tax-free from a health
when it comes to obtaining coverage through the savings account, if available.
marketplace. Depending on how serious a client is After the 18 months of COBRA is up, or
about retiring early, establishing residency in a state when a client opts out of COBRA and seeks other
with better plan options may be worth considering. coverage immediately, they will need to consider
Beyond that, clients may be eliminating the other solutions.
HealthCare.gov marketplace as an option strictly
because they are comparing the costs of (unsub- Short-term health insurance
sidized) plans that are similar to their employer- Depending on the length of time that funding for
based plan. However, for healthy clients who health care expenses is necessary, clients might
generally only see doctors for preventive care visits also explore short-term health insurance offered by
and occasionally for acute illness or injury, a more most major carriers. Coverage lengths vary by state
affordable bronze-level plan with a higher deduct- — and plans aren’t available in all states (such as
ible may be adequate for a couple years. California, where they are banned) — but typically
This is where the perspective shift comes in run between one and 12 months, although some
toward accepting a lower level of coverage upfront plans offer up to 36 months of coverage through
in return for higher costs only when services are renewals.
needed (and where having a well-funded health These plans, which cost significantly less than
savings account can ease some of the sting from regular health insurance, are not ACA-compliant,
out-of-pocket costs; on that topic, see “9 Facts which means underwriting will be necessary and
About HSAs That Might Surprise Your Clients,” clients with certain preexisting conditions may not
JofA, Jan. 24, 2023). qualify. Depending on the state of residency, plans
can be customized to cover all health care events or
COBRA limited to just certain things such as hospital and
Many people write off COBRA as an option for surgical coverage. For clients in good health seeking
early retirees due to the assumption that it is too a cheap option for catastrophic coverage, this is an
expensive and the fact that it typically only lasts for option worth exploring.
18 months, but it is worth a look. COBRA can be a
short-term option to give clients time to transition Cost-sharing plans
to a different network of providers or adjust to a Another non–ACA-compliant option offered
new mindset of paying for services at the point of through certain church and faith communities is
sale once they move to a lower-cost plan on the known as a medical cost-sharing plan, in which
marketplace. community members share their risk of large medi-
And while COBRA can be expensive, this is cal bills by making monthly payments into a pooled
an example of when a psychological shift may fund that pays the bills up to a certain amount. It’s
be needed. Adding a $700 monthly insurance important to note that cost-sharing plans are not
premium to the budget can feel painful, but when insurance and are not subject to state insurance
asked if they would buy an extra year of retirement regulation, so clients who choose this option must
for less than $10,000, many clients are likely to be well educated on the pros and cons.

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