By way of background, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) created the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) to study clinical effectiveness and health outcomes. To finance the Institute’s work, a small annual fee—commonly called the PCORI fee—is charged on group health plans. Grandfathered health plans are not exempt.
Most employers do not have to take any action because employer-sponsored health plans are commonly provided through group insurance contracts. For insured plans, the carrier is responsible for calculating and paying the PCORI fee and the employer has no additional duties.
However, employers that sponsor self-funded group health plans are responsible for calculating, reporting, and paying this fee each year.
