It is once again time to start thinking about warmer weather, cook-outs, and – yes – paying your PCORI fee. As in years past, all self-funded employer health plan sponsors are required to file and pay their PCORI fees no later than July 31, 2023. As part of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2020, Congress extended the requirement that health plans file and pay the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee through September 30, 2029

All self-funded plan sponsors are required to pay a fee based on the average number of covered lives under their eligible plans – including employees, retirees, spouses, and dependents. Self-funded plans subject to the requirements include self-funded medical benefit plans, including most non-ERISA self-funded plans and retiree-only plans. Other self-funded plans subject to the fee include self-funded HRAs and FSAs which are not integrated with a plan sponsor’s self-funded major-medical plan. Dental-only, vision-only, EAP, disease management, and wellness plans are exempt.

Plan sponsors must use the second quarter IRS Form 720 to record and remit the amount due. A fillable copy of the pertinent IRS Form 720 (Rev June 2023) can be found at https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f720.pdf. When preparing the form, make sure to complete the correct section of Part II for “Applicable self-insured health plans” and select the correct payment amount based on your plan’s plan year end date. Part II can be found on page 2 of the form. You will also need to complete and sign the form on page 3 and complete the Payment Voucher found at the end of the form. The completed Payment Voucher must be remitted with your payment to the IRS office associated with your home business state.

This year’s payment schedule can be found at MedBen.com along with more information about calculating and remitting the fee to the IRS. As always, if you need more information about how to count covered lives under your plan or how to prepare and remit your payment, don’t hesitate to contact your Account Management Team or MedBen’s Compliance Department.