On June 26, 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) put on display a final rule that implements provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) related to “shared responsibility” payments. By way of background, the ACA requires every individual to have basic health insurance coverage (known as minimum essential coverage), qualify for an exemption, or make a “shared responsibility” payment when filing a federal income tax return, beginning in 2014. The ACA provides a number of exemptions from the responsibility for making a shared responsibility payment, including if coverage is unaffordable, if an individual spends less than three consecutive months without coverage, or if an individual qualifies for an exemption for reasons such as hardship, religious beliefs, or other statutorily-exempt category. The final rule describes how Affordable Insurance Exchanges (also called Health Insurance Marketplaces) will determine eligibility for and grant these exemptions. HHS cites a Congressional Budget Office estimate that 24 million individuals would be exempt from the shared responsibility penalty in 2016, but it is unclear how many individuals will seek these exemptions from an Exchange (as opposed to claiming an exemption through the tax filing process or being below the filing threshold). The regulations are effective on August 26, 2013. The regulations also specify certain coverage that will be designated as minimum essential coverage, and the substantive and procedural requirements that other types of individual coverage must fulfill in order to be certified as minimum essential coverage. The official version will be published on July 1. In addition, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has issued Notice 2013-42, which provides transition relief from the shared responsibility provision for employees and their families who are eligible to enroll in certain employer-sponsored health plans if the plan year begins in 2013 and ends in 2014, along with Questions and Answers on the Individual Shared Responsibility Provision.