MNsure still has more than 13,000 tax forms to send

MNsure is pledging to staff up once again as the state's health insurance exchange still needs to generate more than 13,000 tax forms before next month's IRS filing deadline.

The pace of progress looks slow, with about 1,000 documents generated in the past week and fewer than 600 in an automated batch the weekend before.

On Wednesday, dismay over the tardy forms reached across the political divide, as a top Republican said taxpayers should get money for the delays and DFL Gov. Mark Dayton said he was "very disappointed."

Taxes are due April 18, but MNsure said Wednesday night that health exchange customers will get their forms.

"The remaining forms will be mailed in time for Minnesotans to file their taxes," MNsure said in a statement. "We've quadrupled the number of staff dedicated to manual processing so Minnesotans awaiting forms get them more quickly while we await the results of another wave of automated forms."

The documents let MNsure users reconcile the value of tax credits they should have received in 2015 with the actual subsidies they used for health insurance last year. The forms were due Feb. 1, and MNsure users can't file their taxes without them.

On Wednesday, MNsure said it had 13,474 forms yet to deliver. MNsure has blamed delays on the switch to a new automated system for creating the documents this year, as well as quality checks to make sure forms aren't sent with wrong information.

Davids called on the state to pay affected individuals $10 for each day their 1095-A tax form was late after Feb. 1, and $50 for each day that passes without a form beyond the April 18 filing deadline.

"It's becoming increasingly clear that thousands of Minnesotans won't receive the forms they need to file their taxes before tax day," Davids said in a statement. "While I expect the IRS to grant an extension, Minnesotans are owed an apology and deserve to be compensated."

In comments to reporters, Dayton said he hadn't looked at Davids' proposal, but pledged to "do whatever we can."

"We're past the point of MNsure is a start-up," Dayton said. "I know people are working very hard. … This snag should have been anticipated."

In its statement Wednesday, MNsure said that 30,200 forms have been distributed so far, which is 69 percent of 43,674 that need to be created. A spokeswoman said that people waiting for forms can contact MNsure at 1-855-366-7873 for more information.

Employers and insurers are distributing somewhat similar tax forms this year, called 1095-B and 1095-C, that also document coverage in compliance with the federal Affordable Care Act.

"Unlike provisions for the Forms 1095-B and 1095-C, neither the Affordable Care Act nor the Internal Revenue Code provides for any specific penalties related to the issuance of Form 1095-A by health insurance marketplaces," the IRS said in a statement.

Staff writer J. Patrick Coolican contributed to this report.

Christopher Snowbeck • 612-673-4744