Returning Value Blog

According to a statement on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website, most consumers with private health coverage can go online or to a pharmacy or store, buy a test, and have their health plan pay for it, either upfront or after submitting a claim. "This requirement incentivizes insurers to cover these costs upfront and ensures individuals do not need an order from their health care provider to access these tests for free." The policy took effect on Jan. 15. The full details of the policy are available on the CMS website.

Revenue and expenses, as reported on your company’s income statement, have limited usefulness to people inside the organization. Managers often need information presented in a different format in order to make operational and strategic decisions. That’s where activity-based costing comes into play. This costing system is commonly used in the manufacturing and construction sectors to determine which products and customers are profitable, to identify and eliminate waste, and to more accurately price products or bid jobs going forward.

Your business needs financial statements so management can monitor performance, attract investment capital and borrow money from a bank or other lender. But not all financial statements are created equal. Audited statements are considered the “gold standard” in financial reporting. While public companies are required to issue audited statements, smaller, privately-held organizations have options. CPAs provide three other types of financial statements, which, in order of descending level of diligence, are: reviews, compilations, and preparations.

Given the popularity of gift cards among both issuers and recipients, restauranteurs should understand the pros and cons of selling and issuing gift cards.

While some businesses have closed since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, many new ventures have launched. Entrepreneurs have cited a number of reasons why they decided to start a business in the midst of a pandemic. For example, they had more time, wanted to take advantage of new opportunities, or they needed money due to being laid off. Whatever the reason, if you’ve recently started a new business or you’re contemplating starting one, be aware of the tax implications.

Inflation vs. Inflationary Pressure

Concerns about the elevated inflationary environment continue to persist. There are numerous contributing factors, such as a rapid increase in wages, energy prices, and an imbalanced global supply chain with demand vs. supply for many goods and services far from equilibrium. To better understand these factors, it is essential to first distinguish inflation from inflationary pressure. Inflation is typified by a sustained increase in the general price levels in an economy, while inflationary pressure is described as either a leading indicator of actual inflation or temporary pricing increases due to isolated or short-term events.

Forecasting key business metrics — such as sales demand, receivables, payables, and working capital — can help you reduce excess inventory and other overhead, offer competitive prices, and keep your business on solid financial footing. Although historical financial statements are often the starting point for forecasts, you’ll need to do more than just multiply last year’s numbers by a projected growth rate, especially in today’s uncertain marketplace.

Do you want to sell commercial or investment real estate that has appreciated significantly? One way to defer a tax bill on the gain is with a Section 1031 “like-kind” exchange where you exchange the property rather than sell it. With real estate prices up in some markets (and higher resulting tax bills), the like-kind exchange strategy may be attractive.

If you’re an employer with a business where tipping is customary for providing food and beverages, you may qualify for a federal tax credit involving the Social Security and Medicare (FICA) taxes that you pay on your employees’ tip income.

After two years of no increases, the optional standard mileage rate used to calculate the deductible cost of operating an automobile for business will be going up in 2022 by 2.5 cents per mile. The IRS recently announced that the cents-per-mile rate for the business use of a car, van, pickup, or panel truck would be 58.5 cents (up from 56 cents for 2021).