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The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service have extended the deadline by thirty (30) days for employers and health plans to provide the 2016 1095-B and 1096-C forms to plan participants. These forms report to the IRS which individuals have minimum essential coverage and therefore are not subject to the shared responsibility penalty. These forms must now be provided to participants by March 2, 2017. It is important to note that the deadline to file the forms with the IRS was not extended. Plan sponsors must file the forms by February 28, 2017 if submitting them in paper form and by March 31, 2017 if the sponsor is submitting them electronically. Individual plans or employers may still request an extension of the filing deadline if necessary.