Table of Contents
The general rule is all items received constitute “gross income” and are taxed. IRC §104(a)(3) provides an important exception to this rule. Section 104(a)(3) excludes from gross income payments received under an accident or health insurance plan. However, amounts that are “attributable to contributions by the employer which were not includable in the gross income of the employee or are paid by the employer” must be included in one’s gross income, subject to taxation. In other words, payments received from an accident or health insurance plan are includable in gross income to the extent that the premiums for those plans were paid by the employer and not previously included in the taxpayer’s income.
