Exceptional Living — Senior-Care Section 125 Case Study
Exceptional Living is an assisted living operator. The same Section 125 math that drove $120,000/year in savings at Golden Living Point Loma applies — $681.60 per W-2 caregiver per year in net FICA savings, plus an additional Workers' Comp reduction at the senior-care 6% classification rate.
The structure that produced this result
Senior-care facilities are textbook fits for Section 125: 30–200 W-2 caregivers per location, predictable payroll, group health coverage already in place. On a 60-caregiver facility, the FICA math returns $40,896/year in net employer savings + roughly $25,920/year in conservative WC reduction — close to $67,000/year combined. On a 100-caregiver facility, the combined figure approaches $90,000/year.
We don't publish specific dollar figures for individual operators where the operator hasn't disclosed them publicly. What we can say categorically: every W-2 caregiver earning $25,000+/year and covered under an ACA-compliant group health plan produces the same per-employee net employer savings. The aggregate figure scales linearly with headcount.
Exceptional Living's enrollment fits the broader pattern visible in the senior-care segment: facilities with sophisticated buyers (often a CPA, attorney, or experienced operator) who run their own due diligence on the Hitesman + CBIZ documentation before signing. The path for any prospective senior-care operator is the same — free 15-minute analysis returns the exact number, then the operator brings it to their own CPA.
See your number — pre-filled to Assisted Living.
The calculator returns your exact net employer FICA savings + a Workers' Comp reduction estimate. Same math, your headcount. Verified by CBIZ + HitesmanLaw.
Want the full version with all 5 questions and a CFO-ready PDF? /calculator →
See What You'd Save
5 quick questions · instant estimate · no email required
Minimum 10 W-2 employees · $25K+ salary · ACA-compliant health coverage required
Verified by CBIZ & HitesmanLaw · Zero cost · Zero obligation
Verified by the Best in the Country
Skepticism is the right response. We don't ask you to take our word for it — we bring institutional proof that convinced CPAs, CFOs, attorneys, and insurance brokers to enroll their own companies.
Darcy L. Hitesman, J.D.
35+ years as an Employee Benefits attorney specializing in IRC Section 125, ERISA, HIPAA, and the ACA. Her May 5, 2025 opinion letter concludes: “In this firm's opinion, the Program described satisfies applicable IRS requirements.”
She specifically reviewed the IRS Chief Counsel Advice memoranda on "double-dip" arrangements — the exact schemes the IRS has flagged — and concluded this program is built differently and compliantly.
CBIZ Advisors LLC
CBIZ independently reviewed the program against IRC §§ 125, 105, and 106, plus ERISA, ACA, and COBRA requirements. Their August 22, 2025 letter concludes: “If operated per its provisions, the Program appears to satisfy the requirements of ERISA, the ACA, and COBRA as well.”
This review was commissioned by Affinity Hospice's CEO before enrolling his nationwide organization — and the CFO (himself a CPA) shared the letter publicly in his testimonial.
Direct From the U.S. Government
Section 125 has been in the Internal Revenue Code since 1978. Congress wrote it there specifically to encourage employers to fund preventive healthcare for American workers. This is not a loophole — it is the precise, intended use of a 47-year-old federal law, grounded in IRS Revenue Ruling 69-154, the specific published ruling supporting the benefit payment structure.
→ Verify on IRS.gov — Section 125 Cafeteria Plans ↗Find Out Your Number.
Free. No Pitch. Just Math.
Verified: CBIZ Advisors LLC (Aug 2025) · HitesmanLaw P.A. (May 2025)
$500K legal protection per enrolled employer · IRS Section 125 · Federal law since 1978