[poll id="77"]
Have more to say? Leave your thoughts in the comments section of the article.
The announcement that the Obama Administration will delay the mandate requiring employers with 50 or more workers to provide health insurance or pay a fine was greeted with a sense of relief and appreciation, allowing businesses to better plan for full implementation of the Affordable Care Act, according to brokers.
On July 2, the Treasury Department unexpectedly announced that the deadline for what is commonly called “pay or play” will be Jan. 1, 2015, rather than the beginning of next year. The department acknowledged that employers were faced with a fast-approaching web of complexities related to the mandate.
Employers with at least 50 workers will eventually have to pay a $2,000 penalty per employee if they do not provide coverage, although employers will not have to include the first 30 employees in the penalty calculation.
“It sounds like the administration has admitted this part is very difficult and needed to make it easier for employers to comply,” said Victor McKnight, a principal at EPIC Insurance Brokers in Petaluma.
The decision will benefit a number of businesses, but especially industries that rely heavily on part-time workers - such as retail, hospitality and agricultural businesses - because of formulas needed to track how many hours were being worked by certain employees, which in turn would determine who’s required to have employer-sponsored health plans. [read more of "Brokers: Sigh of relief with delay of employer health care mandate"]
