Business groups Wednesday applauded the decision by the Obama administration to delay implementation of the 2010 health care law's employer mandate. The Treasury Department said the provision, which requires employers with more than 50 workers to offer health coverage or pay a $2,000-per-employee fine, would be put off from 2014 to 2015 to give businesses more time to prepare....
Business groups Wednesday applauded the decision by the Obama administration to delay implementation of the 2010 health care law's employer mandate. The Treasury Department said the provision, which requires employers with more than 50 workers to offer health coverage or pay a $2,000-per-employee fine, would be put off from 2014 to 2015 to give businesses more time to prepare.
"The administration has finally recognized the obvious: Employers need more time and clarification of the rules of the road before implementing the employer mandate," said Randy Johnson, senior vice president of labor, immigration and employee benefits at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The vast majority of large employers provide health coverage to workers, but participation among small businesses is spottier. In 2009, the Small Business Administration listed 419,795 small businesses in Louisiana, but only 10,200 met the 50-worker threshold for mandatory coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
Louisiana lawmakers reacted along party lines to the delay, with Republicans suggesting the delay demonstrates the significant flaws in what they call Obamacare. "The president's decision is further proof that we need to fully repeal this failed law," said Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson. "We stand ready to work on a bipartisan solution to lower health care costs and fix the real problems without the unworkable mandates and taxes in the President's health care law."
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., who voted for the Affordable Care Act, called for the administration to work with businesses and other groups to insure the least disruption. "It is important that the administration continues to be flexible so that the reporting is as simple, efficient and streamlined as possible," Landrieu said.
Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-New Orleans, said the administration is taking steps to ensure the law is implemented effectively. "I think this decision reflects the president's commitment to ensuring the adoption of health-care coverage is as smooth a transition as possible," Richmond said. "A majority of businesses that are impacted by this decision actually already provide insurance to their employees.
"Currently, 94 percent of businesses with between 50 and 200 employees offer coverage. Yet and still, this extension will give the small percentage of businesses remaining time to adjust."
Rep. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge, who is running for the Senate in 2014 largely on his opposition to the Affordable Care Act, said the expense is "killing jobs" and is proving too high a price for businesses. "This delay in implementing the employer mandate acknowledges this while encouraging employers to drop insurance coverage for their employees. Taxpayers will pay more, and deficits will increase," Cassidy said. "We must replace Obamacare with patient-centered reforms which expand healthcare access without destroying jobs."
Democrats said the law is providing important benefits, and that for all the GOP efforts to repeal it, Republicans haven't offered up a viable alternative.
In January, exchanges will open for Americans to shop for health insurance and gain access to government subsidies based on income, said House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland in a statement praising the law's benefits.
"Furthermore, insurance companies will be prohibited from discriminating against Americans with pre-existing conditions or charging women more than men for the exact same policy,' Hoyer said. "These reforms build on the law's positive changes that are already benefiting Americans. Today, 80 percent of all premium dollars must be spent on health care, seniors in the Medicare prescription drug donut hole are paying less for their medications, and delivery system reforms have helped slow the growth in health care spending to its lowest level in 50 years."
Not a single Republican voted for the Affordable Care Act, and so far 13 Republican governors, including Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, have refused to implement a key component - an expansion of Medicaid to cover more low income Americans. The program is fully funded by the federal government for the first three years, and no less than 90 percent after that.
Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Secretary Kathy Kliebert said the Obama administration's decision to delay implementation of the employer mandate shows the state made the right decision on Medicaid.
"This delay is an admission by the federal government of what we've said all along, which is that ObamaCare is full of high costs and regulations that are too burdensome and too complicated for businesses," Kliebert said. "Other wide-ranging effects of implementing the Affordable Care Act would put healthcare in Louisiana at great risk. That is why we're not expanding Medicaid."
The Obama administration has complained that the GOP-led House has refused to provide adequate funding to implement the Affordable Care Act. The administration said the delay in the employer mandate is designed to meet two goals.
"First, it will allow us to consider ways to simplify the new reporting requirements consistent with the law," the Treasury Department said. "Second, it will provide time to adapt health coverage and reporting systems while employers are moving toward making health coverage affordable and accessible for their employees."
The Treasury Department said it had received complaints from businesses that the reporting requirements of the employer mandate are too cumbersome -- even if they already provide health insurance to their employees.