The July 2 announcement of the one-year delay in the health care reform requirement that businesses with 50 or more employees offer coverage to their workers or pay a penalty has been a leading news story. But what does it mean for your business? The delay comes as a response to business concerns about the law’s employer responsibility reporting requirements. Employers felt they were not given a reasonable amount of time to make the necessary system changes to comply with the law. For your accounts with fewer than 50 employees, the delay does not affect them — nor should it slow down any of your sales efforts with them. If you’re still encountering a wait-and-see attitude about what to do in the new health care environment, stress that reform is here and that Aflac’s voluntary products are even more critical for the financial security of their employees. More importantly, the announced delay does not affect the Oct. 1 start of the exchanges nor the Oct. 1 deadline that all employers must provide their employees with the Health Insurance Marketplace or Exchange Notice. This notice explains whether or not the employer is going to offer the employee health benefits or is going to send the employee to the exchange. The mandatory notice requirement is a great conversation starter for new and existing accounts about the changes health care reform brings and the role of Aflac products. The announcement also does not delay the subsidies designed to help people with low-to-middle incomes buy coverage; or the requirement that most individuals buy coverage or pay a fine. While most of the employers affected by the delay offer coverage to their employees, individuals whose employers do not offer coverage will need to go to the exchanges to purchase coverage. For your accounts with more than 50 employees who are not offering medical coverage, they will need to understand the delay is only related to their role in reporting the medical coverage they may provide. Their employees will still need to go to the exchange for coverage ─ a fact you can share with them along with how Aflac’s voluntary products can help their employees have greater financial security when unexpected illness or accidents happen.
Posted on: Mon, 08 Jul 2013 12:33:37 +0000
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