Page 43 - Summer 2014

HEALTH CARE REFORM UPDATE With the ACA’s Employer Mandate rapidly approaching for ski areas, clarity and innovative solutions for compliance are emerging W hen the Obama administration announced it was delaying compliance with the employer mandate provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) until January 1, 2015—large employers would not be required to offer health insurance to their full-time employees, or face stiff penalties, until that date—many companies breathed a (temporary) sigh of relief. In fact, the employer mandate will be even further delayed for medium-sized employers. For those employers who have between 50 and 99 full-time employees (including full-time equivalents, or FTEs), these businesses will have until January 1, 2016, before they risk a federal penalty for not complying with the employer mandate. That’s two years later than originally planned under ACA. With the delay of the employer mandate, both federal regulatory agencies and health care plan providers now have more time and latitude to clarify confusing aspects of the mandate and, importantly, develop innovative strategies for ACA com- pliance. And given the unique business model of most ski areas, including an over- whelming reliance on large numbers of seasonal employees and volunteers, resorts should work closely with their benefits providers to address recent regulatory guid- ance impacting the employer mandate, as well as explore a variety of innovative plan options in this fast-evolving landscape. G By Dave Byrd, Director of Risk & Regulatory Affairs SUMMER 2014 | NSAA Journal | 41 2014 | NSAA Journal | 41 w w w w.nsaa. orgw w.nsaa. org SUMMER NSAA Summer 2014 prepressed v6a.indd 41 7/3/14 4:20 PM