Obamacare: ‘A Big Nightmare’ For Small Businesses

‘A Huge Administrative Burden For These Companies’

For Small Companies: ‘Costs Are Up In 2015,’ While They’re Buried In ‘Tedious’ & ‘Ridiculous’ Paperwork

“The vast majority of small businesses are paying more for health insurance for their employees under the health-care law, and many expect their costs to keep going up next year, according to a survey by the advocacy group National Small Business Association.” (“90% Of Small Businesses Say Obamacare Drove Up Health-Care Costs,” The Columbus Dispatch, 11/17/15)

“Ninety percent of owners said their costs are up in 2015 over last year, and 84 percent expect to pay more in 2016.” (“90% Of Small Businesses Say Obamacare Drove Up Health-Care Costs,” The Columbus Dispatch, 11/17/15)

ARIZONA: “Small firms struggle with rising health-care costs… ‘I think that, especially for small businesses that are required to provide health-care insurance, those costs, unfortunately, are going to go up due to the mandates under Obamacare,’ said Kevin Peck, director of the Small Business Development Center at Eastern Arizona College. (“Small Firms Struggle With Rising Health-Care Costs,” Eastern Arizona Courier, 11/28/2015)

“…said Tim Taylor, executive vice president and general manager at DRG Technologies, of Safford. ‘For two years, we’ve had to make a choice between significantly higher premiums or a reduction in benefits. When I say reduction in benefits, I’m primarily talking about a rise in deductible amounts.” (“Small Firms Struggle With Rising Health-Care Costs,” Eastern Arizona Courier, 11/28/2015)

“‘In order not to have the premiums go way up, the deductible goes up. Those are kind of the choices that we have to make these days. … ‘If the cost of insurance is higher, that’s just that much less that we have for merit increases. Obviously, I’d like to give my best people big raises all the time, but you have to keep that in perspective with what your total labor rate’s going to be. So certainly it impacts the business in that regard, and it impacts the employees.’” (“Small Firms Struggle With Rising Health-Care Costs,” Eastern Arizona Courier, 11/28/2015)

“What would have been a 4.5 percent increase in health insurance costs turned into a 9 percent increase this year for a Tempe, Ariz.-based signage company due to the Affordable Care Act’s tax on health insurers. That’s just not fair, said Blue Media owner Jared Smith…” (“Obamacare's Tax On Health Insurers Hitting Small Businesses Instead,” The Business Journals, 11/3/15)

PENNSYLVANIA: “New Obamacare mandate buries small Lehigh Valley businesses in paperwork.” (“New Obamacare Mandate Buries Small Lehigh Valley Businesses In Paperwork,” The [Allentown] Morning Call, 11/21/2015)

“[Morris Black and Sons] Office manager Deb Levy estimates she'll have to spend about 40 to 60 hours filling out the Internal Revenue Service's 1095-C form for every person employed by the company over the course of the year. ‘It's tedious,’ she said. ‘It's ridiculous … You are guessing at what codes you need to use.’” (“New Obamacare mandate buries small Lehigh Valley businesses in paperwork,” The [Allentown] Morning Call, 11/21/2015)

“‘I am the HR department,’ said Levy, who also handles payroll, among other duties. For each 1095-C form, she has to make two copies, one for the employee and another for the IRS, she explained. The IRS is supposed to check for accuracy by comparing the information on the forms to that of matching forms submitted by the employers' insurance carriers. ‘It's a waste of taxpayer money, and it's a waste of employer time and money,’ she said.” (“New Obamacare mandate buries small Lehigh Valley businesses in paperwork,” The [Allentown] Morning Call, 11/21/2015)

“‘It's a huge administrative burden for these companies,’ said Michael Stocker, an employee benefits broker with Hampson Mower Kreitz Insurance in Bethlehem, which counts Morris Black and Sons among its clients. It is also a burden for the brokers. Stocker said he has been spending so much time during the week interpreting and explaining the law to clients that he's had to go to the office on Saturdays and Sundays to get the rest of his work done.” (“New Obamacare mandate buries small Lehigh Valley businesses in paperwork,” The [Allentown] Morning Call, 11/21/2015)

CONNECTICUT: Obamacare ‘going to be a big nightmare for a lot of businesses’ “Companies with 50 to 99 full-time employees must offer affordable insurance to employees and their dependents starting Jan. 1. They also must file tax forms with the government by Jan. 31 detailing the cost of their coverage and the names and Social Security numbers of employees and their dependents. While companies of all sizes are subject to the law must file the forms, smaller businesses without big staffs to handle the paperwork may have to hire someone to do it — at a cost of hundreds or thousands of dollars. ‘It’s probably going to be a big nightmare for a lot of businesses,’ said David Lewis, president of Operations Inc., a human resources provider based in Norwalk, Connecticut.” (“Small Businesses Face New Obamacare Rules,” Asbury Park Press, 10/25/15)

‘The Small Business Health Insurance Exchange … Is Struggling To Catch On’

“After nearly two years in operation and millions of dollars spent in development, the small business health insurance exchange created by the Affordable Care Act is struggling to catch on. Nationally, about 85,000 people, from 11,000 small businesses, have coverage through the online marketplace known as the Small Business Health Options Program, or SHOP, according to the latest federal data released in May.” (“Small Businesses Snub Obamacare’s SHOP Exchange,” USA Today, 11/2/15)

“That’s less than 1% of people with coverage in the U.S. small group insurance market that in 2013 had about 16.7 million people enrolled in health plans…” (“Small Businesses Snub Obamacare’s SHOP Exchange,” USA Today, 11/2/15)

‘Response has been substantially smaller than expected’ “The Congressional Budget Office in January estimated 1 million people would enroll for coverage through SHOP in 2015. No one expected the SHOP exchange to have a large enrollment, but industry officials say its early response has been substantially smaller than expected.” (“Small Businesses Snub Obamacare’s SHOP Exchange,” USA Today, 11/2/15)

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SENATE REPUBLICAN COMMUNICATIONS CENTER

Related Issues: Small Business, Health Care, Obamacare

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