If an employer has on average fewer than 50 full-time (and full-time equivalent) employees in 2014:

No change. Employer is not subject to the mandate. Employers close to the fifty employee threshold may count employees during any consecutive six-month period (as chosen by the employer) during 2014.

If employer has on average between 50 and 99 full-time (including full-time equivalents) employees in 2014, the employer may not qualify for the delay if the employer currently offers no plan or has made significant changes to the plan. The rules for determining status as an ALE include application of the rule regarding employers whose workforce exceeds the applicable threshold (99 for this transition rule) for 120 days or fewer during the calendar year due to the employment of seasonal workers. Under this 50-99 transition rule:

An employer has a one-year delay in the employer mandate until January 1, 2016 (and for non-calendar-year plans, any calendar months during the plan year beginning in 2015 that fall in 2016) if:
- Employer certifies it did not lay off employees during the period beginning on February 9, 2014 and ending on Dec. 31, 2014 to fall below the 100 employee threshold and that employer did not reduce any coverage already offered, and
- During the period beginning on February 9, 2014 and ending on Dec. 31, 2014, employer does not eliminate or materially reduce the health coverage, if any, offered as of February 9, 2014. An employer will not be treated as eliminating or materially reducing health coverage if, for each employee who is eligible for coverage on February 9, 2014:

(a) The employer offers to make a contribution toward the cost of employee-only coverage that is either (i) at least 95 percent of the dollar amount of the contribution the employer was making toward the coverage in effect as of February 9, 2014, or (ii) at least the same percentage of the cost of coverage that the employer offered to contribute toward coverage in effect as of February 9, 2014;

Instant Insights /

What employer, employee mean under PPACA

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