The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been shaking things up in the world of employee health care benefits for 14 years, creating a lot of opportunities but also throwing some tricky challenges at employers of all sizes and industries. Perhaps the biggest headache is federal reporting compliance. Yes, it's still a tough nut to crack for many HR and benefits leaders — and the IRS continues to become more aggressive in seeking out and penalizing violators. Last year, the agency added over 87,000 new tax examiners and received more than $80 billion in additional funding. 

One major pain point for benefits professionals and advisors is making sure you have all the right data about employees and their health care coverage. Get this right, and you're more likely to cruise smoothly through the potentially rocky waters of ACA compliance. Get it wrong or put it off, and you could be looking at hefty fines that hit the millions of dollars annually.

This article tells you why having the right data is critical for ACA compliance and gives you seven strategies to keep data accurate and complete.