ND1103112

Title: NACS Urges Administration to Accommodate Part-Time Workers

Description: NACS maintains that the ability for retailers to offer affordable coverage options for part-time, seasonal and temporary employees must be taken into account.

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WASHINGTON ? NACS recently submitted comments to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) regarding various proposed regulations on employers as part of the health-care reform bill signed into law in 2010.

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As a Steering Committee member of the Employers for Flexibility in Health Care coalition, NACS is adamant that final regulations accommodate the unique burdens faced by employers with large labor pools of part-time, temporary and seasonal workers with fluctuating and unpredictable work hours, as well as unpredictable lengths of service.�

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?Maintaining the ability to offer affordable coverage options to our unique workforce under the new requirements of the law is of special concern to us,? the coalition said in its comment letter.

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At issue are such critical topics as defining what makes an employer health plan "affordable" for employees; how the IRS will verify whether covered employers offer the required "minimum essential coverage;? how the HHS proposes employers will report information to the 50-plus state exchanges and multiple federal agencies; which employees will qualify for a premium tax credit to help them buy health insurance; and more.

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In particular, NACS encouraged the administration to:

• Employ a flexible definition of ?full time employees? (who will be entitled to affordable coverage under the law if they are one of at least 50 employees);
• Rely on existing sources of information wherever possible rather than requiring employers to navigate new reporting systems;
• Implement a safe harbor that would not require employers to determine an employee?s family income for purposes of designing an ?affordable? health plan; and
• Requiring the health insurance ?exchanges? to collect information about employees? eligibility for subsidies rather than expecting employers to collect and report on such information.

While NACS continues to advocate for the repeal of the employer mandate, the regulatory process for the law is still in the opening stages of implementation.�We will continue urging the administration to account for the convenience and fuel retailing industry?s unique complexities.

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Content Subject: Government Relations

Formatted Article Date: November 3, 2011

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