The government passes a byzantine 906-page law that touches almost every American citizen and business. Opponents wage a three-year war trying to undo it. No surprise, then, that the public ends up bewildered. That includes business owners who have real-money decisions to make about health care next year—and apparently don’t grasp the most basic elements of the health reform law.
A majority of business owners with fewer than 50 employees believe they have to provide health insurance to workers next year or pay a fine, according to a new survey by online health insurance marketplace EHealth. That, of course, is wrong. The Affordable Care Act’s employer mandate, which takes effect in 2014, only applies to businesses with more than 50 people working at least 30 hours a week (or an equivalent number of part-timers).
