Written by Michael Moran on June 25, 2010 – 5:35 am
The Kingston Daily Freeman reports on a forum for businesses on federal health care reform.
They write: “To review details of the new health care reform law, the changes that will be made by the year 2014, and what this new system will mean for business owners, the Ulster County Chamber of Commerce hosted a panel discussion Tuesday.
“This is a long-range document where the changes occur over time,” according to Margaret Moree, director of federal affairs for The Business Council of New York State.
“Businesses will need to be planning about their benefit plan design in health insurance, but they also need to have a lot of (human resources-) and personnel-related changes in terms of their practice and in terms of how they inform employees,” Moree said.
Moree said changes in documentation and reporting to the federal government, taxation, and W-2 forms will bring increased responsibilities for business owners and require them to have well-laid plans for years ahead. “There are responsibilities of plan design in terms of the kinds of health benefits they offer to their employees, and if they make changes there are consequences to that,” she said. “There are cost-sharing responsibilities that the law asks employers to undertake and, if not, the individuals may be eligible for subsidies by the year 2014.”