The Obama administration will delay the implementation of a key provision in the Affordable Care Act, which requires businesses with more than 50 employees to provide adequate health care coverage, until 2015.
The decision ensures the provision won't go into effect until after the 2014 midterm elections.
Officials told Bloomberg that most large employers already provide health care that meets the law's requirements.
Republicans have already taken to Twitter to blast the decision.
Rather than simply delaying the pain, we should go ahead and scrap this entire law before any more damage is done.
Eric Cantor
@GOPLeader
Rather than simply delaying the pain, we should go ahead and scrap this entire law before any more damage is done.
The best delay for ObamaCare is a permanent one.
Eric Cantor
@GOPLeader
The best delay for ObamaCare is a permanent one.
ObamaCare train wreck delayed until after 2014 elections.
Rep. Lee Terry
@LEETERRYNE
ObamaCare train wreck delayed until after 2014 elections.
Obama bombshell announcement: big companies get a 1 year Obamacare waiver while small biz and individuals still must live under the mandate
James Lankford
@jameslankford
Obama bombshell announcement: big companies get a 1 year Obamacare waiver while small biz and individuals still must live under the mandate
Seriously, if the regs are so complex & burdensome that FOUR years isnt enough time to implement them, there's clearly a problem #ObamaCare
Rep. Martha Roby
@RepMarthaRoby
Seriously, if the regs are so complex & burdensome that FOUR years isnt enough time to implement them, there's clearly a problem #ObamaCare
The Associated Press reports a White House official said the decision was made to give more time to simplify the process:
Senior White House adviser Valerie Jarret cast the decision as part of an effort to simplify data reporting requirements.
She said since enforcing the coverage mandate is dependent on businesses reporting about their workers' access to insurance, the administration decided to postpone the reporting requirement, and with it, the mandate to provide coverage.
We have and will continue to make changes as needed," Jarrett wrote in a White House blog post. "In our ongoing discussions with businesses we have heard that you need the time to get this right. We are listening.
The president's health care law is already raising costs and costing jobs. This announcement means even the Obama administration knows the 'train wreck' will only get worse. I hope the administration recognizes the need to release American families from the mandates of this law as well. This is a clear acknowledgment that the law is unworkable, and it underscores the need to repeal the law and replace it with effective, patient-centered reforms.